Euro 2025 playoff, second leg: Republic of Ireland 1 [Patten 86] Wales 2 [Cain 50 pen, Jones 67] (Wales win 3-2 on agg)
Grandstand finish. The Aviva rocked to the roars of 25,832 fans after Anna Patten’s late header gave the Republic of Ireland a fighting chance of dragging Wales to extra-time.
The Euros dream was slipping away.
Megan Campbell arrived, and that meant a succession of long throws into the Welsh box as eight minutes of injury-time was signalled.
A delicate nudge by Denise O’Sullivan gave Leanne Kiernan a rare moment to shine, but Rhiannon Roberts made the block of her life.
Seconds later, O’Sullivan’s shot landed on the roof of the Wales net.
Plenty of guts but no glory for Ireland.
Sixteen countries will make up the European Championships in Switzerland next summer as Wales join the top table for the first time in their history after second-half goals from Hannah Cain and Carrie Jones secured a 3-2 victory over two legs.
The result slows all the progress made by this team for women’s football in Ireland.
Katie McCabe was a central character in the drama but for all the wrong reasons; the Ireland captain was lucky to void a second yellow card by half-time.
Six minutes on the clock and O’Sullivan was imploring her team-mates to calm down. Wild clearances by Niamh Fahey and Caitlin Hayes invited Wales to pour forward. To seize the moment.
The usually reliable McCabe corner combination with O’Sullivan led to an unforced error from the Cork midfielder. Soft passing by Julie Ann Russell then Ruesha Littlejohn betrayed early nerves.
Palms to ground, O’Sullivan made a universal gesture: settle!
The Cork midfielder was everywhere, all at once, willing Ireland to Euro 2025.
Nerves and rain. Early on, McCabe barked at the Spanish lineswoman as Josephine Green chuckled to herself after bowling over the Irish skipper. Fourteen minutes clocked: Jess Fishlock shot on instinct but Courtney Brosnan saw it coming. Fifteen minutes: Fishlock unmarked in the Irish box. Again, Brosnan to the rescue.
At some point, Ireland needed to start living in the moment.
Green was on McCabe duty. When the Arsenal winger skinned the Crystal Palace defender, Green grabbed her arm. Referee Marta Huerta De Aza was unmoved until McCabe lost the ball and retaliated by tripping Green.
Yellow card. Seventeen minutes on the clock and McCabe needed to be on her best behaviour. Wales began to niggle her at every turn.
It almost paid off before half-time when McCabe recklessly fouled Rachel Rowe. A nation held its breath. Despite Fishlock’s insistence, De Aza deemed a final warning to be sufficient.
The attention on McCabe was amped up. Angharand James took a chunk out of her.
Kyra Carusa barrelled into the contest, finding O’Sullivan on the edge of the box. Her shot bounced off the crossbar.
Ireland are most effective when McCabe and O’Sullivan play close together. Sure enough, when O’Sullivan invited McCabe to shoot on sight, a curler went the wrong side of Olivia Clark’s far post.
Next, Carusa teed up Russell who drew a fantastic save from Clark that rebounded to Payne whose shot hit off a Welsh limb. The Spanish officials deemed it a goal-kick.
Wales responded through a Lily Woodham free-kick and snapshot by Rhiannon Roberts. Both were matched by Brosnan parries. Up the other end, Fahey let fly from distance. Wide.
It was tetchy and engrossing. It could have been 4-2 at the interval. But Ireland were blessed not to lose their superstar to overzealous swings of the boot.
The second half began disastrously as VAR Guillermo Cuadra spotted Patten’s forearm catching a Welsh cross. The pitchside screen did not appear to work so De Aza worked off Cuadra.
Penalty. Cain cooly waited for Brosnan to dive right before rolling her spot kick the other way, 2-1 on aggregate and Wales were bound for Switzerland.
This was the nightmare scenario for Ireland manager Eileen Gleeson. It meant her players were forced to attack with abandon, which left gaps that James almost exploited. Yet again, Brosnan stood tall and saved.
The chess match leaned towards Wales manager Rhian Wilkison, who replaced Fishlock and Cain with Carrie Jones and Ffion Morgan as Gleeson frantically waved for Irish substitutes to return from their warm-up.
Wales were out of sight before Ireland reacted as Jones shrugged off Hayes, the last defender, to finish past Brosnan. Two-nil on the night and 300 Welsh fans sounded like the entire attendance.
Oddly, it took Gleeson another four minutes to change up, sending on Megan Connolly, Campbell and Kiernan to chase a lost cause.
McCabe continued to play with fire, chest bumping James after being kicked by the Welsh captain.
A crazed endgame was guaranteed when Patten, at the second attempt, headed in McCabe’s corner to make it 3-2 to Wales on aggregate with five minutes remaining.
So, Wales are the last nation to join Switzerland, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Iceland, Denmark, England, the Netherlands, Finland, Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Poland and Portugal in the Euros draw on December 16th.
Ireland, having reached their first major tournament at the 2023 World Cup, won’t make the next party.
A crushing blow for the McCabe-O’Sullivan generation, Brazil 2027 is a very long way off.
IRELAND: Brosnan (Everton); Payne (Everton), Patten (Aston Villa), Fahey (Liverpool), Hayes (Celtic), McCabe (Arsenal); O’Sullivan (North Carolina Courage); Stapleton (Sunderland), Littlejohn (London City Lionesses); Russell (Galway United); Carusa (San Diego Wave).
Subs: Connolly for Littlejohn, Campbell for Fahey, Kiernan for Russell (all 72 mins), Atkinson for Payne, Larkin for Carusa (both 84).
WALES Clark (FC Twente); Roberts (Real Betis), Ladd (Manchester United), Evans (Liverpool), Woodham (Crystal Palace); Green (Crystal Palace), James (Seattle Reign), Griffiths (Southampton), Cain (Sheffield United); Fishlock (Seattle Reign); Rowe (Southampton).
Subs: Jones for Fishlock, Morgan for Cain (both 62 mins), Holland for Woodham (72), Powell for Griffith (82).
Referee: Marta Huerta De Aza (Spain).
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