Shane Keegan

AS THE CLOCK ticked towards the hour mark yesterday at the Olympic Stadium in Sydney, Vera Pauw decided it was time for a change. Birmingham City’s Lucy Quinn and Shamrock Rovers teenage star Abbie Larkin were beckoned from their warm-up and issued their instructions. Up to this point Ireland had been competitive, well-structured, hard to break down and could count themselves unfortunate to be a goal behind, having conceded a clumsy penalty.

SHANE KEEGAN TAKES a look back at some of the tactical issues and key statistics on a disappointing night for Stephen Kenny’s side. Irish shape and personnel Stephen Kenny sprung somewhat of a surprise in his decision to select Adam Idah to play up top alongside Evan Ferguson. I expressed my opinion on last week’s Football Family podcast that with Chiedozie Ogbene ruled out, I expected Kenny to select a replacement with a similar skill set such as Mikey Johnstone.

SHELBOURNE HAVE CONFIRMED that goalkeeper Scott van der Sluis has left the club to participate in ITV reality show Love Island. The 22-year-old was granted an early release from his contract after requesting to take a break from his professional career. Van der Sluis made just two appearances this season, in the Leinster Senior Cup, and three in total since signing for the Reds in the summer of 2022.