Has there ever been a moment like it? Amber Barrett scores the goal that takes the women of the Republic of Ireland to the World Cup for the very first time, and then kneels and kisses her black armband, sending her love to the people of Creeslough in her native Donegal.
It was already going to be hard not to get a bit tearful on a night like this, largely because there had never been one like it before, but Barrett’s beautiful gesture just added to the emotion of it all.
That she even had it in her head to think of bigger, heartbreaking things after the most exhilarating moment of her career, one that will earn her an entire chapter in the history of Irish women’s sport, was a wonder.
“That,” as George Hamilton put it, “was a moment and a half in the history of Irish soccer.”
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It was hard, too, not to think of all the women who had paved the way, as Stephanie Roche reminded us, from the early greats like the late Anne O’Brien and the brilliant Olivia O’Toole, to those whose international careers ended just too early to be part of this magical trip.
Like Emma Byrne, Ireland’s most capped player and finest ever goalkeeper.
Mad memories come to mind at heady times like this. Like meeting Byrne at Arsenal’s Hertfordshire training ground a whole 15 years ago and listening to her laugh about her experience of working in the club’s laundry, the highlight of her day, she said, scrubbing Freddie Ljungberg’s underwear.
And you laughed too back then, because even for a woman to be allowed don the Arsenal shirt was a big thing, if she had to pay her way at the club by washing multimillionaire’s knickers, sure, so be it.
Now you look back and think, Christ.
Safe to say, we’ve come a long way — not far enough, but getting there.
And nights like Tuesday in Glasgow should apply the afterburners.
There wasn’t much time for a build-up on RTÉ after that Champions League game between somebody and somebody, Karen Duggan just about able to squeeze in that she was hopeful-ish, Lisa Fallon the same. “I’m quietly confident this will be a massive and amazing night,” she said, through bated breath.
Over at Hampden, the Girls in Orange bellowed Amhrán na bhFiann in to the heavens, before a slightly mournful rendition of Flower of Scotland filled the air, the bagpipes curing any blocked-sinus issues that the audience might have been enduring.
Off we went with George and Stephanie, George bringing the latest scores from the other two play-offs, which started two hours earlier.
You might recall that in 2019 a Diophantine Equation was finally solved after it had wrecked mathematicians’ heads for decades, the challenge that was beating them figuring out what numbers x, y, and z represented so that x³+y³+z³=k. (Needless to say, x = -80538738812075974, and so on).
You could tell George felt like Fifa had presented him with a Diophantine Equation when he brought us the latest scores from those playoffs and tried to figure out how they impacted Ireland.
Portugal had gone 3-1 up against Iceland, he told us. Those waiting to be informed what this meant for Ireland were left disappointed. “It’s all ... terribly complex,” he said. And then there was silence. Apart from those who figured out that -80538738812075974 number, everyone else could relate to George’s bewilderment.
No matter, no permutation in the world would count unless Ireland beat Scotland, and after Niamh Fahey’s hand made contact with the ball, like she was playing in the 2004 All Ireland final (which she won), and Scotland were awarded a penalty, things looked iffy.
Courtney Brosnan? Go on ya good thing.
Still 0-0, then, despite Megan Campbell putting the ball in the Scottish net, admittedly direct from one of her throw-ins which will never not amaze.
More news from George. “Switzerland have beaten Wales. All of this means that ... Ireland have to win here, basically.”
Sometime later. “Portugal have beaten Iceland. Things are quite clear now — a win for Ireland in normal or extra-time and they’re straight through to the World Cup. Em, a win on penalties and they’re in the inter-confederation play-off tournament.” It was -80538738812075974 all over again.
But then Barrett, who’d come on as a sub for the injured Heather Payne, scored. “She promised me: ‘when I get on, I’ll score that goal’,” Vera Pauw told Tony O’Donoghue after the game.
She was as good as her word. Her post-goal gesture as lovely as the night that was in it.
