Roma McLaughlin and the Republic of Ireland Under-19s have missed out on a place at the summer’s European finals after a 3-1 defeat to Finland today in Limerick.
Greencastle woman McLaughlin, who plays her club football with Shelbourne, was sent off late in the game for a second bookable offence.
The 3-1 loss means that they’ve been denied a place in the finals.
Finland hit the front on 26 minutes. A corner from the right-hand-side was delivered into the danger area. Juuli Ketola rose highest to head towards goal and her effort smacked off the underside of the crossbar.
The assistant referee on the near side indicated the ball had crossed the line, much to the dismay of Ireland ‘keeper Amanda McQuillan.
Leanne Kiernan had a great chance to level matters early in the second half when she charged down the right.
Her shot could only find the side-netting though. From here, Ireland were punished. Emmaliina Tulkki’s cross from the left found Eveliina Summanen at the back post and her low drive beat McQuillan.
Five minutes later, they would move further ahead. Breaking from an Ireland corner, Jutta Rantala gained possession shy of the halfway line. From here, she jinked past a defender before smashing a brilliant strike into the far corner to put the result beyond doubt.
Niamh Prior ended the campaign on a positive note however – giving the Markets Field crowd a moment to remember when her thirty-five yard free kick rocketed into the net with three minutes left on the clock.
“We wanted to do better in the Elite Round – we wanted to do it on our home soil. Maybe we didn’t get the rub of the green. We had a few injuries coming into it – we hadn’t the ideal preparation coming, but that’s football. We won’t make any excuses. I’m very proud of them for all their efforts and I’d like to thank them for everything,” Irish manager Dave Connell said.
Â
Tags: