A Six Nations Grand Slam winner and 51-capped Irish international, Gill Bourke has seen many highs and lows over her distinguished career.
Now moving into the world of coaching, Bourke is now excelling off the field as a high-performance analyst participating in the Gallagher High Performance Academy (GHPA) with World Rugby.
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The Wallaroos have benefitted enormously from her skillset, with Bourke spending five weeks with the side during their successful 2024 WXV campaign, transitioning into a high performance analyst role with Rugby Australia and coaching roles with NSW Waratahs Women and in Sydney’s Jack Scott Cup competition.
“I love it, it's great,” Bourke said to reporters on Tuesday.
“I love coming into the girls' last year in WXV. I've obviously played at this level, but to come in as a coach at this level is, I suppose, the other side of the coin.
“It's definitely a learning curve, not always necessarily from rugby, but it's a high-performance environment. When you sit on the other side of the lines, it actually feels scarier than being in the pitch where you can control a lot of stuff.
“I felt really privileged to be involved with these girls. I think they're a brilliant group, and for me, it's a dream place to learn how to grow as a coach, especially working with the coaches and the staff that we have, but also the players that we have and the people that they are.”
Now working in depth as an analyst for the Wallaroos during their World Cup preparation, Bourke has a major task on her hands to help find ways for the side to beat the USA.
With the side taking a notable step up in training intensity following their big win over Samoa, Bourke believes the side seems well placed to perform when they take the field in York.
“We can only control what we can do on the pitch, do you know what I mean?” Bourke added.
“We've prepped the girls well over the last few years in this program, and especially since I've been involved, I've always felt that within the team.
“We control what we can do, we prepare for how we want to play, and I think always focusing on ourselves going into games means that we handle ourselves.
“We respect the opposition, we preview them, but we very much focus on what we can bring into games, and that settles us, knowing that it's in our control. If we execute stuff how we want to.
“If we get our drills right, if we get our connections right, we know that we can beat these teams.”
Similar to the players and their focused approach, Bourke believes that mentality has extended to the coaches, with the growth shown in the program over the 2025 season.
“I don't feel nerves going around the place, going into this match,” Bourke added.
“We're at a World Cup, every game is a big game, this is just game two, you know, so that's how we're approaching it, and that's how the girls take it.
“We've had a huge amount of time together. Honestly I think everything's improved.
“We've spent a lot of focus on our collision contact, we've spent a lot of focus on our connections, both sides of the ball.
“I think we showed that in a lot of parts of the New Zealand game, we definitely showed that in that last Welsh game, we showed it last week [against Samoa].
“When we get our connections right, we're a really good team, and we can score tries, and we can defend well.
“I think the more time this team has together, the more they grow.”
