IRELAND BOSS Eileen Gleeson has rejected claims there is a “disconnect” between the national team and the Women’s Premier Division.
The Dubliner says she has been an advocate for the domestic game for more than 30 years and has selected three Women’s Premier Division players in her latest squad — Katie Keane (Athlone Town), Eva Mangan (Cork City) and Julie-Ann Russell (Galway United) — ahead of the upcoming two-legged Euro 2025 Qualifying Play-Off against Georgia.
Gleeson replied to claims from Athlone boss Ciarán Kilduff, who suggested that “no connection” exists between the Women’s Premier Division and the national team.
“I don’t think it’s a disconnect, we contact clubs and we’re linking about their players,” the Irish boss said. “My role is about the senior national team, and if we need to engage in the communication we do, whether that’s me, whether that’s part of the technical staff, whether it’s the performance coach.”
One source of frustration among some in the league has been the scrapping of home-based sessions — a measure introduced by former manager Colin Bell and carried on (albeit to a lesser extent) by Vera Pauw.
These sessions allowed amateur domestic players to train in a professional environment and bolster their chances of an international call-up.
There is now a plan to develop a U23 Irish team to bridge the chasms in levels that exist between the current U19 team and the senior side.
Outlining the reasons for ditching the home-based sessions, Gleeson said: “We believe we can be better in terms of talent management, we can be much more specific with our high potential players.
“Nobody is in any disagreement that we do need u23s and we do need to capture post u19s. I’ve been the biggest advocate of this and we all know where the gaps are. That’s what we’re looking for.
“I hear home sessions being exalted, but it’s the same people that were annihilating them when they were on who are exalting them now. So in principle, having something there to fill that pathway is critical.”
The Irish manager said the idea is being “developed” and explained there is no definitive timeline for when these plans might come to fruition.
Asked whether the cash-strapped Football Association of Ireland didn’t have the funds to accommodate a U23 team, Gleeson responded: “At the moment, it is all being developed so I have no specifics to give you.”
Pressed on the issue of FAI finances, the former Peamount and DLR Waves coach continued: “We are always calling on government support, it is one of our main sources of funding. But it is also about getting creative about how we do things and doing things the best way to facilitate the talented League Of Ireland player.
“Objectively, there are differences to the levels that these players play at, there are different contact times, there is a different intensity to the games. The benchmarks and the outputs from League of Ireland games to WSL (the Women’s Super League in England) games are incredible and that is where we need to develop the most suitable programme that can enhance that player’s level and give them the best opportunity to make the national team.”
