'She said what was needed to be said' - Alison Miller thrilled with Cliodhna Moloney's Irish return

Former Ireland international Alison Miller believes the return of Cliodhna Moloney to the Irish squad is a sign of progress in the IRFU.

The Exeter Chiefs hooker was recalled to the Ireland squad this week for the first time since November 2021, when she publicly called out former women's rugby chief Anthony Eddy for comments he made following Ireland's failed World Cup qualification.

Moloney described Eddy's comments as "slurry spreading", and although she would feature in Ireland's two games that month against USA and Japan, the Galway native was a notable absentee throughout 2022 and 2023.

When Moloney was first dropped ahead of the 2022 Women's Six Nations, then-head coach Greg McWilliams maintained it was a "rugby decision" based on her form for Wasps, who she was with at the time.

Scott Bemand replaced McWilliams in the summer of 2023, and although Moloney's absence was extended through the WXV championship and the first two games of this Six Nations, injury to Sarah Delaney has seen the 31-year-old's international exile ended.

"Hallelujah, thank God," former Ireland wing Miller said on the RTÉ Rugby podcast, when discussing Moloney's recall.

"Hallelujah, thank God!... She's a phenomenal player..."

Alison Miller gives her take on the long-awaited return of Cliodhna Moloney to the Ireland squad ☘️