2023 FIFA Women's World Cup

**tetsujin1979** · 12/04/2022, 9:12 AM

qualifier against Sweden later will be on RTE Player internationally for all the forummers based outside Ireland
It's a bit of a gimme, in that Sweden are expected to win and qualify, but a loss won't affect us too much with qualification still very much in our own hands

BTW has anyone read the layout for the play offs? It's a mess
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_F...UEFA_play-offs

**Eirambler** · 12/04/2022, 9:56 AM

The playoffs make reasonable sense until you get to the bit where they rank the winning playoff teams, which is absolutely nuts. So you come second in your group, win your two playoff matches but still don't qualify because you drew with Slovakia or someone a year earlier - that's crazy.

The only thing is that, with the huge differences in standards that exist in women's football, there must be a reasonable chance that the inter continental playoff you'd then go into would be against some absolute no hoper from another continent, so you might qualify easily anyway.

Overall from an Irish point of view though, qualification looks extremely difficult here. Even if they get second in the group they still need to win two playoff games, most likely against higher ranked teams, and maybe an inter continental playoff as well. Big ask for them to qualify.

But yet we'll no doubt see countries from other parts of the world have much easier qualification paths and then get 13-0 type beatings in the finals, as happened in 2019.

EDIT: Just looked at the inter continental playoff format as well and that's a complete mess too - groups of three, groups of four etc.

There's got to be a better way...

**tetsujin1979** · 12/04/2022, 4:43 PM

15 minutes in, still 0-0
Finland leading Georgia 5-0 in the other game in the group today

**passinginterest** · 12/04/2022, 5:21 PM

Turned it on just in time to see them take the lead. Massive deflection on a McCabe shot. Get the impression it was all Sweden up to that point. Would be an incredible result if they can keep the clean sheet in the second half.

**tetsujin1979** · 12/04/2022, 5:21 PM

1-0 up at half time! Katie McCabe with a deflected shot. Sweden should have scored though, one glaring chance that came back off the underside of the crossbar

**Insidetherock** · 12/04/2022, 5:27 PM

Hon the women.. mighty performance so far.. remember they kept them scoreless in the second half in Tallaght too

Realistically you'd still back Sweden to win, but have to give the women some credit

Getting to the world cup would be somecshot in the arm for the women and girls game in Ireland

Plus, just shows you how good the Swedes are.. pretty much all the Irish players are playing in England in the Super League, but theyre pinned back constant

**Insidetherock** · 12/04/2022, 6:27 PM

One of the greatest performance by a senior Irish international team.. brilliant for them.. get the win in Georgia, and fill the stadium in Tallaght for the Finland game.. they deserve it

**gastric** · 12/04/2022, 7:38 PM

Great result, shows we can match it with the big teams now and this was despite a number of key injuries!COYGIG!

**geysir** · 12/04/2022, 8:19 PM

Originally Posted by gastric

Great result, shows we can match it with the big teams now and this was despite a number of key injuries!COYGIG!

It was a stunning result, I didn't watch the game but I doubt Ireland came close to matching Sweden, there's a considerable gap to the top UEFA teams. Should Ireland finish ahead of Finland in the group reaching the play-offs, that would be a considerable mark of progress made.

**gastric** · 12/04/2022, 8:27 PM

We have beaten Australia and drawn with Sweden who both finished top 4 in the last Olympics? I think that is matching it with the best.

**geysir** · 13/04/2022, 1:00 AM

By accounts Sweden totally dominated the game and in 3 games this campaign I have seen absolutely no hint that Ireland can match the top 10 teams. Should Ireland overcome 2nd tier Finland, that in itself will be cause for great celebration and set up a realistic target to get to the 2nd play off round. Of course that depends on the draw.

**jbyrne** · 13/04/2022, 6:24 AM

tuned in to watch and was delighted with the draw. I had expected a 2 or 3 nil loss.
22% possession says a lot though. we just kept aimlessly kicking the ball away and hardly strung more than 2 passes together. it was very frustrating at times given there were sometimes very good options for a better out ball but it seemed the plan was to just kick it anywhere.
I think the main difference between this team and what's gone over the last few years is the quality of the goalkeeper who had a very good game. one save onto the crossbar in the 2nd half was outstanding.

**TonyD** · 13/04/2022, 9:19 AM

Originally Posted by jbyrne

tuned in to watch and was delighted with the draw. I had expected a 2 or 3 nil loss.
22% possession says a lot though. we just kept aimlessly kicking the ball away and hardly strung more than 2 passes together. it was very frustrating at times given there were sometimes very good options for a better out ball but it seemed the plan was to just kick it anywhere.
I think the main difference between this team and what's gone over the last few years is the quality of the goalkeeper who had a very good game. one save onto the crossbar in the 2nd half was outstanding.

Would agree with this. I only saw the second half, but Sweden owned the ball, while panic seemed to set in every time it came to an Irish player. There seemed to be no thought at all to look for a pass, just punt it as far away from you as you can. I get that Sweden are at a different level, and a draw is a creditable result no doubt, but to call it a great performance ? Maybe defensively.

**nigel-harps1954** · 13/04/2022, 9:31 AM

Agree with previous two posts. For what it was, it was a superb defensive performance, and Brosnan was an easy player of the match, even if RTÉ gave it to Katie McCabe for her goal.

Sweden dominated possession, were comfortable on the ball, and were clearly a step above in terms of quality, but Ireland dealt with them very well at the back.

Huge slice of luck for the Ireland goal, but also a fair bit of luck at the other end with some poor finishing from the Swedes.

All that being said, it's still a phenomenal result, and credit to the team for it. They done exactly what was required of them and put themselves into a great position with both Sweden games over and done with now.

**Insidetherock** · 13/04/2022, 3:30 PM

Talking about the Swedish dominance is being a little churlish in my opinion.. consider how the mens team would match up to Brazil, Belgium (the real one), France etc.. the ladies are still 30th in the world, and there is definitely a bigger jump between 1st and 30th in the ladies game compared to the mens

But yesterday is about progression.. it's about not getting hockeyed 4-5 nil as they would have in the past. It's about growing the game in the eyes of the public and showing young female players there is a pathway to a profession through football. And maybe if not a full time profession, maybe a full time college education in the US or UK, via football.

You're seeing some of the best female GAA footballing talent going to Australia increasingly, as the WAFL is offering professional sport.. eventually if football offers a path for young girls, more and more will take that too.

I said this yesterday, if you looked at the Irish squad, more and more of them are now playing at high level in England in the WSL or at a high level in the States in college football (which is probably even stronger than the WSL to be honest).. the English team has improved in leaps and bounds because of this and their greater pick, but we'll eventually get closer as more and more Irish girls get a chance to be practically full time ballers

The Swedes and Germans.. they're already there

**nigel-harps1954** · 13/04/2022, 6:52 PM

I don't think anyone disagrees with any of that Insidetherock, just merely observing yesterday's game as it panned out. Nothing particularly churlish about it.

It's a massive credit to the Irish side, that they were able to take on one of the best sides in the world, and to take points off them for the first time in their group campaign. It got great coverage, great press afterwards, and it can only do well for the game here.

**Insidetherock** · 13/04/2022, 7:17 PM

Originally Posted by nigel-harps1954

I don't think anyone disagrees with any of that Insidetherock, just merely observing yesterday's game as it panned out. Nothing particularly churlish about it.

It's a massive credit to the Irish side, that they were able to take on one of the best sides in the world, and to take points off them for the first time in their group campaign. It got great coverage, great press afterwards, and it can only do well for the game here.

Hopefully... I do feel kind of protective of the womens/girls game... I genuinely think we could compete with the best if given the chance

The other thing I wonder though.. is how far the FAI might go to recruit Irish Americans to the team. The level at the higher end of college football in the US in the womens game, is phenomenal. An American collegiate champions team visited us on a pre season trip a few years back (the coach hailed from the town so he brought them over) and watching them training was jaw dropping.

They'd played a few friendlies in the UK during the trip and absolutely hammered two WSL teams .. at the time they were trying to line up the national womens team for a fiendly

Might be a top class Irish Americans (or three) still out there that could make a big difference

**ltfc_2004** · 14/04/2022, 9:32 AM

Interesting point on 2nd Gen/3rd Gen Irish Americans, could it be worthwhile for the FAI to organise a summer tour/ training camps in the US and see if the Irish diaspora tree throws up a few options. It can only strengthen the Irish team.

**tetsujin1979** · 15/06/2022, 11:22 PM

Squad announced for a friendly against the Philippines before a qualifier against Georgia.
Given Georgia have yet to score in their six games, and have a goal difference of -41, I'm expecting a win.