There was disappointment for Tyler Toland and Amy Boyle-Carr in the opening game of the UEFA Women’s Under-17 Championship Elite Round in Germany.
The Republic of Ireland lost out 2-1 to Iceland.
At the break, Iceland led at 1-0. Their captain Karólína Lea Vilhjálmsdóttir scored from the penalty spot midway through the first half, after Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir was fouled by Toland.
Ireland equalised five minutes after the break with striker Emily Whelan finding the back of the net.
Colin Bell’s side fell behind with 11 minutes to go, as Sveindís Jane Jónsdóttir scored what proved to be the decisive goal.
Speaking after the game, Head Coach Colin Bell said his side should have gotten at least a point from their opening match.
“We conceded a penalty which we felt wasn’t one. We studied it at half-time, and felt it wasn’t a penalty,” Bell said.
“Iceland had the physical advantage. We conceded the decisive goal from a header, and didn’t defend it well enough.
“I felt we lost the game through physicality. I’d rather lose by playing football instead of kick and rush.”
Depsite the loss, Bell took plenty of positives ahead of the second game.
“I felt we were the better team today. You cannot define Under-17 football just through results.
“Today we had four or five players in the starting 11 that could still play Under-16s and we have eight in total in the squad.
“The girls are very disappointed with the loss. They knew we should have got something out of the game.”
The side return to action on Sunday morning. They play Azerbaijan in Greifswald’s Volksstadion at 10am Irish time.
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