'They’ve done a lot of defending over the years,' Carla Ward aims to change Irish mentality

Ward succeeded Eileen Gleeson in January and has overseen three wins, with a 4-0 defeat in Slovenia the rare but hurtful blemish.

Republic of Ireland head coach Carla Ward with Denise O’Sullivan, Jessie Stapleton, equipment officer Helen Noonan and Lucy Quinn. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Carla Ward admits she’s prepared to accept some blips as her methods work their way into Ireland’s psyche.

The former Aston Villa and Birmingham City boss succeeded Eileen Gleeson in January and has overseen three wins, with a 4-0 defeat in Slovenia the rare but hurtful blemish.

Unless Greece take points off Slovenia in May, Ireland require two wins – including an emphatic at least a four-goal margin against the Slovenians at Pairc Uí Chaoímh – to achieve their mission of table topping and promotion back to League A of the Nations League.

Tuesday’s 2-1 win over a Greece side that was swept aside with a four-goal second half blitz four days earlier was unconvincing but the manager feels the team are emerging into her unit. Most importantly over her contract are the World Cup qualifiers, kicking off in February 2026.

“I’m that annoying mum, big sister, call it what you want because I’m at the players every day” she said.

“They’re top players, elite players and I believe we can play in that way. It’s just embedding into their heads because they’ve done a lot of defending over the years and this is a little bit different.

“I’m one of those managers. I’ve always said I want teams that are exciting to watch. Yes, we’ll probably concede some along the way because of the way we play but we’ve got to keep believing.

“An absolute non-negotiable from this game was three points. The performance on top would be good, and implementing other bits and pieces would be even better. We’re getting there for sure.” Ireland will have their captain Katie McCabe back for the penultimate game against Turkey in Istanbul, the precursor to the shootout by the River Lee.

“It’s head-to-head criteria so if we win 5-1, we’ll go ahead of Slovenia,” noted Ward. “But we’ve got to beat Turkey first.”