Eileen Gleeson, the Irish head coach, will be pleased to see the re-emergence of significant midfielder, Denise O’Sullivan, for the forthcoming Euro 2025 qualifiers in England at Carrow Road and the first senior international to take place at Páirc Uí Chaoimh versus France. The Cork native, now 30 years old, had been side-lined for the previous dual matches against Sweden due to a knee injury. In addition, defender Niamh Fahey and front line player Marissa Sheva will be returning to the squad.
However, the list of injured players who will sadly be unable to participate is extensive, topped by forward player, Kyra Carusa. Other players unfortunately side-lined include Chloe Mustaki, Tara O’Hanlon, Jamie Finn, and Heather Payne.
For the first time since March 2020, Galway United’s midfielder Julie-Ann Russell has been tapped, aiming to grow her collection of 60 international caps.
Setting up a 26-player team, Gleeson prepares for the journey to Carrow Road for the match against current European champions, England on Friday, July 12th. This will be followed by hosting France at Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Tuesday, July 16th, starting at 6pm.
More than 10,000 tickets have already been snapped up for this noteworthy match. Marking the first time in 12 years, the women’s international squad will compete in a home game outside of Dublin, and notably it will be their seventh match in total in Cork, after five games previously played at Turners Cross and one at Flower Lodge.
The assembled Irish squad includes Goalkeepers: Courtney Brosnan (Everton), Grace Moloney (London City), and Sophie Whitehouse (Lewes); Defenders: Jessie Stapleton (West Ham), Diane Caldwell (FC Zurich), Louise Quinn (Birmingham City), Niamh Fahey (Liverpool), Caitlin Hayes (Celtic), Aoife Mannion (Manchester United), Anna Patten (Aston Villa), and Megan Campbell (London City); Midfielders: Katie McCabe (Arsenal), Denise O’Sullivan (North Carolina Courage), Megan Connolly (Bristol City), Lily Agg (Birmingham City), Ruesha Littlejohn (London City), Tyler Toland (Blackburn Rovers), Jess Ziu (West Ham), Izzy Atkinson (Crystal Palace), Eva Mangan (Cork City), and Julie-Ann Russell (Galway United); and Forwards: Amber Barrett (Standard Liege), Leanne Kiernan (Liverpool), Abbie Larkin (Crystal Palace), Emily Murphy (Wake Forest University), and Marissa Sheva (Portland Thorns).