IT IS tempting to suggest Ireland couldn’t have asked for an easier opponent than Georgia in the playoffs following tonight’s comprehensive aggregate victory.
But that is not necessarily true.
Other aggregate results tonight include Norway 14-0 Albania, Sweden 12-0 Luxembourg and Czech Republic 8-1 Belarus.
It would be an exaggeration to claim one-sided contests such as Ireland games are the norm but they are far too common for neutral observers’ liking at this level.
Of the 14 playoffs this evening, over half (8) were won by five goals or more.
That is not to say there weren’t enjoyable moments at Tallaght Stadium.
Jessie Stapleton’s sublime flick to set up Kyra Carusa’s clinical finish for the second goal is something many of the record crowd of 8,745 tonight likely won’t forget anytime soon.
Similarly. Katie McCabe’s brilliant low drive for the third was a reminder of why the Arsenal star is the only Irish footballer to be widely considered a world-class talent.
But the match generally had an exhibition feel.
After Ireland won the first leg 6-0, there was a complete absence of tension this evening, leading to an understandably subdued atmosphere for much of the game.
As soon as the tie was announced, the contest felt almost certain to be a formality.
It was after all a team that Ireland had beaten 11-0 and 9-0 in the last World Cup qualifiers.
Ireland lead Georgia 2-0, with Kyra Carusa finding the back of the net following a delightful flick from Jessie Stapleton.
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) October 29, 2024
📺 Watch: https://t.co/uHRfiPJEjQ
📱 Follow: https://t.co/QacRAVBzfj pic.twitter.com/f8s6ZB12ZY
Not taking anything for granted was the theme of the Irish camp’s pre-match discourse and the hosts certainly could not be accused of complacency tonight.
While seldom needing to get out of second gear, Eileen Gleeson’s side produced a professional display. They dominated possession and territory, rarely giving their opponents a sniff in attack.
Courtney Brosnan returned from suspension to replace Grace Moloney in goals but this alteration hardly mattered.
Georgia managed just one shot on target in the entire 90 minutes in Tbilisi and had to wait until the 59th minute for their first effort on goal this evening. They would not repeat this feat at all for the remainder of the game, with their only other attempt off target.
There was no shortage of effort and enthusiasm from the limited visitors, who were naturally set up to keep the score down.
But the physical difference between the players was clear and the away side’s play was littered with basic errors — getting caught out by a short corner for the third goal is a cardinal sin at this level.
94 places separate the teams in the Fifa rankings and it showed.
However, Georgia are in the playoffs on merit.
They finished second in Group C1, behind Belarus and ahead of Lithuania and Cyprus.
The fact that Iris Antman’s team were good enough to reach this stage highlights a broader problem with international football.
There are simply too many weak sides at the moment — an issue that has been addressed to some extent by the revamped format for the Euros qualifiers.
But this first round of playoffs is a reminder that for all the advances made in recent years, in too many countries, the women’s game is poorly funded and treated as an afterthought.
That predicament leads to inevitable and hard-to-avoid mismatches such as this evening.
The Girls in Green, of course, won’t be complaining.
Having been unfortunately paired with three of the top five sides in the world for the Euro 2025 qualification group stage, this less taxing contest was a welcome respite ahead of a much stiffer contest next month against Wales, with a ticket to the finals in Switzerland up for grabs.
It has been an unusual tenure for Gleeson so far. She began with a seven-game winning run before then losing seven and drawing one of their next eight fixtures, largely thanks to that unkind Euros draw. Now though, they appear back on track with three consecutive victories.
Next month’s encounter should be a rare chance for Ireland to face a team at roughly the same level of them, with tonight’s contest a useful workout but one that will have taught the coach little she did not already know about her players.
Absolute legend. Hopefully he gets an amazing reception in the stadium.
Fascinating listening to JT and Murray talking in the podcast about Joe’s ability to find any weakness in a side and exploit it, like 2 of the NZ qtr final tries against us. Should be interesting to see what he picks out in young Sam’s game. A pity winning has to matter so much as it would have been a great learning test to see what he would do against a starting Casey, Izzy, Gus, O’Toole, etc….
Agreed Carmine. Any Aviva crowd owes Joe a big reception. He developed the confidence in our team to challenge the best in the world – at least in the rankings. He gave this entire generation the space & tools to be the best version of themselves. And above all he was always a gentleman.
He should get a brilliant reception and if he doesn’t I’ll be mortified. Got so much to be thankful to him for, instilling that training should be top notch. Was just listening to Ian Madigan on Indo pod, even his description of rucking, ball presentation and walk throughs was super..