Carla Ward: 'This could be difficult at the start, messy in the middle and beautiful at the end'
Ireland WNT head coach Carla Ward. Pic: Laszlo Geczo/Inpho
Greece is the word next week as Ireland’s women look to salvage their Uefa Nations League campaign and negotiate a less hazardous route to another World Cup.
Last month’s 4-0 hammering in Slovenia indented an early blow in the Carla Ward reign, skewing the presumption that Ireland’s top seeding would be reflected in their position.
Two wins against the lowly, pointless Greeks – in Crete on Friday week and Tallaght four days later – are imperative to begin the slog of reining in the Slovenians.
Ward – whose debut match was a stodgy 1-0 victory over Turkey at Tallaght – has done her best to moderate expectations, opining after the Slovenian slump that Ireland overachieved by reaching Australia in 2023.
The primary takeaway from her first window was the hangover from missing out on the Euros. Ward’s predecessor Eileen Gleeson was a casualty from losing to lower-seeded Wales in the playoff for a spot at this summer’s Switzerland-hosted finals.
“This could be difficult at the start, messy in the middle and beautiful at the end,” said the former Birmingham City and Aston Villa manager.
“I said evolution and we need to be carrying on. But I think now there has to be an element of a transition here.
“It’s a funny thing to say but I think it was a blessing in disguise.
“If you win 1-0, you probably don’t find out an awful lot and it can mask. We found out a lot about where we’re at, the reality of the position we’re in.
“I take that on myself. I’ve tried new things in the Slovenia game because I wanted to try new things and I got the answers.
“It also allowed us to deep dive and reflect with every single player in the review post camp which was good.
“I learned an awful lot from that. I probably didn’t realise how much hurt there was from previous camps and the Wales defeat.” Injuries account for several absentees but the big winners are call-ups Saoirse Noonan and Chloe Mustaki.
Cork native Noonan has been scoring for fun in the colours of Celtic this season but wasn’t embittered by being excluded last month.
“I had a conversation with her actually,” said Ward.
“I only had a very short period of time to select the first squad so chose what I knew.
“I think in the period between the last camp and this camp, I've watched more fringe players and more players that I don't know anything about.
“I know a little bit about Saoirse but I like what I see. She knows where the back of the net is.
“We had 27 shots on goal against Slovenia, I think that's probably where you wish you had a Saoirse Noonan in and around the box.
“What I will say is the conversations I've had with her, what an unbelievable human being. She wants to learn, to improve and is so passionate about the opportunity to represent her country again. She deserves this and I can't wait to work with her.”
Ward will also work with her former Villa player Ruesha Littlejohn, despite the veteran reverting to part-time by joining Shamrock Rovers.
"I told her to do it," revealed the manager.
"She called me and said 'I have got three options. I won't tell you the other two options,' and I said, 'Go League of - think about the impact you can have on young players. Not just how you can impact the league.'
"She is a top pro. People think because of her personality that sometimes she is not a big pro but she is.
"To install that level of experience into the LOI is huge."
Courtney Brosnan (Everton), Sophie Whitehouse (Charlton Athletic), Grace Moloney (Unattached)
Heather Payne (Everton), Jessie Stapleton (Sunderland – on loan from West Ham United), Anna Patten (Aston Villa), Aoife Mannion (Manchester United), Caitlin Hayes (Brighton & Hove Albion), Megan Campbell (London City Lionesses), Chloe Mustaki (Bristol City), Katie McCabe (Arsenal)
Denise O’Sullivan (North Carolina Courage), Tyler Toland (Blackburn Rovers), Ruesha Littlejohn (Shamrock Rovers), Marissa Sheva (Unattached), Aoibheann Clancy (Shelbourne)
Leanne Kiernan (Liverpool), Kyra Carusa (San Diego Wave), Abbie Larkin (Crystal Palace), Amber Barrett (Standard Liege), Lucy Quinn (Birmingham City), Saoirse Noonan (Celtic), Emily Murphy (Newcastle United)
Friday, April 4th
Theodoros Vardinogiannis Stadium, Heraklion
KO 17:00 (Irish Time)
LIVE on RTÉ2 / RTÉ Player
Tuesday, April 8th
Tallaght Stadium
KO 19:30
LIVE on RTÉ2 / RTÉ Player
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