Irish hockey team turn towards next journey after breaking Olympic barrier

Roisin Upton, understandably, wants to see this as the start of something rather than the end

Ireland's Roisin Upton dejected after losing to Great Britain. Picture: INPHO/Bryan Keane

They had to overcome any amount of obstacles to make it to their first Olympic Games but Ireland’s women’s hockey team aren’t done with navigating tricky paths. Kicking on again will be every bit as testing in the three-year cycle to come.

Five of the players who featured in their last Group A game against Great Britain on Saturday night are aged 29 or over. Ten of the 16 featured three years ago when the squad negotiated their way to an unlikely World Cup final.