Ireland 10
England 12
Ireland got their November Test Series off to a disappointing start after a narrow defeat to World Champions England at the Belfield Bowl in UCD.
Nora Stapleton was Ireland's only point scorer of the afternoon, notching a try, conversion and penalty to challenge an experienced English outfit.
Rocky Clarke and Izzy Noel-Smith got the tries for the visitors, with Katy McLean nailing the vital conversion which resulted in the winning two-point margin.
With Canada and New Zealand to visit UCD in the next two weekends, Ireland will take many positives from the performance and will see this series as a base off of which they can build a challenge for the Rugby World Cup next year on home soil.
The Ireland Women's rugby team in a huddle before today's game at the Belfield Bowl in UCD.
Ailis Egan heads into contact
Sene Naoupu breaks through the tackle of two England players
Niamh Kavanagh is brought down during today's game
Sene Naoupu and Chloe Pearse celebrate with try scorer Nora Stapleton
England players celebrate at the end of the match
Ireland players dejected after this afternoon's defeat
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
