Gleeson made her debut last May in San Jose when she started against USA but went off at half-time after suffering concussion in a clash of heads with Abby Wambach. She didn’t feature again until she was introduced as a second half substitute in San Diego yesterday and played a major role in ensuring the Irish defence was much tighter after leaking four goals in the opening period.
Pointing out the manner in which she has now won her two caps earns a smile from the 22-year-old Wexford Youths central defender.
“I have been lucky the way it has fallen for me,” she admits. “I suffer a lot from injuries but somehow when these trips come along I just seem to get the nod. It has worked out well for me, I suppose. My New Year’s resolution is to stay injury-free. I am going to work hard this year to hopefully put all the injuries behind me and just tip on, get a run of games in and hopefully get into the squad more often.”
Making her international debut last year was one highpoint in a series of significant milestones for Gleeson as Wexford Youths finally emerged from the pack to become the first team from outside Dublin to win the Continental Tyres Women’s National League before going on to play in the UEFA Champions League and win the Continental Tyres FAI Women’s Cup.
“It was pretty special to be honest. We have worked very hard over the past five years in Wexford and to finally get over the line and win it and get into the Champions League was just amazing. To top that off by getting called into the squad to go America after we had won the league, and then get my first cap against them before they went off to the World Cup, and then win the Cup certainly made it a pretty special year. I loved it.”
Gleeson was part of the Irish U17 team back in 2010 that reached the final of the UEFA U17 European Championships and the quarter-final of the FIFA U17 World Cup. Many of those players have made it to the senior international squad since then and now there is another new crop of players coming through from the successful U19 and U17 teams of the last two years.
“There are some really special players coming through,” says Gleeson. “You have the likes of Katie McCabe , Clare Shine, Megan Connolly and Ciara Rossiter all coming up. They are a really special group. They followed us, they went to the Euros and they got to the semi-final. There is really good talent coming through and it is really good to see because as the older girls are going off the team they are coming through and it is just progressing and shows where Irish women’s soccer is going.”
Gleeson is now hoping to be involved in today's behind closed doors games against the USA U23 team in Los Angeles but has also set her sights on making the squad for Cyprus Cup in March.
“Hopefully I will get another chance tomorrow and another run and hopefully I will be able to perform and do well and hopefully get called in for the Cyprus Cup. I really would love to do that.”