Karen Duggan: Vera Pauw’s mystifying changes backfired badly for Ireland against Canada FIFAWWC
They wanted to show their personality. They wanted to show vigour and fight. They wanted to prove that there’s so much more in us than what we saw for most of the Australian game.
Canada’s Jordyn Huitema and Sinead Farrelly of Ireland in action during the World Cup clash at Perth Rectangular Stadium. Photograph: Ryan Byrne/Inpho Taking off Ruesha, Kyra and Sinead at the same time meant we lost three vastly experienced players who stay calm in high-pressure scenarios, and you need sound heads at a time like that. They were the glue between the lines in the first half, they kept the ball moving, creating those triangles and patterns of play. If tiredness was an issue, then stagger their withdrawals. All at the same time? It just caused disarray.
Whether Vera felt pressurised by all the calls for Abbie to feature, I don’t know, she certainly hasn’t given in to that kind of pressure before.
But, having been a shambolic set of individuals in the first half, we gave them the space to grow into a team in the second. They stepped up their game, they knew how to put us to the sword, something we have yet to learn to do to opponents when we go a goal up. The killer second goal eluded us. So, yes, I feel dejection for these players, but I am so, so proud of them. None more so than Aine O’Gorman, someone I’ve played with for years and who’s been my captain, someone you’d follow to the ends of the earth.
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