Three friendly games on home soil in August allowed head coach Dave Connell to work with his squad, introduce fresh faces, and set out his intentions for their qualifying campaign.
There was a notable sense of maturity and togetherness amongst the squad before they set off to Slovenia for three difficult UEFA European Championship First Phase games.
First up was the home nation and they secured a 1-1 draw thanks to a goal from Megan Connolly. However, that result was later changed to a 3-0 win for Ireland due to the opposition fielding an ineligible player.
They moved on to the next game against Bulgaria and showed their class with Connolly netting four times, while captain Savannah McCarthy and Jessica Nolan also fired in to effectively seal their place in the Elite Round.
The final game, against Russia, was a fight for top spot and even though they fell short Connell took many positives from their performance. He will aim to build on those as they target a place at next summer’s finals in Slovakia.
Results
Rep of Ireland 1-1 Scotland, Friendly, Listowel, 18 August
Rep of Ireland 1-1 Scotland, Friendly, Tulla, 20 August
Rep of Ireland 3-1 Northern Ireland, Friendly, 26 August
Rep of Ireland 3-0 Slovenia, UEFA Qualifier, Slovenia, 15 September
Rep of Ireland 6-0 Bulgaria, UEFA Qualifier, Slovenia, 17 September
Russia 2-1 Rep of Ireland, UEFA Qualifier, Slovenia, 20 September
Appearances
6 – Savannah McCarthy, Chloe Moloney
5 – Evelyn Daly, Fiona Donnelly, Jamie Finn, Keeva Keenan, Lucy McCartan
4 – Dearbhaile Beirne, Emma Byrne, Jessica Nolan, Sophie Watters
3 – Megan Connolly, Brooke Dunne, Nadine Maher, Roma McLaughlin, Hayley Nolan
2 – Nicole Gordon, Lauren Kealy, Rachel Kearns, Sarah Jane McDonald, Zoe McGlynn, Sarah McKevitt, Amanda McQuillan, Niamh Nelson, Eleanor Ryan Doyle
1 – Erin Best, Courtney Higgins, Megan Lynch, McHale, Sorcha Ni Bhraonain, Elle Rose O’Flaherty, Niamh Prior
Goals
5 – Megan Connolly
4 – Savannah McCarthy
3 – Jessica Nolan
1 – Dearbhaile Beirne
Clean Sheets
2 – Brooke Dunne