Larn has big Leinster and international ambitions

Having already sampled what it is like to be part of the set-up, Athy’s Amy Larn has acknowledged it is her ultimate goal to line out with Ireland in a 15s international test.

Back in February 2025, Larn was included in a 40-strong preparation squad that Ireland head coach Scott Bemand announced ahead of the forthcoming Women’s Six Nations Championship. Considering this was also the year the Green Army competed in the Rugby World Cup for the first time since 2017, it spoke volumes that Bemand has opted to bring Larn into his camp.

While she wasn’t called upon for action during that particular window – she also spent a lot of that time with the Sevens squad at the IRFU’s High Performance Centre in Abbotstown – it did whet the appetite for what international 15s rugby could offer.

“I was in and out of the squad for Six Nations [in 2025]. It was a class experience to be in camp, it was a class set-up. To be properly immersed in the camp was class and then I crossed over with Sevens as well during that camp. I did a bit of both. It was a really good experience to be in there with the team,” Larn recalled.

“I’ve really enjoyed the Sevens and whatever the Sevens future holds, I’d love to continue with that. Also 15s opportunities. That’s one of the main goals to get there, to play 15s.” 

It is little surprise Larn is so eager to continue her career as a Sevens rugby player, given the life experience and exposure it has provided her with to date. Having featured at U18 level for both province and country in the code, Larn was drafted into the Ireland Sevens senior squad not long after completing her Leaving Certificate exams at Ardscoil na Tríonóide in Athy.

She made a strong impression upon entering the programme and was subsequently selected as a travelling reserve on the Irish squad that took part in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Yet following an injury sustained by team captain Lucy Mulhall, Larn was officially added to the squad and eventually made her Olympic bow in a quarter-final defeat to Australia at Stade de France on July 29, 2024.

When she reflects on her experience of being over in the French capital, it is with an overwhelmingly positive outlook.

“I came into the Sevens programme when I was 18. Two weeks after my Leaving Cert and I have been in the programme since. The Olympics was class. Obviously it was my first year in the programme and it was just an unbelievable experience.

“To go away for three weeks and I had training camps in the Olympic Village. It was the first time ever that the Irish women had qualified, so it was huge. There was huge noise around that and around the Sevens. It was really good.” Although the men’s programme has been discontinued by the IRFU since those Olympic Games in Paris, the Ireland Women’s Sevens remains vibrant.

As recently as July 26, Larn was part of an Irish squad that won the final leg of the Rugby Europe Sevens Series with an impressive final victory over Poland at the Croatia 7s in Split.

“Hamburg, we were kind of disappointed with our result there, but to go and then get the win in Croatia was class. It was some achievement. It was really class. It was such a good experience to beat Poland, because Poland won the overall championship. To go and beat them in the final was class.” 

Despite devoting a lot of her time to Sevens in recent years, Larn has slowly built up experience in the adult ranks of 15s rugby with the Wolfhounds in the Celtic Challenge and Old Belvedere in the Women’s All-Ireland League.

She was also part of the Leinster squad for the Women’s Interprovincial Championship last year and is currently with the eastern province for the 2026 edition of the competition.

The former Kildare minor ladies football skipper is still awaiting a competitive 15s debut for Leinster, however, having not featured in the 2025 championship or the opening round defeat to defending champions Munster at Virgin Media Park last Saturday.

Yet she is enjoying being amongst notable 15s internationals such as Eve Higgins, Dannah O’Brien and Erin King with the Blues and is hopeful of making the cut for this Saturday’s meeting with Connacht at Energia Park (kick-off 4.30pm) – Leinster's sole home game of this year’s competition.

“Leinster has been great. It’s such a professional environment. I was in the set-up last year as well, but this is really professional. A really good set-up,” Larn added.

“All eyes are on that game against Connacht. We’re hoping for a really good crowd there. We’re really pushing to get the support for the home game in Dublin.”