“A THIRD WOULD have been nice,” Amber Barrett laughed afterwards.

The Hero of Hampden put on the perfect second-half cameo as the Republic of Ireland came from behind to beat Zambia 3-2 at Tallaght Stadium last night.

Barrett hadn’t scored for club or country since that fateful night in Glasgow last October when Ireland secured historic World Cup qualification.

A week out from the final squad being named, the Donegal striker ensured she’s front and centre of Vera Pauw’s mind with a brilliant brace.

Sprung from the bench at the break with Ireland 1-0 down, Barrett’s first touch was a 48th-minute penalty. Megan Connolly gave her the nod in Katie McCabe’s absence, with Barrett more than thankful for that gesture — and the goal — as she put a nightmare season at Turbine Potsdam in the rear-view mirror.

“As a striker, you want to get on the ball straight away and get that chance to get in front of goal,” the now-Standard Liege player said afterwards. “I hadn’t scored a goal since Scotland. I’m glad we can leave that one behind and talk about something else.

“I feel like the weight of the world came off my shoulders when the ball went into the net. It’s not just the international perspective, but also the club. The last six months have been really difficult, now getting back scoring again. To score in Tallaght in front of that crowd, I cannot describe it. It’s such an unbelievable feeling. To score for Ireland is the best thing you can ever do.”

To do it twice in one night? Even better. Barrett curled home with her left boot later in the game, epitomising her renewed confidence as she was teed up by fellow Donegal woman Ciara Grant.

“To be honest with you, Granty’s set down was excellent. Those new Adidas balls are really weird, you can get too much on it or too less on it, so all week that was the first time I got it just right. The ‘keeper was a wee bit of her line, so it was one of those where thankfully it went in today but it might not the next day.”

“Believe me, as much as it was good for me to play and to score, it doesn’t guarantee anything,” she added. “There’s still a few days to go, we still have a couple of training sessions left. I think Vera will be looking for a reaction from all the players.”

While those were Barrett’s sixth and seventh international goals, Claire O’Riordan popped up with her first in between. The Celtic defender turned in a Connolly free-kick with a big header, capping a superb performance as she well and truly played herself into contention.

O'Riordan celebrates her goal. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

“Peach of a ball in from Megan and thankfully it landed on the top of my head and went into the goal,” she beamed. 

“For me, the most important thing was to focus on my tasks in each and every single situation and try and do the best I can, implementing the game plan. I’m grateful that I was part of the starting XI and I saw out the game, even if I had a few cramps!”

After a solid shift in the back three, the 2022/23 Scottish Cup winner — O’Riordan also scored a header in the final — refused to come off, finishing the game up top rather than leaving her side a player down.

“I had a magnificent time with Wexford Youths as a striker and I hold them very close to my heart. I keep confident when I go for set pieces that I can be that danger with my head.

“I recognise in recent years that it’s a strength of mine and towards the end of my time with MSV Duisburg I popped up with a few goals and I was able to bring that into Celtic. I made the coaches aware that I can be a little bit of a problem [for the opposition] here.

“Going from a striker to a defender I learned an awful lot about strikers. That has helped me as a defender and vice versa. You can see what you can do about imposing a threat on them as well.”

While Pauw spoke glowingly of the Limerick woman post-match, O’Riordan returned the favour and credited her manager’s influence. “Vera is the one who helped set me up for this game. I’m thankful to the staff that are around me to give me that boost and confidence. Even at half time, you can never stop learning. They gave me some info that I was able to bring into the second half.” 

Barrett and O’Riordan are close friends so it was sweet to share the scoresheet, but both stressed it was all about the team.

Similarly, for O’Riordan, it’s a matter of time will tell in terms of next Thursday’s final squad announcement. 

Home to Newcastle West to enjoy some time with her family over the weekend. Wait and see, control the controllables etc etc.

“My feet are firmly on the ground so whatever comes in the next few days I’m prepared for,” she concluded. One of many.