King was beaming with pride after Ireland marked the momentous occasion of the first ever standalone Women’s international fixture at the Aviva Stadium with a 54-5 victory over Scotland, who are often one of their trickiest opponents.
The 22-year-old was part of another brilliant back row effort, with the trio contributing five of the eight tries, as player-of-the-match Aoife Wafer and Brittany Hogan closed out the Championship as the hosts’ top try scorers with five each.
With the influential Clíodhna Moloney-MacDonald, Robyn O’Connor, and Stacey Flood also crossing, Ireland finished a Six Nations tournament with three wins for the first time since 2020, an achievement all the more satisfying given it was witnessed by a new record home crowd of 31,294.
“We were delighted to show what we’re capable of for the majority of the game,” said the 12-times capped King afterwards. “Really happy with that performance and really proud of the girls.
“We’re only growing and this is just the beginning. It’s really positive. Obviously we put it out there that we wanted three home wins, and we haven’t gotten that in a while.
“So, to put that out there and then get that done, we’re really proud of that. Yeah, just a performance in itself.
“I think that first half we really came out of the blocks. We’ve talked all campaign about having a fast start, and I think we showed that we can do that.”
Seven unanswered tries, with another one disallowed, saw Scott Bemand’s charges dominate the first half to lead 47-0. Scotland, who have had bad luck with injuries this year, rallied after the break and cancelled out Hogan’s second try with a last-minute consolation score from Aicha Sutcliffe.
Given how each of the teams’ last four Six Nations encounters had been decided by margins fewer than five points, this was a big statement of intent from Ireland, whose forwards continually punched holes in the defence, with the likes of Eve Higgins and the back-three also finding gaps.
There may have been heightened nerves beforehand given the historic nature of the day, but King, who was her team’s top tackler with 17 tackles and none missed, continued to show exactly why Bemand appointed her as captain for their first tournament since the Rugby World Cup.
One of nine Irish players shortlisted for the Capgemini Team of the Championship, she finished just her second Six Nations campaign as the competition’s leading tackler (80) and jackler (7), and with two tries and the most attacking ruck arrivals (188) and defensive ruck arrivals (72) to her name.
Asked how she felt when leading the team out for their debut at the home of Irish Rugby, she admitted: “It’s kind of hard to put into words, the feeling of walking out and leading the girls out.
“Like, I feel really privileged and really lucky to have this opportunity and be part of the 23 that get to make history today. But there’s a lot of girls and a lot of people that have been part of this journey.
“You know, the founding team from 1993, we have them to thank really. They are the reason that we’re here. They began all this for us.
“Everyone who is part of our Green Wave, everyone who has ever worn the green jersey, and anyone to wear the green jersey, you know, all the little girls and boys and anyone that was here today. Everyone’s part of that.
“It is kind of beyond my wildest dreams. Hard to put into words, the feeling. I just feel really lucky, and I’m really, really proud of the girls.”
What made this week even more memorable for King and her team-mates was the opportunity to meet the trailblazing players who started it all back in 1993, when they came together as the first ever Ireland Women’s side, fittingly playing their maiden international against Scotland in Raeburn Place, the historic birthplace of international rugby.
The 1993 heroes were invited into camp on Saturday for a special jersey presentation at the team hotel in Killiney, connecting the generations and building lasting bonds between the groups. The ever-growing Green Wave would be nothing without the players who have gone before the current squad.
In addition, there was richly-deserved recognition of 33 years of Irish Women’s international rugby at a commemorative IRFU post-match function in the Aviva Stadium yesterday. All current and former Ireland 15s and Sevens international players were invited to receive a heritage cap bearing their unique playing number.
Reflecting on meeting the pioneers of the Women’s game, King thoroughly enjoyed the chance to chat to and swap stories with Ireland’s 1993 captain Jill Henderson and fellow back rower Cath Mulalley, whom she exchanged number 7 jerseys with on the eve of the clash with Scotland.
“It was really special actually. We got to present each other with our jerseys (on Saturday night). They said to us that they felt like they were in awe and they were honoured to be in front of us.
“Straight away we said that it was an honour to have them there, and that we’re in awe of them. All the hard work that they had to do. They didn’t have any support and they just played rugby because they loved it, and I guess at the end of the day that’s why we do it.
“We never lose sight of that, and that is a big pillar of mine personally and something that I love to bring into the team – to enjoy it and play with smiles on faces, and that’s why you start playing rugby, because you love the sport.”
She added: “We really had that in common, which is really nice, and they were chatting about loads of stories and we were telling them stories.
“It was really funny when the girls were presenting the jerseys. It was like ‘mini mes’ and things like that. You know, the second rows were all really tall and the scrum halves were all really short, so that was really funny.
“They have this big sense of pride watching us play, which is really nice. Yeah, it was a really special day that I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”