Ireland Women's World Cup play-off to be played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in October

The request to have the Irish women’s football team line out at Páirc Uí Chaoimh for the fourth time will go before the next meeting of the GAA’s Central Council on August 1. Pic: David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Subject to approval by GAA Central Council, Ireland's home leg for their Women's World Cup play-off semi-final against Kazakhstan, on Tuesday, October 13, will be played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh.

With Cork GAA confident of Central Council rubberstamping, Páirc Uí Chaoimh will play host to the World Cup play-off, Munster’s Champions Cup opener, and the Cork hurling final all in the space of five days in mid-October.

The request to have the Irish women’s football team line out at Páirc Uí Chaoimh for the fourth time - all three previous outings ended in home victory - will go before the next meeting of the GAA’s Central Council on August 1.

“This is subject to Croke Park approval, which we don’t have any worries about, really,” Cork county board chairman Pat Horgan told the Irish Examiner on Wednesday.

The first leg of the World Cup semi-final play-off will take place in Kazakhstan the week before Carla Ward’s charges return to Cork. Victory across the two games would progress Ireland into a play-off final against the winner from the Belgium-Poland semi-final. That final, also to be played over two legs, is set for November 26 and December 5.

Amber Barrett turns in a late winner against The Netherlands at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

It was at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in early June where Ireland put themselves on the brink of automatic World Cup qualification, Amber Barrett’s 90th-minute goal sealing a famous victory over the Dutch. Subsequent defeat to France sent the girls in green down the play-off route.

With Munster rugby lining out at Páirc Uí Chaoimh four days after the women’s football game, followed less than 24 hours later by the Cork hurling final, Horgan expressed confidence in the Páirc Uí Chaoimh playing surface to absorb the heavy schedule.

“It is going to be a delicate balancing between the stadium management, ground staff, and the fixture body, which is the CCC. We have met and we have looked at it, and all the stakeholders have agreed that it is just about doable,” said Horgan.

“We will be playing county football championship matches on the Friday night [October 9], Saturday [October 10], the stadium will be handed over to the FAI on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, then we'll get it back and we'll have to have it ready again for Saturday night at 8pm, and then we'll have to turn it around and have it ready for county finals the following day.

“So we will have three different goalposts up - soccer, rugby, and GAA - in the one week. It's a huge undertaking but one we have planned for, and we all agree is doable. It is going to put a bit of pressure on, but it is fantastic to have it. It is going to be a memorable week.”