Buncrana’s Jodie Loughrey has been included in the Republic of Ireland U-17 squad which face a run of three internationals in the space of a week.
Qualification to the 2023 UEFA Women’s Under-17 Championship is the target for the Ireland team as they prepare for games in Round 2.
Head Coach James Scott will bring a 20-player squad to south-west France for three Group A5 games against Kosovo (March 23), Italy (March 26) and France (March 29).
In order to secure passage through to this summer’s finals tournament in Estonia, Ireland must top their group. The Girls in Green are ranked sixth in the seedings for this stage of qualification having finished in first place in Round 1 last October.
The final squad includes 10 players who have already this year featured in the SSE Airtricity Women’s Premier Division. Amongst those is captain Jodie Loughrey who has impressed since joining Sligo Rovers.
Head Coach James Scott said: “We have been working with this group of players since last summer when we were able to compete in SuperCupNI and then have two friendly games against Portugal before our Round 1 qualifiers. It is 11 games together with just two defeats, 29 goals scored and four clean sheets recorded, so we are doing well.
“We are fully aware, however, of the challenge in front of us with three difficult games against Kosovo, Italy and France. Still, we are excited by the opportunity to test ourselves and see if we can qualify for the finals tournament. The players and staff have worked hard to reach this point, so we will embrace this.”
Republic of Ireland Women’s Under-17 Squad
Goalkeepers: Katie Keane (Shelbourne), Niamh Richardson (Peamount United)
Defenders: Aoife Turner (Mountain View Los Altos), Heidi Mackin (Cork City), Aoibhe Fleming (Shamrock Rovers), Grace Fitzpatrick Ryan (Wexford Youths), Aoife Kelly (Shamrock Rovers), Kiera Sena (Cork City), Alice Lillie (Sligo Rovers)
Midfielders: Jodie Loughrey (Sligo Rovers), Ellen Dolan (Peamount United), Hannah Healy (Shelbourne), Freya Healy (Peamount United), Jess Fitzgerald (Peamount United)
Forwards: Joy Ralph (DLR Waves), Fiana Bradley (Cork City), Ruby Gallagher (Shamrock Rovers), Rebecca Devereux (Shelbourne), Katie Lawlee (Treaty United), Millie Daly (Athlone Town)
2023 UEFA Women’s Under-17 Championship – Round 2 Qualifiers
March 23 | Republic of Ireland v Kosovo, Tarnos, France, KO 12:00
March 26 | Republic of Ireland v Italy, Tarnos, France, KO 12:00
March 29 | France v Republic of Ireland, Tarnos, France, KO 14:00
