Ireland Women's squad faces key absences for Kazakhstan playoff

Ireland Women's National Team World Cup playoffs Kazakhstan Carla Ward Denise O'Sullivan

Ireland head coach Carla Ward has announced a 25-player squad for the upcoming World Cup playoff first-round tie against Kazakhstan. The squad faces significant absences for the first leg in Astana, as both Katie McCabe and Marissa Sheva are unavailable due to suspension.

Additionally, Denise O'Sullivan will miss the away leg to manage her workload and aid her recovery from injury. Ward noted that the decision to omit O'Sullivan from the trip was based on player welfare, citing the challenges of travel and the artificial pitch in Kazakhstan.

Crystal Palace midfielder Shanade Hopcroft has received her first call-up to the national team. Other notable squad updates include the return of Heather Payne, while Saoirse Noonan and Tara O’Hanlon remain unavailable due to injury. The winners of this tie will advance to face either Belgium or Poland for a spot in the World Cup in Brazil.

Entities

Carla Ward · Denise O'Sullivan · Ireland Women's National Team · Katie McCabe · Shanade Hopcroft

Sources

Ireland Women Face Kazakhstan Without Two Key Stars as Carla Ward Prioritises Player Welfare - Daily Digest - News, Craic & Everything in Between [dailydigest.ie]

2 days ago

Ward Went Against O'Sullivan Wishes With Ireland Squad Omission [www.balls.ie]

3 days ago

Ireland boss reveals why O'Sullivan is absent for play-off first leg [extra.ie]

2 days ago

'My focus is the next four games' - Ireland boss Ward coy on contract talks [www.the42.ie]

1 day ago

First-call up for Crystal Palace’s Hopcroft as Ruesha Littlejohn left out of Ireland squad [www.thejournal.ie]

2 days ago