This week Ireland and Poland will face each other home and away in crucial FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifying matches.

Both sides will have targeted this month as the best opportunity to cement their spot in at least third place in a difficult group. Ahead of the trip to Gdańsk and the return in Dublin, The Halfway Line takes a deep dive into this clash of women’s football nations on the rise.

The Standings & the Stakes

April fixtures in Group A2

14th April

Poland vs Ireland, Gdańsk

Netherlands vs France, Breda

18th April

Ireland vs Poland, Dublin

France vs Netherlands, Auxerre

The importance of these matches for both sides cannot be understated. Each League A side are guaranteed at least a play off place but that does not guarantee an easy play off draw, in fact, far from it. Top spot ensures qualification for the World Cup in Brazil, while second and third head to the play offs seeded and fourth is condemned to an unseeded play off place.

To illustrate the difference in play off opposition between seeded and unseeded, The Halfway Line has mocked up a potential opponents list for each path should everything go to seeding in each group and subsequent play off ties:

Seeded:

Potential opponents in round one:

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Romania, Belarus, Croatia, Greece, Cyprus, Kosovo.

Average FIFA ranking of opponent: 68.4

Potential opponents in round two:

Slovenia, Serbia, Ukraine, Ireland/Poland, Belgium, Portugal, Wales, Switzerland.

Average FIFA ranking of opponent: 28.4

Unseeded:

Potential opponents in round one:

Scotland, Czech Republic, Finland, Northern Ireland, Albania, Turkey, Slovakia, Israel.

Average FIFA ranking of opponent: 47.1

Potential opponents in round two:

Netherlands, England, Italy, Norway, Denmark, Austria, Iceland, Poland/Ireland.

Average FIFA ranking of opponent: 12.3

Even if the unseeded mountain is significantly more daunting and challenging to scale, it is not unsurmountable. Poland were unseeded in the play offs for EURO 2025 and made the final tournament, as were Wales, a fact not lost on the Irish. However both sides will want to avoid the higher percentage of heartbreak in the unseeded path.

Seven of the play off winners qualify for the World Cup but the eighth, the lowest ranked in the league phase of the qualifiers will head to the inter-continental play offs. Should a side be unseeded in the play offs, they are far more likely to end up in the inter-continental play offs if they nab a surprise victory in the UEFA play offs. A couple of positive results in Gdańsk and Dublin for either side could all but ensure a seeded play off berth, so there is plenty to play for.

Adversaries on similar paths

Ireland and Poland are two nations connected on and off the pitch. After the UK, the most people born outside of Ireland that live on the Emerald Isle are from Poland. Polish emigration to Ireland boomed during the Celtic Tiger and has remained at a steady level since. It is no surprise that this fixture was selected by the FAI to be hosted at the AVIVA, it is sure to be a lively atmosphere. The encounter, as well as a must win clash for both sides will also be a show of shared community between two nations with a fierce sense of national pride and identity.

It is perhaps unsurprising given these parallels how many similarities the two nations women’s football journeys share. Ireland and Poland’s women’s sides have never been more than 10 places apart in the FIFA Women’s World Rankings. Their highs and lows even mirror each other. Ireland’s worst ever ranking was 38th, Poland’s was 36th while Ireland’s best ever ranking was 22nd and Poland’s is 24th.

This match will be the first time either side has faced each other since the Pinatar Cup in 2022. That day Ireland won 2-1, the Quinns, Lucy and Louise were on target for Ireland while Paulina Dudek found the net for Poland. Just four years have passed and yet so much has changed in the interim. Since that match both Ireland and Poland have made their major tournament debuts. Ireland qualified for the World Cup in 2023 while Poland made their bow at the European Championships in 2025. Both sides exited their maiden tournament in the group stage after facing extremely difficult opposition in their opening two matches.

Since the introduction of the UEFA Nations League, both nations have always been in the same league, switching between League A and League B. Each have delivered statement wins over League A opposition last year. Poland beat Denmark at EURO 2025 while Ireland beat Belgium in a relegation/promotion play off. It felt inevitable that the sides paths would cross again. Poland are a third seed in League A in part because Ireland beat Belgium in that October play off. As the top ranked promoted League B side Poland became a third seed, fittingly they’ll now face the side who inadvertently helped them get there.

Both sides have a massive star player in their ranks of UEFA Women’s Champions League pedigree. Ewa Pajor has been UWCL runner up five times and was the top scorer in the competition in 2022-23. Katie McCabe won the competition last year with Arsenal and played more minutes of the successful campaign than anyone else. Each side’s goalkeepers play in the Barclay Women’s Super League, in Courtney Brosnan and Kinga Szemik each have goalkeepers capable of excellence between the sticks. Both sides are often compared to half similarly direct styles, which can be extremely effective. The two sides also have female head coaches who have a great deal to offer the game, it will make for a fascinating tactical battle.

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Where Ireland vs Poland could be won and lost

Deciding how these two matches might pan out is inextricable from both sides star players, McCabe and Pajor. If either side are to get the results they need, they will need to ensure a quiet window for their opposition’s taliswoman. Both have already shown their worth in this campaign scoring against Netherlands and France in the last window.

Pajor’s ruthlessness in front of goal will be of greatest concern for Ireland’s defence. In 20 matches in Liga F this term Ewa Pajor has 20 goal involvements, only Clàudia Pina has more. Pajor also has a further seven coming in the UEFA Women’s Champions League this season, where only Alessia Russo has more. Poland are far from a one trick pony, they have a number of explosive attacking talents more than able to nab a goal. Often the threat of Pajor can leave gaps for Poland’s other attacking talents to exploit. Poland have midfield threats in Ewelina Kamczyk and Adrianna Achcińska who impressed in the Nations League last year, Achcińska scored three times while Kamczyk got four goal involvements. Expect late arriving box crashing runs, especially from Kamczyk while Achcińska features in more of a deep lying role.

When Poland got that victory against Denmark in the summer it was orchestrated in large part by Bayern Munich striker Natalia Padilla-Bidas. She scored once and assisted twice. Spanish born, Padilla-Bidas feels at home in Gdańsk, her mother’s birth place, she will be raring to go on Tuesday night. Probably the biggest decision for Poland head coach Nina Patalon coming into this game is who will start in place of the suspended Nadia Krezyman on the wing. Padilla-Bidas is a front runner alongside FC Köln winger Weronika Zawistowska who would likely provide more width than Padilla-Bidas. Zawistowska has pace and is a conventional winger with the ability to play in the 10, while Padilla-Bidas would play as more of a converted winger from a striker.

Ireland have consistently stayed in a similar shape in competitive fixtures since Ward elected to utilise a back five against Slovenia in a 1-0 victory last year. That formation has seen Ireland perform to their best level under Ward, pushing France and Netherlands all the way while defeating Belgium at the AVIVA. Ward is unlikely to change tact now, especially away in Gdańsk where a point would be far from a disaster for Ireland. However a change of shape in midfield and attack could be considered.

Three of France’s four goals against Poland originated in wide areas, with Kadidiatou Diani and Sandy Baltimore tormenting the Polish full backs. Ireland might make a small tactical adjustment from their usual 5-3-2 to a 5-2-3. That would allow Kyra Carusa to play through the middle flanked by Emily Murphy and Abbie Larkin in order to exploit a supposed weakness in wide areas. The main disadvantage of that switch is that it would likely see on form Sunderland star Marissa Sheva drop out of the starting line up, and would cede a measure of control in the midfield.

Poland will have an eye on Irish weaknesses too, which, surprisingly have come from sloppy defending at set pieces. With poacher Ewa Pajor and a number of great aerial threats including Dudek, Ireland cannot afford lapses of defensive judgement. Despite defeat to France, Poland created a number of opportunities and only faded in an attacking sense after being reduced to ten players. Ireland will also need to be more robust through the middle of the park where France were too easily able to find Ireland’s soft under belly in the second half at Tallaght last month. Poland will be aware that McCabe will tread a tightrope in Gdańsk, as a booking would rule her out of the return fixture at the AVIVA. That would be a hammer blow for Ireland.

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Ireland vs Poland: Availability report

Carla Ward confirmed in her pre-match press conference that Ireland would be missing Ruesha Littlejohn. However the Crystal Palace midfielder is expected to be available for the return leg in Dublin. Ireland will also be without squad regular Jessie Stapleton for both legs. In 2025, Stapleton started eight of Ireland’s ten matches, a clear favourite of Carla Ward. However Stapleton did not play a minute of the last camp, failing to find a way off the bench. ‘Staples’ as she is fondly nicknamed won’t feature again this month and was ruled out this camp with a calf injury.

Durham loanee Lily Agg was called into the squad for the first time under Carla Ward having returned from an ACL injury this month. Ward had spoken about her importance to the future of the side after picking her squad in the last window, but football can be a cruel game. An achillies injury against Nottingham Forest has ruled Agg out for the foreseeable, meaning she will play no part in this camp nor likely the rest of qualification.

Another player getting her first call up under Ward was Aoibhe Brennan but the Bohemians midfielder had to pull out due to an ankle injury. She will be back, the question is more when than if. Brennan is greatly admired by Ward, who has likened her to Manchester United midfielder Ella Toone, high praise indeed. Coming into the squad as replacements will be Sunderland’s Jamie Finn, an experienced head who made her debut back in 2019. Also joining the squad will be Shelbourne midfielder Aoibheann Clancy and Shamrock Rovers centre back Maria Reynolds.

Poland will be missing a key player in Emilia Szymczak due to an ACL injury, more on her loss below from our European football expert Liberty Simons. They will also have one of their best players missing through suspension, Nadia Krezyman. While the Djion midfielder only played 56 minutes of Poland’s EURO 2025 campaign the 21-year-old has enjoyed a breakout couple of club seasons in France. Krezyman has nine goal involvements in the league this term. She is a direct runner, no player has more successful dribbles in the Première Ligue this season, at 34 dribbles she has 12 more than the next highest. Krezyman also ranks in the top ten in the division for key passes. She scored twice in a show stopping performance against Amber Barrett’s Strasbourg side at the end of January.  On the international stage she scored twice in a friendly against post EURO 2025 Wales. The winger will be a massive miss in Gdańsk but will be back from suspension for the trip to the AVIVA.

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Predicted Lineups

IRL: Brosnan; McCabe, Mustaki, Patten, Hayes, Mannion; O’Sullivan, Connolly, Sheva; Murphy, Carusa

POL: Szemik; Zieniewicz, Dudek, Woś, Wiankowska; Achcińska, Kamczyk, Pawollek; Tomasiak, Zawistowska, Pajor

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Ireland vs Poland: The Polish Perspective

Polish Women’s football expert Liberty Simons gave The Halfway Line her view from the Polish perspective.