Republic of Ireland 0-2 England: Women’s Euro 2025 qualifier – as it happened
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I must bid farewell now as Suzanne Wrack’s overview is out. Thank you for being with me through this blog!
During an interview with ITV, Katie McCabe also shared her thoughts on the match. She mentioned how in the first half, she felt that her team was not assertive enough and gave the opposing team too much room in the middle areas. However, she expressed pride in how they upgraded their performance in the second half. Katie added that she was unable to view the penalty situation again, but it was undoubtedly aggravating for their team. She acknowledged that such goals were preventable with better tactics.
In simpler language, the author of the blog disagrees with the awarding of the second penalty. According to them, the player Louise Quinn was attempting to maintain balance, and the ball unintentionally hit her body before hitting the post. The author believes that the "football gods" or fate was responsible for this outcome.
Leah Williamson shared her thoughts on getting back on the pitch after a challenging year. She expressed her immense passion for playing for England and how donning the badge makes her feel empowered and confident. Being a part of such a wonderful group of girls was a fulfilling experience for her and she savored every moment of it. After encountering a difficult injury, she was determined to return in good health and form to play for England again. The level of excellence expected of players in the team is exceptional and being able to play again today felt like the culmination of her journey.
Our expectations are high, which is why we perceive our tie against Sweden as a disappointment. Therefore, it was imperative that we triumphed in our next match. Although our performance in the final 20 minutes could have been better, I am pleased to have secured three points.
In the second half, Ireland played with a traditional style by using long passes from McCabe's left foot and impressive long throws from Campbell. However, the first half is where the real success occurred with a great goal by Lauren James and a penalty successfully scored by Alex Greenwood. England won their first match in the Euro 2025 qualifiers, while Ireland suffered their second loss. Nevertheless, Ireland made things difficult for England throughout the match.
McCabe kicks the ball from left to right, but unfortunately none of the players from the green team were able to reach it. The game ended and the English team can finally relax.
As the match approaches its final moments, England manages to soothe Ireland's nerves. From the right flank, Kelly sends in a cross which takes a deflection before reaching Brosnan's safe hands.
In the 92nd minute, McCabe was given a yellow card for making a foul on the left side of England's field.
After 90 minutes of play, England is awarded a free-kick near the center of the field. Greenwood takes the opportunity to hit the ball towards the right-hand side of the pitch. The referee decides to add four more minutes to the game.
In the 89th minute, Chloe Kelly from England came on and attempted to earn a corner by pushing forward on the right. However, two players from the opposing team swiftly took the ball from her and prevented her from achieving her goal.
After 87 minutes of play, Williamson successfully made a brilliant move to clear the ball while being in front of her own goal post, proving her exceptional performance since returning to the international stage. The only thing left to do is to hold off the last attacks from the opposing team, Ireland.
The game was intense for 85 minutes and things got crazy when Hampton tried to execute a dropkick near the box but McCabe blocked it. McCabe wasted no time and went for a shot at the goal but Hampton was quick to recover and made a save. Hampton insisted on getting a free-kick as McCabe was obstructing her view during the kick attempt.
In 83 minutes, Hampton managed to prevent a goal from close range when Hayes skillfully made his way into the box and headed the ball from McCabe's corner. Ireland is putting a lot of pressure on their opponents.
With just 82 minutes on the clock, the Irish team is showing an immense effort in their gameplay, with a significant number of players advancing forward towards the opponents' side. In an attempt to gain an advantage, Campbell attempts to get past Mead by going outside and ultimately earns a corner kick for the team on the left side of the field.
In the 81st minute of the game, Kirby made an impressive pass towards Beth Mead, but unfortunately, it wasn't on target. Brosnan was able to collect the ball as a result.
In 80 minutes, McCabe sends the ball towards the England box again. Hayes jumps up high and manages to connect with the ball using their head, but they fail to aim it towards the goal.
In order for Ireland to have the best chance of succeeding, they will need to rely on Campbell's lengthy, even and frightening throws and McCabe's strategic kicks into the box.
In the 77th minute, McCabe decides to make a cross from the left side of the field. She spots Quinn at the back post, who then kicks a tasty ball towards the goal. Surprisingly, no one was able to push it in! This was Ireland's top performing offensive play during the game and they missed a great opportunity to score.
After Kiernan was brought down by James, Ireland has the opportunity to take a free-kick from a good shooting position. McCabe is preparing to take the shot. The time on the clock is 76 minutes.
The game clock shows 75 minutes when Hampton commits a passing error and Kiernan rushes forward on the right but is stopped by the opposing team. This results in Ireland gaining possession of the ball and getting a throw-in. Another substitution is made by England, with Toone replaced by Stanway.
After 73 minutes, Carter regained control and England proceeded with Lucy Bronze on the right side. However, her long kick upfield lacked accuracy and did not reach any specific player.
After 72 minutes, Walsh attempts to pass a risky ball in front of Russo, yet Brosnan manages to grab it. Hampton then moves the ball away from the field, causing Carter to fall and face some problems.
After 70 minutes of the game, Ireland's promising performance does a complete 180 as Mannion messed up a straightforward pass to the right resulting in England earning a throw. It seems like Ireland has been ineffective when they have the ball.
After 67 minutes of play, Greenwood delivers a free-kick from the right that's cleared by the opposition. Toone tries her luck with a shot from a distance, but unfortunately, it ends up sailing over the crossbar.
In the 65th minute, Brosnan made an outstanding save! James gained possession of the ball on the right side and quickly crossed it for Hemp to head towards the goal. Kirby followed up with a shot, which would have surely resulted in a 3-0 lead. However, Brosnan managed to prevent the goal from a very short distance.
In the 64th minute, the England team made some impressive moves near the penalty area, but unfortunately, Toone was unable to pass the ball accurately to Russo, who was positioned inside the box.
After 63 minutes of play, England made a move from the corner, but Connolly sent Mead back to her original position. Both teams reorganized themselves on the field.
After 62 minutes, Campbell launches another long throw from the left-hand side of the pitch. Walsh manages to head it out of play, resulting in a corner kick. In my opinion, the Irish team would have preferred a throw-in instead.
After 61 minutes, Megan Campbell threw the ball a great distance, causing problems for England's defense. However, they were able to clear it. This will be Ireland's tactic for the remainder of the game.
After 60 minutes of play, Ireland is making some substitutions. Payne is being swapped out for Kiernan and Campbell is taking over Lucy Quinn's spot.
After 58 minutes into the game, it was noticeable how skillful Walsh was in handling the ball. She was able to move past the opposing Irish team without any difficulty or stress.
After 57 minutes of play, Kirby and Mead make their initial contacts with the ball. The latter gets fouled, and shortly thereafter there is some skillful maneuvering around the box which creates an opportunity for Toone to take a shot. However, the shot gets blocked.
After 56 minutes of the match, Kirby has taken over the spot of Park, while Mead has replaced Hemp. The English team is looking forward to scoring more goals during the game.
At 55 minutes into the game, James starts to dribble and passes the ball to Toone. Toone expertly turns on the edge of the penalty area and passes the ball to Hemp. However, Hemp's cross from the left fails to find any of her teammates.
It's been 54 minutes and the game is quite dull thus far. Ireland is struggling to create a fluid passing sequence, while England seems to be doing well. However, Ireland's defense is strong enough to prevent England from scoring.
After a punt was sent into the left channel, Hemp was able to barely keep the ball in play for 53 minutes before the whistle blew.
After 51 minutes, the English team moved back to the Hampton area. They were being pressured by the Irish team and so they kicked the ball far towards James, who then hit it out of bounds and gave the ball to Ireland.
After a McCabe challenge, Lauren James is in a challenging position and is currently down. However, she has now stood back up and the performance must continue.
After 48 minutes of play, Ruesha Littlejohn has been substituted from the game. England currently holds possession of the ball for the majority of the time in the second half. It appears that Ireland needs to increase their intensity, possibly with a hard tackle or a clever pass to excite the fans. Currently, the crowd seems a bit unenthusiastic.
After a 46 minute break, Megan Connolly has taken the field for Ireland while England's team remains the same.
Ireland 0-2 England At Half-time
The English team has been playing quite comfortably in the first half, but they might regret not having scored another goal with that second penalty. Unfortunately, Greenwood failed to score, and the team missed the chance to secure a two-goal lead. Despite this, Ireland has not put up much of a fight against the English goalkeeper, Hannah Hampton, who hasn't faced any major challenges.
At 45 minutes and 1 minute extra, there was some chaotic movement of the ball inside the penalty box before England managed to finally clear it. As a result, the referee signaled the end of the first half.
After a tussle between Walsh and Lucy Quinn on the left, Ireland wins a corner that lasts for 45 minutes.
In just 44 minutes of the match, McCabe unfortunately made a bad pass that landed in the hands of England in the middle of the field. This gave England the opportunity to start a strong offensive, but unfortunately, the attacking player Russo was positioned in an offside position and couldn't move forward.
In just 41 minutes, James made a clever pass from the right side of the field towards Russo. Russo then passed the ball to Bronze who tried a difficult shot, but unfortunately, the ball went very high up into the sky over Dublin.
After 38 minutes of the game, Williamson executes an impactful slide tackle on Carusa, leading to a promising opportunity for the England team. James attempts a shot from beyond the box, but Brosnan manages to save it with her hands.
After 37 minutes of play, James receives the ball from Williamson in the middle of the field and starts moving forward in an exciting manner. However, he makes a pass that ends up being accidentally intercepted by the referee.
In 36 minutes, Walsh made a powerful pass that separated the Ireland midfield, but Hemp, who received the pass, was prevented from doing any harm.
It's been 34 minutes of play and Carter, who is the left defender for England in this match, is under pressure from two players in Ireland's team. As a result, he ends up making a foul to avoid losing possession.
