Enjoying rugby has made me play better – Moloney-MacDonald

Enjoying rugby has made me play better – Moloney-MacDonaldImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Moloney-MacDonald made her Ireland debut in 2015, but had to wait 11 years to hit 50 caps for her countryByLauren McCannBBC Sport NI JournalistPublished14 May 2026Ireland hooker Cliodhna Moloney-MacDonald reported that enjoying her rollercoaster rugby journey “has made me play better”.The 32-year-old won her 50th cap for Ireland in their opening 2026 Women’s Six Nations game against England in front of a record crowd at Twickenham.She made her debut for Ireland in 2015, but after a spell in the international wilderness between 2022 and 2024, has had to wait longer than most to hit the milestone.Despite that spell out of the squad, Moloney-MacDonald feels “privileged to experience it all” during various ups and downs in the past decade with the women’s team and believes they are in a really strong place now.”It makes me enjoy this a lot more and understand how lucky we are, because I’m maybe one of the only ones in the current squad who has been through all the different cycles in the last 10-11 years of Irish rugby and women’s rugby in general,” she told the Ireland Rugby Social podcast.”Yes I compete and compete hard, but I understand how lucky I am and it should be fun. I’m here to enjoy rugby now, that’s made me play better.”There’s not really anything we have to worry about form a culture point of view. ‘Tricky’ [Edel McMahon] and Sam [Monaghan, former Ireland co-captains] did great work in those initial few years when I wasn’t here. They embedded a groundwork that doesn’t need to be mentioned anymore. The squad are a brilliant group of people.”Scotland can ‘really turn it on when it matters’ – King