Two Irish teams will compete in this year's Celtic Challenge, with the tournament's opening interpro taking place on Friday, December 29th in Musgrave Park.
The two Irish teams competing in this year's competition have been named The Clovers and Wolfhounds, with the squads for both teams being unveiled this week.
Round 1 will see a derby day clash for the home Unions with their respective sides facing off for the first time.
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Celtic Challenge Format and Schedule
The tournament pits two sides from Wales, Scotland and Ireland together in a round robin format as the Celtic countries build up to the Guinness Women's Six Nations.
This year's tournament will span over an 11 week period and will reach its final stage on Sunday, March 3rd 2024. The competition will adopt a new format which will be made up of five rounds.
The play-offs will be made up of three rounds, with each round being hosted by a Home Union as a double-header event.
The fixtures, which will be determined by the regular round standings, will be the culmination of the competition’s most competitive fixtures as teams go head to head to be crowned this season’s winners.
All Irish home games will be played across three venues, Musgrave Park, Energia Park and Kingspan Stadium.
Where to Watch?
Fans of the women's game and the Celtic Challenge will be able to watch games live on RugbyPass TV.
RugbyPass TV will have very match available on the free-to-access platform when the tournament kicks-off on December 29th.
This will be the second year the competition has been running but it will be the first time all games will be broadcast live for fans to enjoy.
The Celtic Challenge provides a high-performance platform for young female players ahead of the Guinness Women’s Six Nations and bridges the gap between the domestic and international women’s games in the three Celtic nations.
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2023/24 Celtic Challenge Squads
The teams have essentially split the Irish players geographically in half, with the Clovers coming the two provinces of Connacht and Munster, whilst the Wolfhounds will consist of players mainly from Leinster and Ulster.
There will be some exceptions in both squads in order to provide quality game time and positional covered, so there will be some crossover with provincial players.
The two squads are made up of a mix of Ireland internationals and players from the Energia Women's All-Ireland league.
There'll also be some familiar faces in the coaching set-ups of both sides with the likes of Denis Fogarty, Niamh Briggs and Michelle Claffey all involved.
Clovers Squad
Celtic Challenge Forwards (Clovers):
- Lily Brady (UL Bohemians/Connacht)
- Clare Bennett (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Beth Buttimer (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Eilis Cahill (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Ruth Campbell (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Jane Clohessy (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Brianna Heylman (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Eva McCormack (UL Bohemians/Connacht)
- Sadhbh McGrath (Cooke/Ulster)
- Jane Neill (Galwegians/Leinster)
- Maeve Óg O’Leary (Blackrock/Munster)
- Niamh O Dowd (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Roisin Ormond (Ballincollig/Munster)
- Faith Ovawie (Railway Union/Connacht)
- Shannon Touhey (Tullamore/Connacht)
- Dorothy Wall (Blackrock/Munster)
Celtic Challenge Backs (Clovers):
- Clara Barrett (UL Bohemians/Connacht)
- Ellen Boylan (Blackrock/Munster)
- Aoife Corey (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Nicole Cronin (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Maebh Deely (Blackrock/Connacht)
- Aoife Doyle (Railway Union/Munster)
- Kate Flannery (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Clare Gorman (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Ailsa Hughes (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Laoise McGonagle (UL Bohemians/Connacht)
- Alana McInerney (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Michelle O’Driscoll (Ballincollig/Munster)
- Chisom Ugwueru (UL Bohemians/Munster)
- Kayla Waldron (Railway Union/Connacht)
Celtic Challenge Clovers Management Team
- Head Coach – Denis Fogarty
- Assistant Coach – Niamh Briggs
- Development Coach – Deirbhile Nic A Bhaird
- Physio – Ciaran Purcell
- S&C Coach – Lorna Barry
- Team Manager – Natalie Fox
Wolfhounds Squad
Celtic Challenge Forwards (Wolfhounds)
- Sophie Barrett (Railway Union/Ulster)
- Molly Boyne (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Keelin Brady (Railway Union/Ulster)
- Maebh Clenaghan (Queens University/Ulster)
- Megan Collis (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Eimear Corri (Blackrock/Leinster)
- India Daley (Blackrock/Ulster)
- Sarah Delaney (Blackrock/Leinster)
- Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Christy Haney (Blackrock/Leinster)
- Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere/Ulster)
- Aoife Moore (Blackrock/Leinster)
- Eadain Murtagh (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Hannah O’Connor (Blackrock/Leinster)
- Fiona Tuite (Old Belvedere/Ulster)
- Aoife Wafer (Blackrock/Leinster)
Celtic Challenge Backs (Wolfhounds):
- Natasja Behan (Blackrock/Leinster)
- Nikki Caughey (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Aimee Clarke (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Katie Corrigan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Ella Durkan (Blackrock/Ulster)
- Jade Gaffney (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Niamh Marley (Cooke/Ulster)
- Erin McConnell (Wicklow/Leinster)
- Kelly McCormil (Cooke/Ulster)
- Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
- Ava Ryder (Railway Union/Connacht)
- Leah Tarpey (Railway Union/Leinster)
- Katie Whelan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
Celtic Challenge Wolfhounds Management Team
- Head Coach Neil Alcorn
- Assistant Coach Michelle Claffey
- Development Coach Judy Bobbett
- S&C Coach – Greg Hollins
- Physio – Naomi Hamilton
- Team Manager Marianne Breen
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Celtic Challenge Cup Fixtures & Tickets
Friday, 29 December 2023 - Celtic Challenge
Wolfhounds v Clovers
Venue: Musgrave Park
Time: 4pm
Tickets: (Purchase Tickets Here)
Saturday 6th January 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Edinburgh Rugby v Wolfhounds
Venue: Hive Stadium
Time: 2pm
Saturday, 6th January 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Clovers v West Wales
Venue: Energia Park
Time: 2:30pm
Tickets: (Purchase Tickets Here)
Saturday 13th January 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Glasgow Warriors v Wolfhounds
Venue: Scotstoun Stadium
Time: 2pm
Sunday, 14th January, 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Clovers v East Wales
Venue: Musgrave Park
Time: 1pm
Tickets: (Purchase Tickets Here)
Saturday, 27th January 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Wolfhounds v West Wales
Venue: Kingspan Stadium
Time: 7:30pm
Saturday 27th January 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Glasgow Warriors v Clovers
Venue: Scotstoun Stadium
Time: 2pm
Saturday, 3rd February 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Wolfhounds v East Wales
Venue: Energia Park
Time: 2:30pm
Tickets: (Purchase Tickets Here)
Saturday 3rd February 2024 - Celtic Challenge
Edinburgh Rugby v Clovers
Venue: Hive Stadium
Time: 12:30pm
Play off Fixtures:
- Saturday 17, February 2024, Scotstoun Stadium
- Saturday, February 24, 2024, Kingspan Stadium
- Sunday, March 03, 2024, Parc y Scarlets Stadium
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