The commencement of Ireland’s Euro 2025 qualifying games is just shy of two weeks away, beginning with a demanding journey to Metz, France, to lock horns with the globally third-ranked team. Naturally, the moments that follow won’t prove to be much easier, with England visiting Dublin soon after, and Sweden having been slotted into the same group as Ireland.
Eileen Gleeson, in the lead-up to the announcement of her team for the qualifying campaign, has undoubtedly been vigilantly following the progress and health of her team members, both within Ireland and internationally, including England, Scotland, and the United States.
Encouragingly, most of the reports suggest positive news. Heather Payne came back on the field for Everton during Sunday’s Merseyside derby, which ended in a deadlock, following her absence due to an injury in the earlier match. Leanne Kiernan managed to garner another sixty minutes of playtime post her recent recovery, beginning the match for Liverpool.
Making her debut for Manchester United after nearly a year was Aoife Mannion, her stint delayed due to injuries. She was in the game for the final thirty minutes of their 3-1 loss to City in the derby. Tyler Toland is back in form subsequent to her absence during the previous international window, contributing to Blackburn’s Championship victory over Southampton the past weekend. Following a swift recovery from her latest shoulder injury, Louise Quinn began both of the Birmingham City matches within a five-day span, securing them as strong contenders for Ascension to WSL. They currently trail leaders Sunderland by four points, having a match yet to play.
The challenge for promotion is incredibly close, with a mere four points differentiating the top five teams. This competition impacts eight Irish players– Crystal Palace’s Hayley Nolan, Izzy Atkinson and Abbie Larkin, Birmingham’s Louise and Lucy Quinn, Lily Agg, Jamie Finn and Southampton’s Emily Kraft. Meanwhile, the Irish players of London City Lionesses have distanced themselves from the Championship relegation zone, notching their third victory in succession, with goalkeeper Grace Moloney, Megan Campbell and Ruesha Littlejohn all starting in their last-minute victory over Charlton on Sunday, Niamh Farrelly prepared on the bench.
However, Gleeson does have cause for concern regarding Sinead Farrelly’s persistent issues with a thigh injury, resulting in the exclusion of the midfielder from Gotham’s inaugural NWSL match of the season.