BECOMING a mom changed Ellen O’Regan’s life, but it didn’t change her competitive streak.

If anything, it strengthened her resolve.

‘I’ve loved sport all my life. Since having Nora, I probably realise even more how important it is to me,’ Ellen says.

‘Growing up, my mum had me involved in everything. I just love sport.’

The Schull woman played football with Gabriel Rangers and represented Ireland in sailing before discovering a new sporting passion in 2019: tag rugby.

She’s never looked back.

Now, less than a year after welcoming daughter Nora, Ellen is preparing to represent Ireland at the Tag Rugby World Cup in Australia this October.

‘It was brilliant to be selected. I’m absolutely delighted,’ she says.

‘More than anything, it was a huge relief because all the hard work had been worth it. I told myself I’d just get to the trials and, if I made the team, brilliant. If I didn’t, at least I’d given it a go.

‘But once I got back playing and trialling, I loved it so much that I realised I’d actually be really gutted if I didn't make the team.

‘When I got the phone call, it was just a massive relief.’

Ellen and her daughter Nora.

Juggling life with a newborn while preparing for international trials was another challenge, one made easier by the support around her.

In January, Ellen, her husband Marcus and then five-month-old Nora stayed in a Dublin hotel the night before her Ireland trials.

‘When I got back doing the trials this year, it was probably the most challenging thing I’ve ever done,’ she says.

‘Nora’s sleep had completely gone haywire and we had about six weeks where we were only getting sleep in one-hour blocks, so Marcus and I had to do it in shifts.

‘Between the sleep deprivation, the breastfeeding and travelling to Dublin for the trials, it was a huge challenge.

‘In the hotel, Marcus stayed up all night so I could get a little bit of sleep.

‘I remember leaving the hotel and thinking, “Thank God, we survived the night.” Then I suddenly realised, “Oh my God, I actually have to go and trial!” I thought making it to Dublin had been the hard part.’

Westport native Marcus was a rock for Ellen. When a baby arrives, life changes. There’s a new boss to answer to. But Marcus, involved in sport too, knows how important it is to Ellen.

‘No matter how much sleep I’d had, he’d say, “You’ll feel better, just go.”’

There’s a green near their house in Carrigaline that became their training pitch.

‘My ball-handling had become rusty, and tag rugby is pretty tactical when you are driving out of your own half so you need to be able to run fast and stop really quickly, get tagged, roll the ball and sprint back again. I was running at Marcus while he stood there with Nora in the baby carrier. I spent December and January doing that just to sharpen up those skills,’ she says.

‘Looking back now, I’m so glad I pushed myself because it was really tough with so little sleep. I couldn’t have done it without Marcus, my parents and my sister. They’ve all been a huge support.’

Ellen (right) and her sister Anna celebrate after Cork won the national title.

Ellen’s younger sister Anna is another unsung hero. They play together on the Cork Chiefs women’s team, and recently helped the team defend their national title.

‘We both grew up playing football together, and then tag rugby took my fancy,’ Ellen says.

‘When I got heavily involved with the Tag Rugby World Cup in Limerick in 2023, I couldn’t keep getting home to play with Gabriel Rangers, so we missed playing together.

‘I was always trying to convince Anna to take up tag as well. The joke was that tag would eventually take over, and our mother, who’s a huge GAA person, would be disappointed in the pair of us!

‘What’s really nice now is that we’re both on the Cork team together. We recently won the national championships, Cork’s fifth title in a row.

‘It was really special because I wasn’t playing the last two years, so this was our first time properly playing together at that level. To win a national title together made it even more special.’

Ellen and Anna will also line out together for Ireland at this year's British & Irish Cup, ahead of the World Cup. More memories waiting to be created, before thoughts turn to the 2026 International Tag Federation (ITF) Tag World Cup in Australia.

‘I remember thinking after I was selected “Oh God, how are we going to get a 14-month-old to Sydney?”’ Ellen smiled.

But Australia will become a six-week family adventure.

‘Marcus is representing Ireland at the J/24 World Sailing Championships in Melbourne two weeks after my tournament,’ she explains.

‘The timing is unbelievable. It’s turned into a six-week trip with a 14-month-old!

‘We’re very lucky that we’re both in a position to do it. We both love our sports, so it’s pretty cool that we get to do something like this together.’

It was Marcus who encouraged Ellen to take up tag rugby in 2019. Within weeks, she was hooked. 

‘Coming from a Gaelic football background, there were a lot of transferable skills, so I was able to pick things up quite quickly. At the same time, there was still a lot to learn,’ she explains.

‘It was a nice balance because I was having a bit of success, but there was still a challenge. My throwing, for example, wouldn’t have been very good because that’s not something I’d done playing football.

‘I’m a good runner and I’m good at catching, so playing on the wing suited me. I could catch and run no problem. I was getting a bit of success, but it was still quite hard, and I liked that challenge.

‘Then, later in 2019, I was asked to play for Cork at the national championships. That was my first national championship and it was really, really fun. From there I just kept playing during the week, and that’s really how it all started.’

Ellen, a primary school teacher at Scoil Barra in Ballincollig, will be joined by more West Cork players at the World Cup, including Kate Wall from Kinsale. They’re together in the Ireland women’s senior squad heading to Oz.

But Australia will be about far more than rugby. It will be Ellen’s first return to the international stage since 2013, Marcus’ World Sailing Championships, and Nora's first big adventure abroad. 

It will be worth every sleepless night.