Ireland’s maiden win over New Zealand books final spot

Ireland 2-1 New Zealand

Ireland made history after beating New Zealand for the first time to book their place in Sunday’s FIH Women’s Nations Cup final.

The landmark semi-final victory means the Irish team have also put themselves within another 60 minutes of earning a place in the 2024-25 FIH Pro League.

New Zealand went into the match never having lost to Ireland on nine previous occasions. For Ireland all that mattered was a place in Sunday’s FIH Women’s Nations Cup decider.

The first half finished scoreless before New Zealand took the lead in the 35th minute when Rose Tynan had a shot twice blocked by Liz Murphy but forced the third one over the line to make it 1-0.

But Ireland drew level four minutes later when Sarah Hawkshaw converted a penalty corner and it stayed locked at 1-1 until the end of the third quarter.

Hawkshaw struck again in the 51st minute to give Ireland a 2-1 lead and what proved to be the winner, securing their place in the final where they will come up against the winners of the second semi-final between Chile and hosts Spain.

Speaking after the game, Player of the Match, Hawkshaw said: “I think today it was a bit of a battle. We knew that we had set ourselves up for a battle, and I think it took a lot of resilience to get through that. Very proud of all the players and support staff.

“We knew that wasn’t the real Ireland team that showed up in the opening game with Spain, and that performance was not going to define us in this tournament. We’ve learned a lot since then. We’re going to bring a new set of positives into tomorrow and we’ll be ready for whoever emerges from tonight’s second semi-final.”

Ireland: Liz Murphy (GK), Elena Neill, Sarah McAuley, Roisín Upton, Ellen Curran, Sarah Torrans, Charlotte Beggs, Katie McKee, Michelle Carey, Naomi Carroll, Katie Mullan (c).

Subs used: Hannah McLoughlin, Caoimhe Perdue, Sarah Hawkshaw, Christina Hamill, Niamh Carey, Siofra O’Brien.

New Zealand: Brooke Roberts (GK); Olivia Shannon, Frances Davies (c), Casey Crowley, Samantha Child, Stephanie Dickens, Megan Hull, Katie Doar, Rose Tynan, Anna Willocks, Emma Rainey.

Subs used: Hannah Cotter, Hannah Gravenall, Kaitlin Cotter, Jessie Anderson, Emma Findlay, Liz Thompson.