Eileen Gleeson glad to have Megan Campbell back in Ireland squad
Interim head coach Eileen Gleeson during a Republic of Ireland women squad announcement at FAI Headquarters in Abbotstown, Dublin. Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
Republic of Ireland Women's Interim head coach Eileen Gleeson admits she is glad to have Megan Campbell back and available for selection.
Campbell, who recently joined Everton on a short-term deal, missed the World Cup after failing to make a full return to fitness before the Girls in Green took part in the tournament's Group Stage in Australia.
Ireland will take Albania at a sold-out Tallaght Stadium on Friday, October 27 before they travel to face the same opposition on Tuesday, October 31 with the 30-year-old looking to win her 48th and 49th Irish caps.
"Megan as we know has been out injured, she's been training herself and has now signed with Everton so she’s been training at a really high level," said Gleeson.
"She’s still in a return to play process. She’s had some minutes but we feel that she can bring something to the camp with her experience. It’s beneficial to us and beneficial to her to have in with us at this point.
"We know what Megan brings, she’s comfortable on the ball, she’s got a nice left foot and you might have noticed in the last few games that we’re trying to adapt to a game where we can play out a bit more.
"Megan is comfortable on the ball, she brings nice balance on the left so it’s definitely an outlet for us to have her there."
Gleeson also paid tribute to her former club Peamount United, whom she led to their first ever Women's National League title in 2011/12, after the secured their latest league crown last Saturday which she believes proves standalone clubs can succeed at a high level.
“Whoever wins the league is clearly the most consistent team and Peamount have demonstrated that," she added.
"They have got wins in the last minute, which is always a sign of champions, so I’m delighted for everybody at Peamount and the hard work the girls, the staff, and the club (have put in).
“A standalone female club is not something actually different across Europe, you’ll see it across many leagues. Of course, it’s up to Peamount to continue to develop both on and off the pitch.
"I guess the sustainability is around Peamount developing their off-the-pitch structures, but I don’t think it’s a deciding factor to be a standalone female club or whether they’re integrated with a male club.
“There are pros and cons to both. Of course, you can see the immediate potential benefits of being integrated into a male (club) where the funding and the resources cascade down, but there are some very successful standalone female clubs. I think there are pros and cons on either side.”
Courtney Brosnan (Everton), Grace Moloney (London City Lionesses), Sophie Whitehouse (Lewes).
Caitlin Hayes (Celtic), Louise Quinn (Birmingham City), Diane Caldwell (FC Zurich), Claire O'Riordan (Standard Liege), Hayley Nolan (Crystal Palace), Chloe Mustaki (Bristol City), Megan Campbell (Everton).
Katie McCabe (Arsenal), Denise O'Sullivan (North Carolina Courage), Lily Agg (Birmingham City), Megan Connolly (Bristol City), Jamie Finn (Birmingham City), Tyler Toland (Blackburn Rovers), Sinead Farrelly (NJ/NY Gotham), Lucy Quinn (Birmingham City), Heather Payne (Everton), Izzy Atkinson (West Ham United).
Kyra Carusa (San Diego Wave), Amber Barrett (Standard Liege), Abbie Larkin (Glasgow City), Saoirse Noonan (Durham WFC), Emily Whelan (Glasgow City), Erin McLaughlin (Peamount United).
Ireland v Albania
KO 17:45, Tallaght Stadium
LIVE on RTÉ2
Albania v Ireland
KO 18:00 (17:00 Irish Time)
Loro Boriçi Stadium
LIVE on RTÉ2
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