Since last September, Eileen Gleeson, the manager of the Republic of Ireland, has selected 40 players and allowed 28 of them to participate in eight matches. As a result, selecting her latest team was a considerable challenge. This is particularly pertinent as her team is required to commence their Euro 2025 qualifier against France, who are currently third in the global rankings, in Metz next Friday. Following which, they will face England, the current European champions, in Dublin the following Tuesday.
Gleeson made her squad announcement at Sky HQ on Thursday morning, and there were no major shock selections. The most significant missing player was the midfielder Sinead Farrelly, who has been ruled unfit due to a quadricep injury and failed to attend Gotham’s first two games of the NWSL season.
Niamh Fahey, the captain of Liverpool, and Tyler Toland, a midfielder for Blackburn, were both reinstated after being absent for last month’s friendly matches against Italy and Wales due to injury. Additionally, a new name was included in the line-up: Anna Patten, a defender from Aston Villa. However, Patten is still waiting for Fifa’s international clearance before she can play in the games against France and England. She is eligible to play for Ireland because of her grandparents who were born in Donegal and Galway.
The team line-up is as follows:
Goalkeepers include: Courtney Brosnan from Everton, Grace Moloney from London City Lionesses and Sophie Whitehouse from Lewes. Defenders include: Jessie Stapleton from Reading (on loan from West Ham United), Diane Caldwell from FC Zurich, Louise Quinn from Birmingham City, Niamh Fahey from Liverpool, Aoife Mannion from Manchester United, Caitlin Hayes from Celtic, Anna Patten from Aston Villa and Megan Campbell from London City Lionesses. Midfielders include: Katie McCabe from Arsenal, Denise O’Sullivan from North Carolina Courage, Megan Connolly from Bristol City, Ruesha Littlejohn from London City Lionesses, Tyler Toland from Blackburn Rovers, Lily Agg from Birmingham City, Heather Payne from Everton, Jess Ziu from West Ham United, Lucy Quinn from Birmingham City and Izzy Atkinson of Crystal Palace. Forwards include: Kyra Carusa from San Diego Wave, Abbie Larkin of Crystal Palace, Amber Barrett of Standard Liege, Leanne Kiernan of Liverpool and Emily Murphy of Wake Forest University.