Sheva proud to resurrect her Ireland career with a first goal in green

After her first six-month whirlwind with the national team was marred by a penalty conceded in World Cup opener, the Portland Thorns midfielder has fought impressively to return to fold

Mon, 28 Oct, 2024 - 03:05

John Fallon

Marissa Sheva admitted she feared her Ireland career might have been restricted to a six-month blitz.

The American midfielder declared through her Irish mother after Vera Pauw guided the team to the 2022 World Cup. She featured in the build-up friendlies and the three matches at the finals but her tournament was tainted by conceding the penalty which allowed hosts Australia inflict a 1-0 opening defeat on Ireland.

When player power led to Pauw being discarded by the FAI, her replacement Eileen Gleeson jettisoned the 27-year-old after her first camp without affording a minute of game-time. Club inaction was cited for the cull and her subsequent move from Washington Spirit to Portland Thorns led to recall.

Sheva marked his first Ireland appearance in 15 months by grabbing her first international goal in Friday’s 6-0 stroll over Georgia.

“It definitely did but it’s a decision entirely out of my hands,” she said about her fear of Ireland being reflected on as a brief dalliance. “At some point you’ve to let that go and do what you can at club level to prove yourself. I didn’t fully give up hope but it was definitely a thought.”

Asked if she felt her goal-scoring return in Tbilisi was redemption for her resilience in recovering from that disputed penalty incident with Hayley Raso in Sydney, she admitted: “That’s one way to think about. This group never made me feel like I needed redemption from that game (against Australia).

“I owe that to them but it definitely feels good to put one on the board. I’ve been absolutely buzzing to be back with the group. That has energised me because this is my favourite place to be.

“These are my favourite group of girls and I’m delighted to be back in.”

A predicated hammering affords Gleeson scope to experiment with the playoff final in mind. Slovakia take a 2-1 lead to Wales for the second leg in Cardiff on Tuesday, with the final legs scheduled for November 29 and at Lansdowne Road on December 3.

“I’ve no expectations whatsoever on that,” Sheva said about the potential for a start against a Georgian side who managed to limit Ireland to a converted Katie McCabe penalty. “We have to expect they’ll make changes and try to predict them. We’ll expect their team from the first half that came at us and didn’t make it easy. We’ll respect them and see what they have to give us.”