'We're history makers now' - King proud as Ireland win SA series

Published2 hours ago

Ireland captain Erin King hailed her side as "history makers" after they sealed a Test series win on South African soil.

Beibhinn Parsons' hat-trick, Aoife Dalton's double and King's opening score lifted Ireland to a 38-17 victory over the Springboks at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.

Having won last week's encounter 40-27, Scott Bemand's side became the first Irish team to secure back-to-back wins in South Africa.

"We spoke about how special it is to get the opportunity to go on tour to such a beautiful place and how rare it is," said King.

"You don't get many opportunities to do it, so we had a really good time on pitch and off pitch.

"We knew on pitch there was a job to do and we stuck to that and I think we kept building throughout the whole Global Series and we really showed today what we're capable of, especially when the pressure is on.

"We spoke about being the first Irish team to come to South Africa and win a Test series and we've done it, so I'd say we're history makers now!

Ireland fell behind early and trailed again with 20 minutes left as the Boks set out to avenge last week's loss.

But the Irish scored 24 unanswered points to storm towards another impressive success as they finished the WXV Global Series with three wins from four.

"The South Africans really brought it to us and we just had to stick to our game plan and stick to our processes and I'm unbelievably proud of the girls," added King, who led Ireland to seven wins from 10 in her first year as captain.

"It was really tough out there, it was a bit level at times, we weren't sure. They just stuck to their guns, we had each other's backs and we had an unbelievable time.

"South Africa is a beautiful place and we've made some unforgettable memories."

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