Last April’s draw in Nyon dealt the side a tough start with games against top seeds Spain, second seeds Finland and Portugal who were the best of the fourth seeds.
In the opening game of the EURO 2017 campaign at home to Finland the side spurned a great chance to take an early lead and almost immediately conceded a freak goal which the Finns added to in the second half as they scored a vital 2-0 win in Tallaght.
The side got back on track with an excellent win away to Portugal where goals from Louise Quinn and Aine O’Gorman saw the side come from behind to take the points but in November they lost 3-0 at home to a classy Spanish side in a game that saw Clare Shine make her senior debut.
The year was easily divided in two with the first half being focused on preparation for the start of the EURO 2017 campaign. For the first time, the team headed to the Istria Cup in Croatia, and manager Sue Ronan used the tournament to hand debuts to Katie McCabe, Carol Breen, Sarah Rowe and Emma Beckett as the side drew with Hungary, lost to Slovakia and Austria and finished with a 2-1 win over World Cup finalists Costa Rica thanks to goals from Megan Campbell and Stephanie Roche.
The side was unlucky not get a draw away to Spain in April when Louise Quinn had a perfectly good goal disallowed while, in May, Niamh Reid Burke produced a magnificent performance in front of a full house in San Jose as the team, without five regulars, went down 3-0 to the USA who subsequently won the World Cup in July.
That game saw Jessica Gleeson, Nicola Sinnott and Ciara Rossiter make their senior debuts and was followed a few days later by a 1-0 win over Haiti with Ruesha Littlejohn, the side’s top scorer in 2015, drilling home a first half penalty.
Results
Rep of Ireland 1-1 Hungary, Istria Cup, Porec, 4 March
Slovakia 2-0 Rep of Ireland, Istria Cup, Umag, 6 March
Austria 2-0 Rep of Ireland, Istria Cup, Rovinj, 9 March
Rep of Ireland 2-1 Costa Rica, Istria Cup, Umag, 11 March
Spain 1-0 Rep of Ireland, Friendly, Austrias, 8 April
USA 3-0 Rep of Ireland, Friendly, San Jose, 10 May
Rep of Ireland 1-0 Haiti, Friendly, Lauderhill, 13 May
Rep of Ireland 0-2 Finland, UEFA Qualifier, Tallaght Stadium, 21 September
Portugal 1-2 Rep of Ireland, UEFA Qualifier, Moreira de Conegos, 27 October
Rep of Ireland 0-3 Spain, UEFA Qualifier, Tallaght Stadium, 26 November
Appearances
10 – Aine O’Gorman, Denise O’Sullivan, Julie Ann Russell
9 – Niamh Fahey, Ruesha Littlejohn
8 – Emma Byrne, Diane Caldwell, Meabh De Burca, Sophie Perry, Stephanie Roche
7 – Megan Campbell, Katie McCabe, Louise Quinn
6 – Fiona O’Sullivan
4 – Carol Breen, Karen Duggan
3- Ciara Grant, Siobhan Killeen, Sarah Rowe, Niamh Reid Burke
2 – Emma Beckett
1 – Jessica Gleeson, Clare Shine, Nicola Sinnott, Ciara Rossiter
Goals
2 – Ruesha Littlejohn
1 – Megan Campbell, Aine O'Gorman, Louise Quinn, Stephanie Roche
Clean Sheets
1 – Emma Byrne, Niamh Reid Burke