Stephanie Roche: 'In my mind, I always felt I had something to offer'

Stephanie Roche is thrilled to be back in the Republic of Ireland fold - three years after her last cap

Thu, 16 Jun, 2022 - 12:04

John Fallon

Stephanie Roche is grateful to Vera Pauw for offering her an Ireland reprieve just as she’d become "fed-up" waiting for a recall.

The 33-year-old striker is back in the squad for Monday week’s World Cup qualifier in Georgia, almost three years after the last of her 55 caps.

Ireland suffered a Greek tragedy on that occasion, conceding a stoppage-time equaliser in Athens from the side that Roche was deployed to cover on her introduction from the bench.

And she admits there were times – even after scoring a hat-trick in Peamount’s 2020 FAI Cup final victory – that she feared there was no way back.

“There was a point where I thought it wasn’t coming because I was playing well for Peamount and scoring goals,” Roche admitted.

“You’re nearly fed up as a player. I wanted to know if I wasn’t being used; otherwise, I would have walked away. Thankfully, Vera reassured me.

“I had been part of this squad for 10 years and being out of the loop was disappointing. I always felt I had a chance and the chats with Vera were encouraging. It was just about trying to take the chance when it happened. I asked her 'Am I wasting my time here?' But she told me she really appreciated me as a player so that gave me a push to keep going. I have to thank her for that.”

Maintaining her fitness with extra training sessions to those with her WNL club helped keep her focus on a comeback.

Roche added: “In my mind, I always felt I had something to offer because, if I didn’t, I would have walked away.”

The 2014 Puskas Prize runner-up – for her sumptuous volley against Wexford – was surprised to get the call-up.

“We knew there was one place in the squad left before the last home-based training sessions. You’re always bracing for bad news and this was no different, so to have it flipped was amazing. My Dad wanted to meet me for a coffee but I told him I had to fly out to Turkey straight away the next morning. It was all quite last-minute but the hard work shows that I deserve to be here.”