England comfortably beat a spirited Ireland side 2-0 at Aviva Stadium on Tuesday for their first win of the Euro 2025 qualifiers.
Lauren James‘ early strike and an Alex Greenwood penalty had effectively sealed the game by half-time for England, who could have gone into the break 3-0 up had Greenwood dispatched her second penalty of the night.
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Following England’s draw against Sweden last week, it was imperative for the defending Euros champions to win in Dublin on Tuesday if they are to make it out of a qualifying group that also features World No.3 France.
Leah Williamson, who had been confirmed to start by Sarina Weigman in her news conference on Monday, was one of five changes to the team that played at Wembley Stadium last Friday, with Jess Park, Jess Carter, Hannah Hampton and Ella Toone all coming into the XI.
“She played only home games and now it is away with a lot of noise and I think she stayed calm and played well, and it is really good to see her,” Wiegman said to ITV after the game.
Roared on by a vociferous crowd, Ireland came charging out of the blocks and imposed themselves physically on the game. The hosts were purposeful in possession and their press harried England in the opening exchanges.
But Ireland struggled to sustain their early momentum and acceded control of the game to England, who went ahead in the 12th minute through James. An in-swinging cross into the box from Keira Walsh that was headed back across goal by Lucy Bronze hit defender Anna Patten and fell to James, who confidently stroked home from close range.
Alex Greenwood’s penalty doubled their lead six minutes later after Ruesha Littlejohn used her hands to shield herself from a Jess Park volley just inside the box.
The two goals in quick succession appeared to suck the life out of Ireland, who pulled themselves into a huddle before the restart. But England continued to keep a foothold of the game and in the 30th minute won another penalty when Louise Quinn was adjudged to have handled in the box when blocking an Alessia Russo header.
The defender’s loud protests went unheard by the referee and she would have felt some level of justice was served when Greenwood’s second attempt from the spot smacked the upright.
The missed penalty saw Ireland raise their intensity but their lack of cutting edge in the final-third meant England were rarely troubled. They finished the first-half without a shot at goal.
It was the perfect game for Williamson to mark her return on the international stage following her year-long injury layoff and the England captain put in an assured performance at the back.
In the second-half, Ireland pumped crosses into the box in search of a way back into the game and while their physicality in the box troubled England, at no point was Hannah Hampton’s goal under serious threat.
Ireland’s attacking endeavors left them susceptible on the counter and it took a stunning save from Courtney Brosnan to deny England a third goal, after her reflexes denied Fran Kirby from point-blank range.
The hosts pressed hard for a goal in the last 15 minutes of the game, with Arsenal defender Katie McCabe in particular leading Ireland’s charge. But ultimately, their efforts came to no avail as they remain winless in the opening two games of their qualifying campaign.
“A hard game. I think we totally dominated the first half and could have been up 4-0. Of course, later on in the game they came with a strong throw-in and had more opportunities than the first half, it became a fight and we wanted to stay out of the fight. We had to show lots more, being really tight in possession,” Wiegman said.