Day at the beach just the ticket for Ruesha Littlejohn
R&R: Republic of Ireland's Ruesha Littlejohn poses for a portrait at the Emporium Hotel South Bank in Brisbane, Australia, ahead of the start of the Women's World Cup. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
She’s not one to crib but Ruesha Littlejohn was entitled to cool off this week by venturing to the Gold Coast for a dip in the sea.
A season that began in September with an injury, a broken foot sustained against Finland for Ireland, ended prematurely in March with a second setback, this one a knee wound on Aston Villa duty.
Then there was dreaded news of her release from the Women’s Super League club, imposing the latest bout of precariousness in the 33-year-old’s club career.
And her first World Cup might have been over before it began last Friday when a Colombian rival defied the invisible training game traditions by clobbering into her body, inflicting damage to a ‘few places’ in one movement.
One peril she dodged was getting dragged into the fallout of that abandoned game, as an English sports show deleted their story of Littlejohn allegedly speaking of the South Americans in unparliamentary terms.
“Well, I’m innocent,” she affirms, acknowledging the spillover war of words between the camps.
“All I can say is I didn’t do any interviews as we weren’t to speak about it so that was that. I’m not sure what really went on.
“I’ve seen a few things on Twitter. If anything it just gave me a wee giggle.”
Snapping the monotony by escaping the Metropolis of Brisbane also etched a smile on her face. Ireland have been in camp for over a month, all designed to be equipped for what Sam Kerr and Australia throw at them in Thursday’s Group B opener.
“We had a day off on Sunday so a few of us travelled an hour down to the Gold Coast,” she outlined about Australia’s popular tourist resort.
“We just sat on the beach for the day and it was lovely.
“I love going in and out of the sea. That’s my therapy; switching me right off. It’s been a long camp.
“This has been a bit like when you go and stay with relatives. Things can get annoying at times. You just need to take yourself away and cool off. We’ve a good group of girls, a lot of giggles and banter in there and now we’re hopefully getting to the crunch times when the games will fly in.”
Against those various setbacks, the misfortune of others has played into her hands when it comes to Littlejohn’s claims for a spot against the Matildas.
Denise O’Sullivan’s expected return from an even nastier challenge against the Colombians will see the identity of her midfield companion being a straight shootout between Littlejohn and Lily Agg.
“It was an absolute write off of a season,” she admits. “I don’t think it could be any worse really. Aside from the injuries, there’s the ongoing Achilles tendinopathy that I’m always trying to keep on top of.
“But I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t be playing anyway if Megan Campbell and Aoife Mannion had been fit to make the squad.
“Football can work that way sometimes. I’m 33 now, had plenty of ups and downs, yet know how to manage these situations better now. A lot of the game is about your mentality; how you build mental strength.”
Thursday before a sold-out Sydney Olympic Stadium is as much about what’s going on in their brains rather than feet. O’Sullivan is responsible for the majority of the latter in the Ireland engine-room.
“Denise always wants the ball. Receiving the ball on the half-turn and spraying a pass, like she did in creating the winner against Scotland, is massive for us.
“She probably doesn’t get enough praise for it because she plays out in the States, whereas in WSL, she’d be up there with the superstars of the league.
“It’s nice knowing that you’re playing alongside her. When she goes into those areas, it’s guaranteed she’ll get out.”
Littlejohn has extracted herself from similar predicaments, not least this week by heading to the shore.
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