Niamh Briggs has been confirmed as Ireland's new assistant coach.
The 2013 Grand Slam winner will work alongside recently-installed head coach Greg McWilliams.
Briggs is one of Ireland's most decorated international players, captaining them to the 2015 Six Nations title, two years after being a key cog of the Grand Slam-winning side.
Her name was not among the 62 current and former players that sought government intervention following a dark year for the women's game in Ireland.
Briggs was assistant coach to the Munster side that prevailed in the Vodafone Women’s Inter-Provincial, and has also worked as head coach at UL Bohemians.
“I am delighted to come on board as an assistant coach as part of Greg’s coaching team," Briggs said.
"I worked with Greg during my playing career and while it is early days in his tenure, I believe he is building something really exciting as we strive to move Irish women’s rugby forward, both at a domestic and international level.
“I am excited to get started, to work with Greg and the rest of the management team, and to get to know the players as we build towards the Six Nations.
It’s going to be a challenging and busy couple of months, but it’s fantastic opportunity for us to create a special environment and help players achieve their dream of playing in green.”
Ireland's TikTok Women's Six Nations campaign begins against Wales at the RDS on March 26.
Briggs will work with McWilliams this weekend, as they oversee a training camp of 41 domestic-based players at the IRFU High Performance Centre.
The players who claimed silver for Ireland at the World Rugby Sevens Series in Seville last week will be reintegrated in the coming weeks.
McWilliams said, "This is an exciting time for domestic rugby and the Energia All-Ireland League, and we’ve selected a squad for this weekend’s screening camp that is reflective of that.
“We’ve been very clear with the players as to the profile we’re looking for and we’re looking for players with a good skillset, who bring an energy and intent and are able to go for long distances with high quality ball in play time.
“This weekend is all about testing the players in different situations.
"It’s important we test their rugby playing ability, but also their mind and their intellect around the game.
"We’ve set up a weekend that is going to be challenging for the players but it is also going to give the staff good information as we build towards the TikTok Women’s Six Nations.”
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