Nov 20,2024
Aoife Wafer has been a woman on a mission this year. One that has culminated in her being named the Guinness Rugby Writers of Ireland women's XVs player of the year.
Having initially made her Ireland debut against Italy in the 2022 Six Nations, a ruptured hamstring saw her forced to wait a year-and-a-half for her second cap - "560 days" as Wafer puts it herself. Not that she was counting.
Easing herself back into life with the Ireland squad with an appearance off the bench against Spain last October, it wasn't until the start of this year’s Six Nations Championship that she made her first start for Ireland in a 38-17 defeat away to France.
Wafer claimed the only Irish try in that defeat in Le Mans, impressing throughout, and she has built on that platform throughout the year.
In a year where Ireland made considerable improvement in the Six Nations, Wafer was named the Irish player of the tournament and was included on a four-player shortlist for the Player of the Championship.
The Wexford backrow was also named player of the round twice across the five game weeks, as Scott Bemand’s side secured their place at the 2025 World Cup with a third placed finish,.
But more was to come as Wafer played the starring role in her country’s shock defeat World Champions New Zealand in the WXV1.
Wafer crossed the tryline twice against the Black Ferns in Vancouver and put in the standout performance on what was a famous day for Ireland.
Still just a 21-year-old, Wafer has been happy to make up for lost time this year.
"It’s kind of been a crazy year to be fair," she said. "It started off by getting my first start versus France after working my way back from a few injuries, working back into the team and trying to get back involved.
"So kickstarting a good campaign with Ireland in France, it was the start of a growth for this team over the last year. We worked our way through a Six Nations and coming third and qualifying straight for a World Cup, then straight into WXV1.
"WXV1 with Ireland was, I’d say out of the blue for other people but we always believed we could get those results. We were always fairly certain that if we followed our steps and what we wanted to do that results will follow that."
While it was her performances in the Six Nations that marked her out as a rising star in the Irish set-up, Wafer really announced herself on the world stage against the New Zealand.
It was Wafer's two tries that set the platform for a famous victory and even know, Wafer admits that she finds it hard to believe that she achieved a lifelong dream in that 29-27 victory.
"Beating the Black Ferns is a highlight for me in my career, I’d say, for the rest of my life and it’s going to be a day that I look back on very fondly. We came away from that Canadian game and we were a little bit disappointed but getting another win in WXV1 against USA is pretty special.
"It was crazy. The week coming up into it we had so much clarity as a team what we needed to do and what we needed to execute to be able to beat the current world champions.
"We knew going into it that we had to be on it. If anyone was a step off of it then it just wasn't going to happen. There were messages coming from home and I know all the girls that are home currently rehabbing or just at home, they were all behind us and we could feel that kinda green wave coming with us and we knew once that Haka started, once we marched forward, that was it and everyone was on it.
"I suppose then once kick-off happened and we just knew what the task was, we executed on the night so, yes, it was crazy.
"Even thinking back to it, I just can't believe it has happened, like, growing up that was always something I wanted to do, to face the Haka.
"Like you go into schools, I do a bit of coaching myself, and that is the number one question that kids ask, 'what is it like to face the Haka?' And sure at the time there were only two people on the team who could answer that.
"To say we are going into a World Cup now having beaten the Black Ferns, having faced the Haka, having done all of those things we have experience in now, so I guess it makes for a tasty fixture now for the 2025 World Cup."
The Ballygarrett woman has little time to rest on her laurels however with a stacked schedule looming for Ireland.
The Six Nations gets under way in a matter of months with France travelling to Ireland for the opening fixture as Wafer and her team-mates look to build on last year's campaign, and gain a measure of revenge over France.
"We drew a line after the French game in the middle of the huddle. We said that we can't back down from that line. I think from that French game we haven't.
"Everyone has kept growing and everyone is absolutely desperate to be part of a successful Irish team and it is breathing that competitiveness in training and it is making everyone better players, but it is making us a better team as a whole as well, so I suppose going into the Six Nations we have to keep building and we just have to keep being us I suppose as well. We want to keep firing shots.
"I am really excited to get stuck into that campaign, already we have countdowns on the board outside our changing room and that French game is definitely one that is on at the minute, so incredibly excited for that.
With the World Cup in England following in the summer, it's going to be a hectic year for Ireland, but it's one that Wafer is relishing.
"The last World Cup I was at was in 2017 in Ireland," she said. "I was just a kid sitting on the sideline asking people for autographs and being an absolute fan-girl of all the girls that were on the field.
"It's absolutely amazing to be qualified but I don’t think we as a team are happy with just qualifying. We want to go and be successful.
"We want to do big things in this World Cup and we believe that we’re able to do that."
