Republic of Ireland manager Sue Ronan admits a point would be a good return from Ireland's European Championship qualifier against Spain this afternoon (2.0, live on Setanta) in Tallaght where the hosts will be looking to improve significantly on their opening night home defeat by Finland.
The team bounced back from that with a hard-earned win in Portugal and if they could emulate the men now by beating the top seeds on home turf then, just as Martin O’Neill’s side did in October, they’ll have taken a significant step towards a place at the finals in the Netherlands during the summer after next.
Ronan has a few problems to contend with as she prepares her players to a face a side that contains a few of the 2010 European Under-17 Championship winning side when the Spaniards beat Ireland on penalties in the final.
Katie McCabe – one of the few success stories of the Finland game – misses out through a quad injury sustained in Portugal while Ciara Grant, Megan Campbell and Megan Connolly all have college commitments of one sort of another and Dora Gorman is still laid up after a cruciate injury.
Still, Ronan insists: “The girls feel that we can get something out of the game and we feel they can too.
‘Very technical’
“Spain are a much better side than Finland,” she says. “They’re very technical although they have that bit of directness too but they won’t like playing against us. Our underage squads have got results against their underage squad (like the 1-0 win at last year’s Under-19 Europeans) and they never liked the style of play.”
With at least a couple of changes inevitable, one of the things Ronan must make a call on is where to start Niamh Fahey, the versatile Chelsea player who reverted to central defence after starting against Finland in midfield.
The Galwaywoman goes into the game off the back of quite a season at the London club where she has just signed a new two-year deal after playing a key role in their league and cup double success.
A positive result on the international front now, she admits, would be a particularly satisfying way to round off the year.
“Yeah, it wouldn’t be bad, would it,”she says with a smile. Hopefully we can nick something from them. That always puts you in a good position, doesn’t it, nicking something off the top seeds going for that second spot.
“So this is a big game really. You could say there’s nothing lost if you don’t pick up points but they suddenly seem like real six pointers if you can pick up something in the likes of these.”
Experienced players
With hugely experienced players like Grant and
Emma Byrne
still involved and a new generation, accustomed to mixing it on equal terms with the continent’s best, finding their way into the senior ranks now too, Fahey feels the squad is better placed than ever to make a an impact at this level.
“I think the team is definitely better equipped,” she says, “some of the younger players are that bit older and we’ve got the fresh blood as well. Definitely . . . we’re a stronger unit since the last campaign.
“Things just didn’t go for us on the night [against Finland] but we shouldn’t fear going there looking to get something. We’re more than capable of breaking them down so we’re in a good position if we can get something from this, a very strong position.”
The Spaniards, she acknowledges will pose a particular challenge and having recently been on the wrong side of a Champions League defeat by a Wolfsburg side she admits were a cut above Chelsea, she knows how hard it is to make the required step up sometimes.
“I know a few who play with Arsenal. Typical Spanish, technical one touch, two touch, tiki-taka . . . very good on the ball, very good attacking threat but a possibility that you can get at their back line when you get the ball back.
“They look a world-class team and they have some very good players but they can be vulnerable and if we play well, if we’re solid defensively, we can maybe nick something on the break.”
