Ms McGroarty to represent Team Ireland in Australia
St Vincent's Science and PE Teacher Ms McGroarty is heading off to Australia this week to play in the Tag Rugby World Cup. She'll be representing Team Ireland on the mixed team, having gotten the call-up to the national team in November of last year.
"It’s a real honour to, I suppose, represent your own country.” Ms McGroarty says. It “isn't a massive sport, a lot of people don't know about it. They don't even know there is an Irish team. I myself, when I started playing, didn't even know there was an Irish team. It's great to have been asked to trial and to then be representing the country in Australia."
She began playing the sport only a couple years ago, before that playing rugby union, the type of Rugby most are familiar with. She says she "always loved Rugby", being the only girl on her team until she had to leave at age 13. She resumed Rugby Union when she got to college in DCU, however that came to an end when she got a head injury.
She says she is "super excited" to meet with the other teams from around the globe, including rivals Australia and Britain. Her goal she says, is to come out with a goal medal.
It will be her first time going abroad with the team, having won their game against Britain at home last summer. She says the win was a "great start" for their international campaign, giving the team confidence. The team will be hoping to repeat that result when they meet Team GB again.
Ms McGroarty trains with her current team three nights a week plus weekends. "I think as a teacher, it’s a great way to get out of the house and do some exercise in the evening and meet loads of people. I think it’s really important to have something sporting-wise for the social aspect but then also for your own physical health”.
There are twenty players on Ireland's tag rugby team, with the matches being 8-a-side. Each game lasts for 40 minutes. The aim of the game is to score tries with a ball, like in Rugby union, however, rather than tackling to stop the play, teams must pull tags off their opponents.
"I hope that the students would look at my experience, for someone who only started playing tag rugby two years ago. I want students to see that it’s never too late to start something new and that whatever you choose, you give it 100%. You never know where it will take you."
Ms McGroaty will fly out to Sydney on Wednesday, October 7th, where she will have a week's training camp before the competition starts on the 14th of October. In the starting pool, Ireland will face teams like Greece, Japan and China. If they can get through that stage, they will progress to face the bigger teams like Britain, Australia and New Zealand.
Ms McGroarty has high hopes for the team abroad, saying, "I think we are pretty confident, as Team Ireland, that we are going to do quite well."
Comments