Cavan Town native Laura Tierney has been selected to represent Ireland after earning a place in the Ireland Women's Senior / 27s squad for the 2026 International Tag Federation (ITF) Tag World Cup in Australia. Laura will travel to Coffs Harbour, approximately 500 kilometres north of Sydney, where the tournament takes place from 15th – 18th October 2026. More than 200 teams from over 30 countries are expected to compete across men's, women's and mixed competitions at multiple age grades. A data scientist working in the video games industry, Laura attended Farnham National School before continuing her education at Loreto College Cavan. A talented Gaelic footballer, she represented Killygarry GAA before later playing with Man O'War GFC in Dublin. While studying at Trinity College Dublin, she captained the ladies' Gaelic football team and also served as chairperson of the club. Like all of Ireland's international tag rugby players, Laura balances elite amateur sport alongside her professional career, training around work while preparing to compete against the world's best.
The ITF Tag World Cup will feature teams from more than 30 nations. Ireland is recognised as one of the world's leading tag rugby nations and is a member of the International Tag Federation alongside Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. Other participating nations include France, Vietnam, South Africa, China, Palestine, Italy, Greece, Sri Lanka, Malta, Lebanon, Tonga, Fiji, Tokelau, Samoa and many more. Australia is considered the home of tag rugby, with more than 200,000 participants playing through 140 associations nationwide. Australian teams have dominated international competition and have hosted the majority of Tag Rugby World Cups since the tournament began in 2012. The most recent Tag Rugby World Cup was hosted by Ireland in Limerick in August 2023, where Irish teams won medals across eight divisions.
Earlier this year, the Irish Tag Rugby Association announced a partnership with SMBC Aviation Capital to support Ireland's national squads. Laura Tierney said
It's an absolute honour to be selected to represent Ireland at a World Cup. Australia is the home of the sport, and travelling there is a huge and very exciting challenge.
Before travelling to Australia, Ireland will host Great Britain in the British & Irish Cup at UCD on 1st – 2nd August
