Vera Pauw believes downtime can keep Ireland on the up

Vera Pauw says her experience of giving players some downtime with their families ahead of matches makes for a happier camp.

And, speaking after her first match at the helm, Ireland’s Dutch manager felt it certainly helped in the build-up to Tuesday’s big 3-2 win over Ukraine at Tallaght Stadium to keep the Girls in Green on course for Euro 2021 qualification.