SARAH ROWE COULD yet feature in Vera Pauw’s World Cup plans this summer.
The 42 understands that the Mayo multi-sport star is one of a number of Women’s National League players on Pauw’s standby list ahead of next month’s tournament.
Other home-based players such as Savannah McCarthy, Alannah McEvoy and Jessie Stapleton are also believed to be in the wider reckoning.
The Ireland manager named a 31-player extended squad on Friday, with a lengthy training camp kicking off in Dublin on Monday. That number must be trimmed down to 23, plus three training players, when the final squad is announced on 29 June.
But, barring injury issues, how likely Pauw is to turn to those not yet in camp remains to be seen.
Rowe may be a surprise inclusion. She has played a central role through Bohemians’ impressive recent form in the Women’s Premier Division, scoring four goals in 12 appearances, predominantly lining out on the right wing.
The Collingwood AFLW ace has experienced a whirlwind 2023 thus far, signing for A-League Women’s club Melbourne Victory in January before a dramatic return to these shores ahead of the new season in March.
Rowe appeared to be making a real World Cup push, having previously excelled on the Irish soccer scene. “One can dream,” she told Australian media of the prospect.
But the 27-year-old, who is also an accomplished inter-county footballer with Mayo, later told the Irish reporters a call-up wasn’t to the forefront of her mind.
“It’s a funny one,” she said in March. “I feel like there has been a narrative created around it. For me, it’s about reaching my potential in soccer. It’s about working hard, focusing on Bohs.”
Rowe has long been on Pauw’s radar, first featuring at a home-based training session under the Dutch coach’s watch in September 2021.
Still under contract at Collingwood, though with a potential big future in soccer, she has caught the eye alongside others at recent home-based sessions.
Four Women’s Premier Division players – Shamrock Rovers duo Áine O’Gorman and Abbie Larkin and Peamount United pair Erin McLaughlin and Tara O’Hanlon – were included in the training squad named on Friday.
Ireland’s World Cup opener against co-hosts Australia takes place in Sydney on 20 July.
