Ireland head coach Gareth Grundie has named his 19-player squad for next month’s FIH Women’s World Cup qualifiers in Chile.
Ireland are bidding for a third successive World Cup appearance, a sequence that began with a historic silver medal-winning campaign in 2018.
The Green Army begin their Pool B campaign against Malaysia on Monday, 2 March (6.15pm Irish time), and are out again the following day, Tuesday 3 March when they take Japan, the top-ranked (11th) side in the group (6.45pm).
Ireland complete their pool stage against Canada on Thursday, 5 March (6.15pm), the sides meeting for the first time since the historic penalty shootout win in Dublin in 2019 that secured the hosts Olympic qualification for the first time.
Grundie has named a largely unchanged squad from the one that competed in Australia in the FIH Hockey Pro League.
Elizabeth Murphy and Holly Micklem maintain their place in the Irish net, having once again played a vital role in Ireland’s recent performances.
Róisín Upton will marshal Ireland’s defence, with Katie Larmour, Caoimhe Perdue, Ellen Curran, Sarah McAuley, and Lisa Mulcahy all set to feature alongside her.
Amy Handcock also joins the squad, replacing Caitlin Sherrin. Handcock is set to compete in her first major tournament in an Irish shirt, having made her debut during a Test match series in the USA last summer.
Captain Sarah Hawkshaw will lead the midfield charge alongside Charlotte Beggs, Christina Hamill, Michelle Carey, Jessica McMaster and Mia Jennings.
Upfront, Katie Mullan – pictured above – will look to play an instrumental role in securing another major tournament appearance for Ireland and is joined by Sarah Torrans and Niamh Carey in attack. Emily Kealy joins up with the side, taking the place of Mikayla Power who misses out through injury.
“There is absolutely no room for complacency and we must be at our best to achieve our goal of qualifying,” Grundie said. “Every game will be tough given the size of the prize up for grabs.”
Ireland will need to secure a top-three finish overall in the competition to secure their place in the knockout stages, finishing in the top two places in the pool and winning either their semi-final tie or the 3rd/4th place play-off match if required.
Ireland squad: Charlotte Beggs, Michelle Carey, Niamh Carey, Ellen Curran, Christina Hamill, Sarah Hawkshaw, Mia Jennings, Katie Larmour, Emily Kealy, Sarah McAuley, Hannah McLoughlin, Jessica McMaster, Holly Micklem, Lisa Mulcahy, Katie Mullan, Elizabeth Murphy, Caoimhe Perdue, Sarah Torrans, Roisin Upton
Fixtures (Irish time)
2 March Ireland v Malaysia (6.15pm)
3 March Ireland v Japan (6.45pm)
5 March Canada v Ireland (6.15pm)
6-8 March Crossover Matches (semi-finals, final and ranking games)