Ireland women look to boost Paris chances by breaking English hoodoo
ROAD TO PARIS: Sarah McAuley, Caoimhe Perdue, Katie Mullan (captain), Roisin Upton and Michelle Carey. Picture: INPHO/James Crombie
Ireland women begin their road to Paris 2024 Olympic qualification by hoping to break a 39-year hoodoo over England.
Ireland and England will open the 2023 EuroHockey Championships in Monchengladbach tonight, with the Green Army having lost all 10 previous Euro matches against their rivals stretching back to 1984.
Should they prevail, Sean Dancer's world No 14 side will be well set in their pool, with an encounter against Scotland to follow 24 hours later.
Only the winner of the women's and men's European title will earn a ticket to Paris. Ireland have finished sixth twice in their last three EuroHockey tournaments. This would be enough for them to qualify directly for the Olympic qualification events in China and Spain in January.
Ireland's upbeat captain Katie Mullan said: “We have played against the top three ranked nations in the world earlier this year, having taken on Argentina a few months ago and the Dutch a few weeks ago and we got our best result in recent years against the Netherlands.”
Ireland welcome back star goalkeeper Ayeisha McFerran after an extended season with her Dutch club Kampong. McFerran, 27, missed last December’s FIH Nations Cup where Ireland finished fourth and Liz Murphy shone in her absence.
Coach Sean Dancer said: “Lizzy Murphy has taken this as an opportunity to play and develop her game further and we are now in a position of having two strong international keepers leading into this tournament.”
McFerran is one of the World Cup silver medalists from 2018 alongside Mullan, Lena Tice, Deirdre Duke and Róisín Upton.
The only player who did not play in the World Cup last summer is Caitlin Sherin, who made her debut against Chile last month.
Ireland take on hosts Germany in their last pool game next Tuesday with a semi-final place - and the Green Army's highest finish - in the offing.
Mullan added: “We have a tough group but both groups are tough at the Europeans. That's the beauty of the competition.
"You have five of the world's top 10 in one continental championship. This group of players will be ready for the challenge that we face.”
With Germany men having thrillingly won the World Cup in January - when they produced a trio of last-gasp wins to lift the title - the nine-day championships are set to be a vibrant affair. Most days are nearing 9,500 sell outs.
Scotland women will follow Ireland’s opener by facing hosts and fourth-ranked Germany.
The Scots endured a travel nightmare when 13 kit bags were lost on their flight from Edinburgh. After a social media campaign and faced with the possibility of borrowing sticks for their EuroHockey opener, they were finally reunited with their sticks on Wednesday.
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