AMBER BARRETT GETS the credit as the goalscoring hero, but Courtney Brosnan’s penalty save ultimately set Ireland on their way to their first World Cup.
Brosnan denied Scotland captain Caroline Weir early on in their play-off at Hampden Park two years ago, and Ireland’s number one is ready to step up again to secure historic Euro 2025 qualification.
Wales are the opposition for the two-legged showdown — in Cardiff on Friday and the Aviva Stadium next Tuesday — where the winner progresses to their first European Championship finals.
Everton star Brosnan is uncertain on her penalty record overall, but knows she has “definitely saved a few”. She stopped three in a League Cup shootout last month to inspire the Toffees to victory, while other one-off spot kicks spring to mind.
“Obviously the Scotland game is a big occasion so that’s the one that gets remembered,” Brosnan, who was recently named FAI and PFAI Senior Women’s International Player of the Year, says. “I had a few in the league last year, one against [Manchester City star] Bunny Shaw I think.”
One thing she is certain on is her pre-penalty mindset and routine. “Usually now, it takes a while for the decision to be given or for whoever is getting the ball to get ready, so I take that chance to go over, get some water and get my thoughts together.
“Typically, I’ve already watched some clips or been given some information about who is most likely to take the penalty, what their favourite side is and stuff. So I have a think about it and then I have a little bit of a routine with touching the crossbar, walking along the line and getting myself ready for that moment.
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“I see the kicker line up and kind of just go off gut instinct and a bit off how they are lining up, and the data you’ve been given.”
The 29-year-old was “100% in the moment” at Hampden, she recalls, not overwhelmed by the occasion or its impact.
“For me personally, you don’t realise until after the game is over, until after you’ve qualified that that just happened. You make a save in the game or you make a penalty save in the game, you’re like, ‘Well that feels nice’, but you’re like, ‘Okay we’re only 20 minutes into the game or whatever it is, we still have this amount of time to go’.
“As a goalkeeper I’ve always been taught you have to focus on the task and what you’re doing in that moment so I think I see the game broken down into little moments and little tasks that I have to do. You’re not really thinking too far in advance. You’re trying to focus on what you’re doing to obviously accomplish the goal.”
Brosnan saving Caroline Weir's penalty in their 2023 World Cup play-off at Hampden Park. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
Brosnan, and Ireland, certainly did that on that fateful night in Glasgow. Speaking this morning, she wouldn’t be drawn on this shot at unblemished qualification after the Celtic Symphony fallout somewhat overshadowed their past achievement. “The full focus is not on outside noise or whatever happened, it’s just focusing on qualifying for the Euros,” she insisted.
The US-born ‘keeper highlighted “the progress we’ve continued to make” and urged Ireland to ensure they are not one-hit wonders in terms of qualifying for major tournaments.
The Girls In Green want to back up their Australia 2023 appearance, and Slaying The Dragon over the next 10 days will guarantee as much.
“Obviously you have a big occasion like qualifying for your first World Cup but I feel something I and the whole team has talked about is, we don’t just want that one thing. There’s still more to be done and everyone has their eyes forward and foot on the gas.
“You don’t want to be the team that just qualifies for one major tournament, I don’t think anyone wants that. You want to be doing that consistently. So there is always that thing where you are continuing to push forward and continuing to write history, write stories into your legacy.
“It’s so important for us to be role models for the younger generation, leave the game better than we found it and set up that generation to have things that maybe we didn’t have when we started playing.”
“Everyone knew it was going to come down to a play-off so that is something we’ve been prepared for and something we’ve experienced before,” in-form Brosnan added.
“It’s a massive game and everyone knows coming into camp how important it is. But that is exciting because that is the stuff that you dream of when you start playing football professionally and internationally.”
Eileen Gleeson’s squad reconvened at their Dublin base last night, with Aoife Mannion still an injury doubt. The FAI have announced that over 20,000 tickets have been sold for next Tuesday’s second leg at the Aviva.
The Ireland WNT have given their support to the GOAL Mile ahead of their Euro 2025 qualifying play-off with Wales. Morgan Treacy / INPHO
Morgan Treacy / INPHO / INPHO
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'You don’t want to be the team that just qualifies for one major tournament'
AMBER BARRETT GETS the credit as the goalscoring hero, but Courtney Brosnan’s penalty save ultimately set Ireland on their way to their first World Cup.
Brosnan denied Scotland captain Caroline Weir early on in their play-off at Hampden Park two years ago, and Ireland’s number one is ready to step up again to secure historic Euro 2025 qualification.
Wales are the opposition for the two-legged showdown — in Cardiff on Friday and the Aviva Stadium next Tuesday — where the winner progresses to their first European Championship finals.
Everton star Brosnan is uncertain on her penalty record overall, but knows she has “definitely saved a few”. She stopped three in a League Cup shootout last month to inspire the Toffees to victory, while other one-off spot kicks spring to mind.
“Obviously the Scotland game is a big occasion so that’s the one that gets remembered,” Brosnan, who was recently named FAI and PFAI Senior Women’s International Player of the Year, says. “I had a few in the league last year, one against [Manchester City star] Bunny Shaw I think.”
One thing she is certain on is her pre-penalty mindset and routine. “Usually now, it takes a while for the decision to be given or for whoever is getting the ball to get ready, so I take that chance to go over, get some water and get my thoughts together.
“I see the kicker line up and kind of just go off gut instinct and a bit off how they are lining up, and the data you’ve been given.”
The 29-year-old was “100% in the moment” at Hampden, she recalls, not overwhelmed by the occasion or its impact.
“For me personally, you don’t realise until after the game is over, until after you’ve qualified that that just happened. You make a save in the game or you make a penalty save in the game, you’re like, ‘Well that feels nice’, but you’re like, ‘Okay we’re only 20 minutes into the game or whatever it is, we still have this amount of time to go’.
“As a goalkeeper I’ve always been taught you have to focus on the task and what you’re doing in that moment so I think I see the game broken down into little moments and little tasks that I have to do. You’re not really thinking too far in advance. You’re trying to focus on what you’re doing to obviously accomplish the goal.”
Brosnan, and Ireland, certainly did that on that fateful night in Glasgow. Speaking this morning, she wouldn’t be drawn on this shot at unblemished qualification after the Celtic Symphony fallout somewhat overshadowed their past achievement. “The full focus is not on outside noise or whatever happened, it’s just focusing on qualifying for the Euros,” she insisted.
The US-born ‘keeper highlighted “the progress we’ve continued to make” and urged Ireland to ensure they are not one-hit wonders in terms of qualifying for major tournaments.
The Girls In Green want to back up their Australia 2023 appearance, and Slaying The Dragon over the next 10 days will guarantee as much.
“Obviously you have a big occasion like qualifying for your first World Cup but I feel something I and the whole team has talked about is, we don’t just want that one thing. There’s still more to be done and everyone has their eyes forward and foot on the gas.
“It’s so important for us to be role models for the younger generation, leave the game better than we found it and set up that generation to have things that maybe we didn’t have when we started playing.”
“Everyone knew it was going to come down to a play-off so that is something we’ve been prepared for and something we’ve experienced before,” in-form Brosnan added.
“It’s a massive game and everyone knows coming into camp how important it is. But that is exciting because that is the stuff that you dream of when you start playing football professionally and internationally.”
Eileen Gleeson’s squad reconvened at their Dublin base last night, with Aoife Mannion still an injury doubt. The FAI have announced that over 20,000 tickets have been sold for next Tuesday’s second leg at the Aviva.
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