Brittany Hogan: Defeat to Scotland wont lead to player exodus

Ireland flanker Brittany Hogan doesn't believe a potential wooden spoon for Ireland in the TikTok Women's Six Nations will lead to a player exodus.

A winless campaign on the pitch, and controversy off it, has led to a difficult championship for Ireland's squad, who are rebuilding after several high-profile retirements in 2021 and 2022.

Last week, assistant coach Niamh Briggs described how "draining" the media coverage of the Ireland women's programme had become, to the extent that she had taken a step back from social media.

Captain Nichola Fryday was also frustrated by the "outside noise" that followed them after their 24-7 defeat to Italy in Parma in Round 3.

Ireland performed better than expected in Saturday's defeat to England, in spite of the scoreline, with head coach Greg McWilliams saying he believed their third quarter performance in particular marked "a line in the sand" for his young side.

Last week's step forward could be followed by two back this weekend. Only a bonus-point win will realistically be enough for Ireland to stand a chance of avoiding the wooden spoon in the Six Nations.

Finishing bottom of the table would be a bitter pill to swallow at the best of times, but if ever there was a bad year to do so, this is it, with sixth place also sending McWilliams' side to the bottom tier of the new WXV tournament which starts later this year.

However, Hogan (below) doesn't believe this year's deflating campaign will see players walk away from the Women's XV programme.

"No, I wouldn't say anyone would be turned off," the flanker said, ahead of Saturday's meeting with Scotland in Edinburgh.

"Any time you get to wear the green jersey, it's always a privilege and we're so proud to wear it. We cherish every single minute