In the capital of the Alpes, Ireland face off with France with a place in the FIFA Women’s World Cup on the line in Grenoble.
After tonight, League A will be decided, it is the most competitive group in the top division. The only group with three sides still in with a chance of an automatic World Cup spot on match day six.
The Halfway Line looks ahead to the match which sees the top two contenders face off.
Ireland on the precipice of history
Ireland come into this match as the form team in the entire of League A, having won their last three matches, no other side has done the same. It’s a welcome change from their last League A venture and puts Ireland in an unlikely position coming into the group finale. Carla Ward has done an exceptional job, her potent combination of charisma and footballing expertise has given Ireland the launch pad the Girls in Green have been crying out for.
No side has ever qualified automatically from League A having lost their first two matches. Ireland have the second best away record in League A and they won’t be overtaken in that regard, whatever the score line on Tuesday night. As for the result, France are massive favourites. While a draw is possible it is improbable, as the draw would leave the door open for Netherlands to sneak through should they beat Poland. In each of Ireland and France’s last four meetings there has always been a victor you tend to believe there will be one again tonight.
Victory over Netherlands has given Carla Ward a welcome selection headache. Abbie Larkin, who scored, assisted and picked up the Player of the Match award, started because Emily Murphy was suspended. Murphy is expected to return to the starting line up having picked up the first three Player of the Match awards in this campaign. Yet to have both available is exciting for Irish fans. The scorer of the winning goal, Amber Barrett came off the bench and made a case for herself to start too, but perhaps an even better case to come off the bench again.
Denise O’Sullivan will come back into the starting side after Ruesha Littlejohn and Jess Ziu shared a half of football each on Friday, with neither fit enough for the full 90. Ziu’s performance will have given Ward confidence that she is an effective asset off the bench. And Littlejohn’s will have gone someway towards proving some doubters over her inclusion in the squad wrong. Ireland will be without Leanne Kiernan who is suspended after picking up a red card against Netherlands.
Ireland have scored in every single qualifier in League A so far, the last time they were in League A at this stage they had yet to find the back of the net. Only one clean sheet is more a measure of the quality of opposition they have faced than poor defending. Yet both France and Ireland can be vulnerable to the counter. Caitlin Hayes was named Ireland WNT Supporters Club Player of the Match on Friday night and for good reason. Another staunch rear-guard performance will be required from her as well as her defensive partners. The last time Ireland qualified for the World Cup Courtney Brosnan saved a penalty to keep the scores level in the match. Similar heroics will be required tonight if Ireland are to progress in Grenoble.
Photo Credit: Caitlin Hayes – Sports File – Stephen McCarthy
France look to qualify on home soil
Where Netherlands have failed in this group, France have succeeded. As the top two seeds expected to be in a two horse race for automatic World Cup qualification, many believed the group would hinge on the matches between the two sides. Netherlands came out on top, winning in Breda before travelling to France and securing a draw. However defeat in Cork on Friday somewhat upended the Dutch campaign. Their record against the third and fourth seeds in the group has ceded the advantage to France. Les Bleues on the other hand have only dropped points to Netherlands, taking nine from a possible nine against Ireland and Poland so far.
France will be without captain Griedge Mbock, once again missing through injury. In her absence, London City Lionesses midfielder Grace Geyoro will captain the side, as confirmed by Laurent Bonadei. New West Ham signing Constance Picaud has recently found her spot as French number one with Pauline Peyraud-Magnin not playing at the moment for club side Denver Summit. France are also without Kadidiatou Diani who is missing through injury.
It was Melvine Malard who nabbed a brace against Ireland at Tallaght in March and she will likely lead the line after scoring again against Poland on Friday. If France do qualify on Tuesday, you can bet Malard will have had something to do with it. Sandy Baltimore got the other that night and with Delphine Cascarino likely to start on the other wing the French frontline has a distinctly WSL feel to it. Bonadei called up a number of youngsters for this camp, a few will be well know to the Irish underage sides. New OL Lyonnes signing Maeline Mendy stands out having tormented Irish sides before however she is unlikely to feature for France. Amber Barrett who plays her football in France was highly complimentary about those new faces in the French squad having played her club football in France since January.
The French wingers will be of key importance for France’s game plan, narrowing the pitch at Tallaght gave the French all kinds of issues. That will option will not be available to Ireland this time round and that will play to the French benefit. Expect Selma Bacha to bomb down the wing from full back as the wingers invert. The space between the left and right centre backs and the left and right wing backs will likely be an area France will look to exploit.
Word from the French camp
In his pre-match press conference the France head coach was complimentary of Carla Ward’s Ireland side. The Halfway Line asked Laurent Bonadei about whether he was surprised Ireland beat Netherlands,
“It’s not a surprise, because Carla [Ward] is a really good coach” Bonadei said. “She has a good experience, and you can watch the last results. She won the last game, but also 10 of the last 14 games.
“So Ireland has a chance to qualify, they deserve the position. Also, in Netherlands, they can see the goal at the last time. We can see the first game, it was really hard. We won with the goal of Melvin at the end of the game, but it was a really hard game.
“Carla has some ideas to disturb the opponent. Remember the size of the pitch at the first game, hopefully today and tomorrow she will not reduce the sides! [of the pitch].
“We are ready, because probably she plans some things that we have to be focused on the game, because she can imagine something really hard for us. We know she can give a good fighting spirit to a player, so it will be a really good game tomorrow, I think.”
Melvine Malard also spoke about Ireland ahead of the encounter and in particular spoke on Ireland captain Katie McCabe and former team mate Aoife Mannion,
“It’s two similar players” Malard said. “They are very aggressive, love to play angry, so it’s good. It is good because it can give me and my team big energy for tomorrow.
“We will be ready for that, we have training today and maybe we can put that directly [into training] because we know tomorrow it’s a very good player and a good team, like my coach said, [they have] team sprit for the game.”
Bonadei added onto Malard’s comments on Ireland,
“I remember in the second Nations League edition, we won only 1-0 in Metz and we lost the last game 3-1” Bonadei said. “We can follow this team each season and we can watch them improve a lot. After the game, I was sure that these players with this coach were able to make many efforts and put pressure on the opponent.
“As I said, against Netherlands, they conceded the defeat at the end of the game. I was surprised for the opposition against Poland because I think Poland was strong to win one game. But they also won in Poland at home.
“When we won in Poland, I was positive and watching the game against Netherlands. As you can see, they never give up and all the time they put pressure on the team.
“As mentioned by Melvine, McCabe is an aggressive player but also she is a very fantastic player with a left foot and a lot of skills, throw-ins, set-pieces and tactical positions.
“She can play on the left and sometimes she can play in [central] defence also with Arsenal sometimes.
“They have [Emily] Murphy, she plays in Newcastle in the second league but she has a lot of skills also with speed and she can take the deep position.
“[Denise] O’Sullivan also, these two players didn’t play the first game so they will be fit for the game. We know Ireland is a good team and they will probably improve in the FIFA ranking.”
France vs Ireland: Predicted line ups
FRA: Picaud; Bacha, Samoura, Lakrar, Sombath; Karchaoui, Geyoro, Jean-François; Baltimore, Malard, D. Cascarino
IRL: Brosnan; McCabe, Mustaki, Hayes, Patten, Mannion; Connolly, O’Sullivan, Sheva; Carusa, Murphy
France vs Ireland – Predicted result
France 1-2 Ireland
Maybe, just maybe there is something in the air… If Ireland can hold on until late, keep the scores level, France will leave gaps as they push for the winner that would take them to the World Cup. As Carla Ward said on Monday there is ‘no pressure’ on Ireland, all the pressure is on France. That scenario would give Ireland an opportunity in transition, the same type they were so effective in taking on Friday night against the Dutch.
Ireland are rank outsiders for a victory at 14/1 with the bookies, but this Irish side have proven the doubters wrong before. This is top seed vs bottom seed for a place at the World Cup. It is a position nobody would have believed Ireland could have been in a mere three months ago when this campaign began. No bottom seed had ever stayed in League A before this Irish campaign, never mind won their group. Whatever happens there is a huge amount to be proud of.
You can still purchase tickets for France vs Ireland tomorrow night in the away end, which kicks off at 8pm Irish time.
