Soccer

Anna Patten adds to Ireland’s armoury in advance of daunting Euro campaign

Eileen Gleeson can call up Aston Villa defender for duels with France and England

Anna Patten represented England from under-15 to under-21 level but has pledged her international future to the Republic of Ireland. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho

Mary Hannigan
Tue Apr 2 2024 - 06:00

Although she is still waiting to discover if Niamh Fahey’s calf injury will rule her out of one or both of the Republic of Ireland’s Euro 2025 qualifying games against France and England, manager Eileen Gleeson was at least able to add to her defensive options on Monday, with Anna Patten available for selection after receiving international clearance from Fifa to switch allegiance from England.

The 24-year-old Aston Villa player, who has been an ever-present for her club in the WSL this season, represented England from under-15 to under-21 level, but has opted to declare for the country of her grandparents’ birth, Donald and Bridie Coyle (née Conroy) hailing from Falcarragh in Donegal and Lettermore in Galway, respectively.

“I’m delighted to be in with the Ireland squad, I was super excited when Eileen gave me the call and to have the clearance come through is great,” she said.

“This is a really strong squad and I just want to bring what I can to it to help the team. My grandparents have always been my greatest supporters and they have really motivated me to work hard to succeed in my career, so I’m delighted to be able to represent Ireland through them.”

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Patten’s versatility, as well as her WSL experience, should make her a more than useful option for Gleeson. The Florida State University graduate has been used primarily as a centre back for Villa this season but she can also play at full back or as a defensive midfielder.

That means Jessie Stapleton has another rival for a slot in the team, the equally versatile Dubliner having started in defence in February’s friendlies against Italy and Wales. But the 19-year-old received no small boost last week when Gleeson said she was potentially a “core starting centre back” for Ireland from next year on.

“Obviously, I was delighted with the comment, it was really nice, but you have to take it with a pinch of salt, you just don’t know with football. You have your little bumps in the road.”

One of those bumps was the lack of game time she got with West Ham in the first half of the season, having joined them from Shelbourne last summer. That prompted a January loan move to Reading in the Championship. She has been a starter there ever since. They’re battling relegation, though, so it’s been far from plain sailing, but she is at least getting plenty of minutes under her belt.

“And getting that experience in England has helped me with Ireland too, so I’m delighted. I was 18 when I signed for West Ham, and the WSL is different gravy. When you’re young, especially as a centre back, you need the experience and maturity.”

Remarkably, Stapleton was just 13 when she was first called up to a home-based training squad by Colin Bell, before being given her senior Irish debut by Vera Pauw in the summer of 2022. She missed the cut for the World Cup, though, and wasn’t able to make it to Australia as a fan. “I didn’t have the money, I was sitting my Leaving Cert!”

And much as she is buoyed by Gleeson’s faith in her potential, she’s not writing off the old guard of centre backs – Niamh Fahey (36), Diane Caldwell (35) and Louise Quinn (33) – just yet. “They’re still flying, they’re very fit, they’re full of experience. And they take you under their wing. They try to teach you, put the arm around you, I’m learning so much off them when I come into camp.”

While Stapleton’s trip home for this camp only had her in the air for less than 90 minutes, Kyra Carusa’s trek to Dublin, from her hometown of San Diego, had her airborne for half a day. But when she joined San Diego Wave last summer, she knew that would be the way of things.

Jet lag? “You know, I’ve done it so many times now that it’s actually not too bad. When I come in, the most important thing is that I get 12 hours sleep in my first two nights. So I’m in bed at eight, you could drive a truck through the room and I’d still be sleeping.”

And not even being drawn against France, England and Sweden in this qualifying group is keeping her awake. She chuckles when she recalls the reaction to the draw of her Swedish team-mates at San Diego, Hanna Lundkvist and Sofia Jakobsson. “They looked at me and it was ‘honestly, anyone but you guys’. Because no one wants to have to play us.”

Trepidation or excitement when you saw the draw? “Excitement!” Daunting as it is, then, she’ll sleep easy.

Mary Hannigan

Mary Hannigan

Mary Hannigan is a sports writer with The Irish Times

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