Manchester United defender Aoife Mannion has been called up as the World Cup moves into full view.
The rollercoaster nature of it all continued yesterday as the former England underage international landed into Republic of Ireland camp in Marbella.
“I played with England youth teams through my younger years,” she explains. “I got a call-up at 12 and it was a bit of a natural progression. Probably for little over the last year, it’s been my intention and desire to play for Ireland. Millie’s injury made me think, ‘What do I actually want? If I could only play for one more year, what do I want that to look like?’ Because one day you could wake up like Millie and all of a sudden, not be able to play.” Her Dad is from outside Athenry, her mother hailing from near Kilmaine across the border. “Whoever is winning in the Gaelic determines what shirt I have on,” Mannion grins. “Usually it’s Mayo in the GAA and Galway in hurling.
Grealish needs little introduction, of course, though Mannion remembers him as a classmate and talented “nemesis” on the Gaelic football field. Grealish went one way, Mannion the other. The Manchester City winger entered the Ireland underage system, while his classmate went through the English ranks. What’s happened since is well-documented, the pair effectively criss-crossing.Mannion did feature on the bench for the England senior team three times in 2019, but was never introduced. Was Ireland on her mind?
But that didn’t stop the apprehension as she came into camp, somewhat nervous about how she’d be perceived.
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