'We’ve put ourselves in the best possible position' but Carla Ward wants Poland double

MAKE IT A DOUBLE: Republic of Ireland head coach Carla Ward speaks to her side. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile.

Having accomplished the hard bit on away soil, Carla Ward wants Ireland to double up against Poland on Saturday at Lansdowne Road to smooth their World Cup path.

Beating the Poles 3-2 in Gdansk was the first away World Cup win since Amber Barrett’s toe-poke at Hampden Park sealed the trip to Australia in 2023.

Goals by Emily Murphy, captain Katie McCabe and Marissa Sheva saw off a Polish side that began the day in the third place Ireland coveted to make their playoff route that bit easier.

In practical terms, the difference from avoiding a bottom place finish is dodging a potential powerhouse in December’s playoff final.

They would be seeded for the second leg of the semi-final against a League C team and the final.

“If we get another three points on Saturday, then Poland must go and beat both France and Netherlands in June,” outlined Ward.

“That's tough, so we’ve put ourselves in the best possible position we can.

“We discussed it as a group after the match. Drawing on Saturday is a minimum but we want all three points.” Ireland have every reason to be confident of completing the double on the evidence of how routinely they disposed of Ewa Pajor’s Poles.

On a night McCabe missed a penalty at the death, a one-goal margin flattered the hosts.

“Poland are a good side and we expected them to come at us from the start but we never lost control,” said Ward, who hailed the returning Denise O’Sullivan.

“Denise was absolutely world-class tonight,” she added. “I actually told her at the end that it was up there with the best 90 minute performances I've seen from her.” Ward admitted she was tempted to substitute her playmaker, with Saturday in mind, when frustrations at Polish grappling incurred her a yellow card on the stroke of half-time.

“Everyone was in my ear going ‘take Denise off’ but I replied that I didn’t need to take Denise off because she's smart.” Conceding at 2-0 up provokes fears of a Prague repeat but seeing out the win is timely for an Irish football fanbase still haunted by losing the World Cup playoff on penalties.

“I'm really close to Heimir, I spend a lot of time with him, so I really felt for him and the players after that tough loss,” said the ex-Aston Villa and Birmingham City manager.

“If our team can bring a little bit of life to the nation, then, because we're all in it together.”