Alison Miller is to become just the second woman inducted into the Rugby Players Ireland Hall of Fame, following in the footsteps of Fiona Coghlan who was the inaugural entrant last year.
She’s been proposed alongside 65 time capped Shane Horgan, with the ceremony to take place on Friday, November 10th.
We are delighted to announce that the Rugby Players Ireland Hall of Fame inductees for 2023 are Alison Miller and Shane Horgan.
We look forward to celebrating their careers on November 10. More details below. #MoreThanAPlayerhttps://t.co/R9XRsWbH0h— RugbyPlayersIreland (@RugbyPlayersIRE) October 2, 2023
Miller herself was a major player for Ireland during the Girls In Green’s purple patch in the early to mid 2010s, scoring 24 tries in 47 appearances.
During her 10 year career she represented both the 7s and the XVs and no doubt paved the way for future generations within the sport in Ireland.
The Ballickmoyler native played in both the 2014 and 2017 World Cups, was a key figure in Ireland’s 2013 Grand Slam winning team and picked up another Six Nations title in 2015 before retiring in 2019.
If you have a spare few seconds, please vote for Alison Miller who is nominated for the World Rugby Women's Try of the Decade 🏉
Her score in that famous win over New Zealand at the 2014 Women's World Cup is one of the nominees, so get voting!https://t.co/s2VJenmivj pic.twitter.com/KvyQQoCyKY— Connacht Rugby (@connachtrugby) October 19, 2020
Alison Miller - a career look back
📅 #OnThisDay in 2015
Alison Miller of Ireland goes over to score a late try despite the tackle of Eilidh Sinclair of Scotland during their Women's Six Nations Rugby Championship match in Glasgow.
📸 @sportsfilesteve https://t.co/R1vAUTiSZE pic.twitter.com/2qGR27BQMj— sportsfile (@sportsfile) March 22, 2021
A moment in her career that will live long in the memory is her involvement in Ireland’s victory over New Zealand in the pool stages of the 2014 World Cup, with Miller scoring a momentous try to fit the occasion.
The team then went on to top their group containing the Black Ferns, the United States and Kazakhstan, before reaching the semi final of the tournament, only to be knocked out by the eventual winners England.
That grit and determination was present in Miller right from her debut back in February 2010, where she lined up alongside Niamh Briggs and Nora Stapleton in the back-three versus Italy and scored a try in the 63rd minute.
The winger went on to display her unwavering talent then over the years, scoring hat tricks for fun for the XVS in the Six Nations slotting them away against England in 2013 and Scotland in 2015 and 2016.
Miller was also a threat however with the 7s group, scoring 22 tries in 35 matches in the World Series and propelling the squad to the World Cup quarter finals in Moscow in 2013.
The Old Belvedere and Connacht player no doubt left a lasting impact, which is even more impressive when contextualised alongside her career as a PE & History Teacher.
Now however she is receiving her plaudits that accompany her legendary status, a compelling next arrival into the Rugby Players Ireland Hall of Fame.
Over in the corner! Alison Miller score her Ireland's second try during the RBS Women's Six Nations Rugby Championship against Scotland. pic.twitter.com/i2zvZBiHBv
— sportsfile (@sportsfile) February 3, 2017
