England 2 Ireland 1 (FT)
We leave you with Gavin Cummiskey’s match report. Goodnight all.
[ Ireland finally score but suffer another Euro 2025 qualifying defeat to EnglandOpens in new window ]
Full-time: England 2 Ireland 1
That strike is the game’s last game. A case of what might have been given Russell’s second half form, but Ireland at least have something to shout about having scored for the first time in this group in their FIFTH game.
GOAL IRELAND
Ireland have finally scored in this qualifying campaign! It’s Galway United’s Julie-Ann Russell who breaks Ireland’s duck. It comes from a Megan Campbell long throw, Hayes flicks it on and Russell flicks it into the net on the volley. Good finish from the striker who has been Ireland’s best player since coming on at half-time.
90+3 mins: Kiernan finds space in behind after a deft ball in from O’Sullivan. Greenwood’s tackle, though, is perfectly timed as she slides the ball to safety.
90+1 mins: What a goal that would have been. Charles crosses after some nice build-up down the left flank. She finds Kelly in the box whose first time volley with her left foot is, to say the least, a very aesthetically pleasing strike. It just loops wide - it would have been a worldie.
88 mins: Here is Louise Quinn, the surprise omission from the starting line-up. She replaces Fahey as she comes on for her 120th cap.
81 mins: Campbell swings two dangerous crosses into the box off the back of a corner, but England deal with them well. Out they break and Kiernan is forced into a tactical foul to prevent the counter. Yellow card.
79 mins: Better from Ireland. Russell really has been a livewire since she came on. Her arced run in behind is timed perfectly to beat the defence, only the ball from Campbell has too much on it as it rolls through to the ‘keeper.
76 mins: O’Sullivan looks to pull the trigger for a rare Irish shot, but her effort is blocked. She had taken up a dangerous position on the edge of the box but England recovered well. No shots on target yet for Ireland!
74 mins: Ireland continue to be caught at the back. This time Brosnan is pressed by Naz and she’s lucky the deflection didn’t go towards goal. Ireland scramble and clear but not without raising the blood pressure again.
71 mins: There’s a nasty collision as Le Tissier and Kiernan clash heads while going for the ball in the air. Both players are down and both sets of medical staffs have sprinted onto the pitch.
68 mins: Mannion is unfortunate there. She gets a good tackle in on Hemp inside the box but the ball rebounds straight back into her path, with Mannion on the floor and out of the game having made the challenge. The cross comes into a dangerous area but Hayes is there to head the ball to safety.
67 mins: Eileen Gleeson makes her third change of the night. Megan Campbell enters in place of Ruesha Littlejohn.
Here is that challenge from Fahey which lead to the penalty and Stanway’s goal. Sloppy enough stuff, Ireland can have no complaints about the decision.
Katie McCabe may not be on the pitch tonight due to suspension, but she’s still in the headlines. The Athletic’s David Ornstein is reporting that the Ireland captain is the subject of strong interest from Lyon.
58 mins: Ireland respond well to the goal. Russell gets in behind the defence, breaking into the box. She is shepherded well into a wide position where she feeds Mannion. She sticks a dangerous ball into the box but Hampton comes to gather amidst the traffic.
57 mins: GOAL ENGLAND
Stanway sends Brosnan the wrong way from the spot and England have doubled their lead.
56 mins: PENALTY ENGLAND
Niamh Fahey gives away the penalty. She got in a mix up with Brosnan as Ireland tried to play the ball around the back. Hemp picked her pocket and, with Brosnan out of position, Fahey pulled her down instead of allowing a strike into an open goal. She sees yellow for her troubles.
From an Irish point of view, it’s a big shame as the error came seconds after a very impressive build-up which nearly led to an opportunity inside the England half. When it broke down, Ireland came back to the defensive line where the mistake occurred.
52 mins: CLOSE! Park’s ball across the face of goal is very dangerous. It only needs a toe on it to find the back of the net but a stretching Russo couldn’t get to it. With the rain coming down, perhaps the water on the slick surface just took it out of the striker’s reach.
47 mins: Early chance for England! Littlejohn throws herself in the way of an attempted shot to stop what was a golden opportunity. The second half starting in the same way as the first!
46 mins: The second half is underway. Ireland have made two changes at the break. Leanne Kiernan is on for Emily Murphy, while Julie-Ann Russell is also on for Amber Barrett.
Alessio Russo’s strike in the fifth minute is the difference between the two sides at the break.
Half-time: England 1 Ireland 0
Ireland started very sluggishly, having Courtney Brosnan in goal to thank for only being one goal down. Since a tactical change from Eileen Gleeson, they’ve looked far more solid as they’ve stopped shooting themselves in the foot by giving the ball away inside their own half. That said, they haven’t offered any attacking threat of note.
Just the one minute added on at the end of the half.
44 mins: To be fair to Ireland, since Gleeson got her hands on her players during Brosnan’s tactical injury break, they have looked far less open in midfield. Park hasn’t been as threatening with those driving runs towards the box. Ireland have also been more effective pressing high up the pitch.
41 mins: Ireland get their first corner of the game thanks to Barrett pressing and forcing an error. Littlejohn’s delivery is good, inviting a rare header on goal, but a foul on the ‘keeper Hampton has been spotted.
36 mins: For once, England look nervy at the back. Hampton comes off her line to play the ball and nearly is caught in possession by Barrett.
Down the other end, England are back at it. Hemp gets played in behind by Russo and it takes Brosnan coming out off her line to beat her to the ball.
30 mins: CHANCE! Mead again finds herself in space inside the box. Instead of taking the chance, though, she tries to take another three touches, allowing Ireland to flood through and block. Looking for the perfect chance to shoot, instead of taking the one which presented itself.
29 mins: O’Sullivan clatters into Stanway, pushing her to the floor as the ball is passed away. It’s needless, but perhaps a bit of grit which Ireland need. Or it was a pointless risk which was lucky to not be carded?
25 mins: Littlejohn draws a stern word from the referee for a cynical foul on Russo which cut short a dangerous England attack. She’s lucky not to get yellow. Ireland continue to find themselves being cut open easily because they are struggling to hold onto the ball in midfield.
21 mins: A rare foray into the England box for Ireland. Murphy wins the ball off Greenwood before running down the flank. She sends a cross into a dangerous area but it’s too close to Hampton in goal who gathers easily.
19 mins: Another chance! Park is absolutely everywhere, once again running between the Irish midfield and defence. She spreads it wide to Le Tissier whose cross is aimed for Russo. She gets a head on it but can’t direct it on target.
Brosnan uses a tactical trip from the physio to allow Eileen Gleeson to regroup her troops after this difficult start.
16 mins: SAVE! This time it’s Mead who Brosnan denies. Again winning the ball high up the pitch, England spread the ball to Mead via Park who has been a constant thread running through the heart of the midfield. Mead gets her effort too close to Brosnan who punches it to safety. This playing it out from the back tactic is not working for Ireland.
14 mins: Double save! Brilliant stuff from Brosnan. Firstly she denies Hemp from close range as she looked to curl one into the top corner. Carter follows up from a wider position but it’s straight into the arms of the Everton ‘keeper. Ireland continue to live dangerously!
12 mins: Ireland are living dangerously here. Fahey and then Hayes are guilty of giving the ball away close to their own box when trying to play out from the back. They survive for now but England won’t miss out for too long if given too many gifts.
Here is that Russo goal which opened the scoring. Some lovely one-touch build-up in here.
8 mins: Ireland nearly find themselves two down. This time, luck is involved. O’Sullivan presses well but the loose ball rebounds to Stanway in acres of space in midfield. She drives into the Irish box and it takes a good challenge from Littlejohn to stop her from getting the shot away.
Down the other end, Agg manages to tee up Barrett for a shot from the edge of the box. She hits a tame effort straight Hampton in the English goal.
GOAL ALESSIO RUSSO
5 mins: It’s a 20th England goal for the Arsenal striker. Ireland are cut open less than five minutes in! Mead’s first time pass in behind is beautiful, sending Russo in behind the Irish defence. She rounds Brosnan in the Irish goal and slots it into the empty net. Cut-throat, brutal, devastating stuff from the home side.
England 1 Ireland 0
4 mins: England dominating possession so far. Ireland pressing reasonably high up the park with two strikers but England are able to hold onto it comfortably, albeit without creating any openings.
1 min: We are underway in Norwich! England get things underway in their customary white shirt. Ireland are in their home green jerseys with white shorts.
Right then, time to focus on the actual football. The teams are out on Carrow Road as it’s time for the anthems.
I thought it was tone deaf to be honest. In a week where these women were brave enough to speak out and use their voice on such an important topic. That voice and those sentiments should have been the only thing echoing throughout the FAI, I think, this week.
It was a bit lost in the ether. You go on social media and it was all about the men’s [manager] announcement. I just feel like it wasn’t the time. We had waited long enough for a men’s team manager. We knew this match was coming, it is an important week for women’s football, nothing should be done to overshadow the [women’s team] or the revelations.
I thought it was poorly executed to be honest.
— Karen Duggan
Irish Times columnist Karen Duggan doesn’t pull any punches on the RTÉ TV panel. She is not impressed with how the announcement around the men’s manager drew attention away both from the allegations of sexual misconduct made last weekend and tonight’s women’s match.
Sounds like it will be a wet one in Norwich...
Ireland boss Eileen Gleeson was interviewed yesterday ahead of tonight’s game.
Here’s the England team. With Beth Mead, Leah Williamson and Alessia Russo all included... yeah, good luck.
Teams are in! There are a lot of changes for this Irish side from the one which lost to Sweden last time out. From that XI, Louise Quinn, Katie McCabe, Megan Connolly, Leanne Kiernan, and Kyra Carusa all drop out - for a variety of reasons, some enforced, some not.
Louise Quinn is on the bench, so that suggests her absence is not injury enforced.
Into the side come Niamh Fahey, Anna Patten, the fit-again Denise O’Sullivan, Emily Murphy and Amber Barrett.
Of course, it’s worth remembering that Ireland are without the suspended Katie McCabe tonight. Denise O’Sullivan steps up as captain in her stead.
It’s been a dark week for women’s soccer and the sport as a whole in Ireland. Last Sunday, the RTÉ/Sunday Independent investigation into historical sexual abuse did not paint the FAI in a favourable light. Then, what should have been a good news story in the end of the managerial search for the men’s team was portrayed by plenty as a cynical move to time the announcement so as to shift the narrative away from the disturbing allegations.
If that was the case, all it did was distract the national attention away from this game, with the women’s preview press conference not attracting the same attention because of Heimir Hallgrímsson’s unveiling at the Aviva Stadium on the same day.
A bizarre week ends with a game. Something, which in the grand scheme of what has been said in the last seven days, seems trivial. Yet at the same time, it is good to have some actual soccer to talk about, not that it should detract in any way from what was revealed. Anyway, Gavin Cummiskey sums all that up and more in his match preview ahead of tonight’s action.
[ Ireland face tough task in England at end of disturbing weekOpens in new window ]
Good evening all and welcome to live coverage of summer football! Ireland are back in action for the first time in just over a month as they continue what has been an unsuccessful Euro 2025 campaign.
A difficult stretch does not get any easier as tonight’s assignment is England on their own patch at Carrow Road.
Nathan Johns here to guide you through all the action as it happens from Norwich. Kick-off is at 8pm and we’ll be building up until the action until then.
