Eoin Harrington reporting from the Stade des Alpes in Grenoble
Against all odds, Ireland enter their final game of World Cup qualifying with an automatic spot in their own hands.
The Girls in Green take on France in Grenoble on Tuesday evening in a winner-takes-all shootout for top spot in Nations League A qualifying group.
Recommended
Friday night’s superb 3-2 win over the Netherlands has Ireland sitting in second place in the group, just a point behind group leaders France.
Few could have predicted Carla Ward’s side would be in this position at the start of the group, and she told us at Monday’s press conference that puts Ireland in a curiously strong position against France.
READ HERE: Roy Keane Gives Ruthless Assessment Of England’s Left-Out Stars
READ HERE: Alex Noonan Rumoured To Be On The Verge Of Huge Premier League Transfer
Carla Ward on France v Ireland
“Nothing to lose and everything to gain,” said Carla Ward on Monday, as she assessed the mentality her Ireland team will take into Tuesday night’s decisive World Cup qualifier.
We spoke about this the other day…the pressure’s off. It really is, and I mean it when I say it, there’s a calm or a real calm and a real focus around the group.
We have got absolutely nothing to lose but obviously a lot to gain. The processes stay the same. Nothing changes. It’s another game of football that we’ll try and go and win.
It’s confident talk, but Friday’s heroics in Cork will have instilled even more belief in a group which has shown ever-growing resilience during Ward’s tenure.
When the draw for the qualifying group was made back in November, Ward said she felt France were “beatable,” and that Ireland would not be aiming only for third, even in a group containing the might of the French and Dutch.
On Monday, Balls.ie asked Ward whether she had believed throughout the qualifying campaign that this position was possible.
You know what I’m going to say, right? I think you all do, listening to me all year.
I have a massive amount of faith and belief in this team and like I keep saying, there’s a reason I took over this national team and it was what they stand for and someone asked me the other day, have you ever had to question a player in training?
This is the first group of players I don’t think I’ve ever had to question an attitude and mentality, a work rate, a desire, a character, I could go on.
It’s high praise, but the character shown in Friday’s win Leeside would speak to the truth of Ward’s words.
Ward clearly has immense trust and belief in this group of players, but she also feels great pride that they have put themselves in this position.
I think I said it right early on when the groups came out. Everyone called it the group of death and we saw it as an opportunity for this group to show what they’re about and look, like I keep saying, they deserve an awful lot of credit because they’re showing it in abundance, by the way.
Ireland will be grateful that Denise O’Sullivan and Emily Murphy return to the team for Tuesday’s game, giving Carla Ward a welcome selection headache.
“These players give us everything all the time,” Ward said of the big decisions ahead on Tuesday night.
“I say that probably consistently over the last six months. They’re a joy to work with, and they constantly pose us a lot of questions. We have to select the team that we believe can win us the game.”
Bar the suspended Leanne Kiernan, who was sent off at the death on Friday, Ward has a full bill of health in her Ireland squad.
Ireland are under no illusions about the immense challenge ahead of them in France, and the stifling Grenoble heat will be a big factor.
It will also be a significant change from Friday’s storm in Cork.
“I’m just getting over pneumonia, I’m not going to lie,” Ward quipped about the change in conditions from Friday.
Yeah, it was torrential, wasn’t it? Yeah, look, I think we’re playing at nine o’clock in the evening, which I think will help, it takes the sting out of it, but it’s the same for everybody.
I think it will be better conditions for us. I know the Netherlands would argue differently, but I would argue that we’ll compete in whatever conditions are in front of us and the girls, there’ll be no problem whatsoever with that.
Ireland face France in Grenoble on Tuesday evening. The game kicks off at 8pm Irish time, live on RTÉ 2 (coverage starts at 7:30pm).
Win, and the World Cup dream is realised.
SEE ALSO: Football’s Version Of Wordle? The Addictive 38-0 Game Sweeping Social Media Explained
