
England 0 - 2 Republic of Ireland

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Connell believes Women’s U17s can surprise

The Irish face England tomorrow evening at Turner’s Cross (7pm) and then play Netherlands on Saturday and Hungary next Tuesday looking to win the group and book a place to the U17 finals in Iceland this June.
It’s five years since Noel King guided the U17s to silver in the European Championships and then to the quarter-finals of the FIFA Women’s U17 World Cup and no team has been back since so Connell, who guided the U19s to the semi-final stage, is hoping the presence of some of last year’s U19 squad around the group this week can provide the necessary inspiration.
“We have Savannah McCarthy, Megan Connolly and Keeva Keenan in this week helping out with the kit and also training each day with the squad. The younger girls look up to them and they been passing on their experiences,” explained Connell.
“Our preparations have gone very well. We have been here at Fota Island since Good Friday and before that we had two games against Iceland and also another camp here at the beginning of March to get the girls used to the place.
“Last year when we were preparing for the U19 Finals in Norway we focused on the first game against Spain and that worked well so we have done the same again and worked hard on preparing for England so that we are now very familiar with how they play.”
During his career in the SSE Airtricity League, Connell played many times against Cork City in Turner’s Cross and knows what a fortress it can be. He is hoping that the Cork public will come out to support his side against England.
“It is a fabulous ground and there is always a great atmosphere in it. We are hoping that the Cork crowd will get behind the players, support them and be the 12th player we need on the pitch.”
Connell is under no illusions just how tough a task his side face is trying to qualify from such a competitive group but he is looking forward to the challenge.
“We know it is a very difficult group but we have done it before and I fancy our chances of doing it again.”
The fixtures for the week are as follows:
UEFA Women's U17 Championships Elite Round Group 2
Thursday, April 9
Netherlands v Hungary, St Colman's Park, Cobh, 3pm
England v Republic of Ireland, Turner's Cross, Cork, 7pm
Saturday, April 11
Republic of Ireland v Netherlands, Turner's Cross, Cork, 3pm
England v Hungary, St Colman's Park, Cobh, 6pm.
Tuesday, April 14
Netherlands v England, St Colman's Park, Cobh, 12pm
Hungary v Republic of Ireland, Turner's Cross, Cork, 12pm
Tactical Lineups
England
Substitutes
- 13 Sandy MacIver (G)
- 5 Lucy Parker
- 11 Kess Elmore
- 14 Mollie Rouse
- 16 Georgia Allen
- 17 Zoe Cross
- 18 Taylor Hinds
Coach
John Griffiths
Republic of Ireland
Substitutes
- 16 Nadine Maher (G)
- 7 Dearbhaile Beirne
- 13 Lucy Mccartan
- 14 Niamh Farrelly
- 15 Zoe McGlynn
- 17 Sophie Watters
- 18 Niamh Prior
Coach
David Connell
Officials
- Referee Dimitrina Milkova
- Assistant Referees Ekaterina Marinova
- UEFA Delegate Wolfgang Thierrichter
- Assistant Referee Two Biljana Milanova
- Fourth Official Ivana Projkovska
- Referee Observer Caroline De Boeck
Match Statistics
- England
- Republic of Ireland
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