AS ROMA MCLAUGHLIN wheeled away in celebration, you could see how much her first goal back at Shelbourne meant.
It was etched across her face; an outpour of emotion as each of her outfield team-mates joined her in jubilation under the Main Stand at Tolka Park.
Her superb 51st-minute goal put Shels in front in their top-of-the-table clash against Galway United last Saturday, and ultimately, sealed a 1-0 win which cemented their status at the summit. It continued an eight-game winning streak as Eoin Wearen’s side remain unbeaten in all competitions this season.
“I was so happy, I think you could tell by the celebrations,” McLaughlin, who came off the bench just before half time and had another big game in midfield, reflected afterwards.
“It’s been a long time coming and that goal has meant a lot for me.”
🎥 | GOAL!
— LOI Women (@LoiWomen) June 15, 2024
How massive could that goal be 👀
Roma McLaughlin has Shels in front!#WLOI | #LOITV pic.twitter.com/tCMiR0TEjs
McLaughlin spoke to The 42 at training the previous Wednesday.
“Family away from home” was how she described Shelbourne in her second spell at the club, while she touched on a tough time in Denmark, her recent quad and hamstring injury struggles, and other bits and pieces.
The Donegal midfield star joined Fortuna Hjørring in January 2023 after a successful, enjoyable four-and-a-half years in the US with Central Connecticut Blue Devils.
Stateside, she balanced her football, studies and socialising; originally drafted in by Naas native Mick D’Arcy alongside Tiegan Ruddy, who is now at Bohemians, while Shels goalkeeper Amanda McQuillan was among others to join in time.
It was a “different challenge” but ultimately, the follow-up chapter in Europe didn’t unfold in the same positive vein.
“Probably for me, that was my most difficult spell in football,” 26-year-old McLaughlin reflects.
“I had arrived in Denmark on a year-and-a-half contract, got through the first few months and was in the Ireland team against America in the April [2023]. When I came back [to Fortuna Hjørring] from that camp, it all spiralled downhill.
“I picked up an injury in training and that kind of stayed with me then until December — it’s still on and off now at the minute — so it had been nearly a year since I had played a football match. I found that very difficult personally, I was in rural Denmark, where you’re spending a lot of time by yourself.
“Come December time, I just thought, ‘Look, I’m not getting any better here. I need to change something.’ So we agreed to terminate the contract, and they were great about it, honestly, but I believe if I had to have stayed there, then things might still be the same.”
The lack of football was the major issue, but recovering from a long-term injury is difficult enough without being so far from home; adjusting to new surroundings and a language barrier.
How was it all before she was struck down by the minor muscle strain which simply would not recover?
“It was a very competitive environment, which is what you expect when you’re playing professional football. I think things could have been very different if I had to have been able to play and was on the pitch. If you’re in a different country, you’re not taking to the field, you’re just going to the gym by yourself every day, it’s a very challenging environment. I know if I was on the pitch, I’d definitely enjoy it a lot more.
“But I’ve learned so much about myself and about life in general. It will stand to me in the long run, I hope.”
It’s fair to say McLaughlin’s relationship with football fractured, her love dwindled for the game that had always meant so much to her.
The timing of the injury was a killer.
It ultimately put an end to her World Cup dream, making her unavailable for selection for Ireland’s first-ever major tournament last summer.
“I was probably on the outskirts anyways, but that ruled me out completely. That was obviously difficult to take as well.
“You’re always going to think what could have been.”
11-cap McLaughlin watched the action in Australia from Denmark — like she did with Women’s Premier Division, even travelling home for the FAI Cup final — surrounded by “great people that kind of got me through”.
It was a bittersweet few weeks, she admits, having been part of the squad that secured qualification with a 1-0 play-off win over Scotland in Hampden Park. “Up there with one of the best days of my life,” she fondly remembers. “That memory will last a lifetime.”
McLaughlin’s recent performances have surely seen her back on the international radar.
In time, she will add to her cap tally and perhaps, feature at a major tournament. Eileen Gleeson has called up several home-based players, from Peamount United quartet Erin McLaughlin, Freya Healy, Ellen Dolan and Jess Fitzgerald to Cork City captain Eva Mangan. That must be a positive?
“Yeah,” McLaughlin, who works for Sport Ireland having studied Exercise Science, nods. “For me, I just want to get back playing football at a consistent level and put those injuries behind me.”
And above all else, find her love for the game again.
“Still a bit up and down at the minute,” she admitted last Wednesday, “but I know that once I’m once I’m on the pitch and once I’m playing, I’m a lot happier.
“Being at Shelbourne is helping that as well.”
That first goal back undoubtedly did too. The comeback continues this afternoon against Athlone Town in the All-Island Cup quarter-final, back at Tolka. Who knows what it might bring.
