HEATHER PAYNE HAS never been Down Under, but will happily make her first trip to Australia and New Zealand for next summer’s World Cup.
Payne and Ireland qualified for their first-ever major tournament after Tuesday night’s 1-0 play-off win over Scotland at Hampden Park.
“I have never been to Southern Hemisphere, so can’t wait for that,” the striker, who plays her club football with Florida State University, told reporters afterwards.
“It is absolutely huge. I talk with my roommates about going to the World Cup, representing your country and I was like, ‘You know, I feel we are going to get there.’ It’s absolutely unreal.
“Of course, living in America, it is so big, soccer over there. I have a couple of team-mates who have been in the US team, the Chinese team, Nigerian team and Canadian team., And now we are there, I will see them again and that’s absolutely brilliant.”
Any preferences for Saturday week’s draw? “I have never played against the US or anyone like that. I will take anyone at this point,” she said.
22-year-old Payne reckons the real trigger of belief for the Girls In Green was the monumental result in Gothenburg back in April.
A 1-1 draw with heavyweights Sweden, unquestionably one of the best teams in the world, ensured Ireland’s World Cup dream hit new heights.
It finally came true for Vera Pauw’s side, and the rest is history. With more made.
“It is amazing,” Payne beamed. “We have been working so hard in this campaign for so long and now I can’t believe we have actually qualified, it is unbelievable.
“It’s history. I can’t believe it. Even though I say I can’t believe it, we had such belief in our squad. The new slogan, outbelieve, that really got to us and if we didn’t get those crucial results away from home, against Finland and Sweden, we wouldn’t be here.
“The draw against Sweden away, I think that is when we started to believe. It was a long process, but absolutely brilliant.”
Payne said Ireland “had a good feeling” at half time in Hampden, informed after a breathless opening period that a result elsewhere had gone in their favour. (Portugal’s stunning 4-1 victory against Ireland meant an Ireland win in 120 minutes would see them clinch direct qualification.) “Sometimes, you don’t want to know the results. But I think that pushed us on a bit more.”
The Ballinasloe star ran herself into the ground as Ireland’s isolated striker — “more of a working role than anything else but anything I can do to get to World Cup” — before making way for goal-scoring hero Amber Barrett in the 65th minute.
She rolled her ankle in action, though is confident she’ll be okay after another tireless shift.
Seven minutes after Barrett’s introduction, the Donegal super substitute scored probably the most important goal this team has ever scored. The FC Potsdam ace showed her class on and off the pitch, paying a beautiful tribute to Creeslough after a superb finish.
A nervy ending followed the 72nd-minute effort, but it was worth every second.
“When Amber scored, I had tears in my eyes,” Payne concluded. “And the last 20 minutes were very nerve-wracking. But we have a really solid defence and everybody throws their bodies on the line for everything, so I had a gut feeling when Amber got that goal.”
