Heartbreak for Ireland Women in FIH Nations Cup Final against Spain

HEARTBREAK: Katie Mullan is consoled. Photo by Manuel Queimadelos/Sportsfile

Heartbreak for Ireland as they were beaten in the FIH Nations Cup Final by the hosts Spain.

While it was a better showing than their Pool A opening match where Ireland were on the wrong end of a 5-1 scoreline, Ireland were unable to create worthwhile scoring opportunities when they mattered most and ultimately came up short.

Given the last time they played in a Nations Cup tournament they went out at the semi-final stage it does mark progress but that will take a while to sink in after the disappointment of this result wears off.

Spain took the lead through Patricia Alvarez in the 25th minute with a field goal. Lola Rieira converted a penalty corner in the 30th minute to send Spain in leading 2-0 at half-time. In the end, those two goals were enough for Spain to secure the Nations Cup and of course the only spot available in the FIH PRO LEAGUE for the 2024-25 season.

Katie Mullan Ireland's captain said after the match: "I'm incredibly proud of the Green Army, of the fight we put in, not just this week but over the past couple of months. It's been an incredibly tough couple of months, both on and off the pitch.

"And what the girls have done, the resilience they've shown, is just an incredible story for sport really. I hope that we've inspired young people so that if they maybe don't achieve their dream, that they get back up and go again. We'll be back again!."

Head Coach Facundo Quiroga added: "It was definitely not the game that we wanted, I think in the end Spain were better, so congratulations to them, they deserve the gold medal.

At the end of the day, we talk about coming here to write our own story. It was a really tough way back after the Qualifiers [Olympic Qualifiers in January] and we needed to build a team, we needed to feel competitive again and the girls worked really, really hard over the last three months.

"Especially in this tournament, they showed how resilient they are. We didn't start the tournament well and we came back immediately.

"I am really proud of what the girls have done so far, they are such an inspiration for a generation of young athletes in Ireland and what they have done for Irish sport, especially for women's sport in Ireland, is so huge. The legacy of this team goes far beyond the silver medal we won. I'm really proud of them."

SPAIN: C Perez (GK); L Barrios; S Barrios; J Strappato; L Jiminez; M Lopez; CAmundson; B Perez; X Gine (C); A Torres- Quevedo; P Alvarez 

SUBS USED: B Iglesias (5), M Segu (4), L Rieira (7), B Garcia (5), B Perez (5), L Vidosa (4).

IRELAND: L Murphy (GK); E Neill; S McAuley; R Upton; E Curran; M Carey; C Beggs; K McKee; S Torrans; K Mullan (C); N Carey

SUBS USED: S Hawkshaw (4), H McLoughlin (4), N Carroll (4), C Perdue (5), C Hamill (4), S O'Brien (8).