So, my Irish girls, FINALLY got a result that we deserved. We have played top ranked teams like the US, Holland, France and Switzerland, and deserved something from the match, and its such a gross feeling when we walk off the field knowing that we were inches away from a tie or a win. It can start to mess with your psyche a little, and I have kept saying that we needed to just get a bounce to go our way to prove that we are capable of playing with the big teams.
We finally got that on Saturday. We have a new coach, as I think I mentioned, and she is in on an interim basis. She is fantastic, and professional and has definitely paid her dues as a youth coach for the girls for the last 10 years. Anyways, the tactical plan was perfect, everyone did their job and executed it to perfection, and what a result for us! We were ecstatic.
For me it was disappointing, as I have been battling tendonitis in my ankle all year, and after playing the full Holland game on Sunday, I made the mistake of jumping into our intersquad and playing another 90 minute game 2 days later which pretty much put me and my ankle behind the 8 ball for the rest of the week, and on Friday after dealing with an ankle that was throbbing just walking on it, I decided that I needed to tell the coach and pull myself out of the squad for Saturday. Of course at this level, missing a game is a big deal and the potential of losing your spot, but I just couldn’t deal with the pain personally, and on a team level, I just felt I couldn’t go into battle no where close to 100 percent in such an important game. Shannon who came on in my spot did fantastic, and I can tell you that it is a fantastic feeling, when you are so proud to be part of a group and you enjoy everyone so much, that you can go up to someone that is basically your competition, and genuinely be happy that they did the job. I am going for it for Wednesday for our match against Israel, and recognize that after a great performance that the coach will probably stick with the same lineup, but I just want to come in and make a great impact if I get the opportunity. I can honestly say though that I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to play for Ireland. I love love love it.
On another note, I definitely had a sleepless night Friday, worried about getting through the Norwegian season. That being said, I think with proper rest, (which is obviously hard at a condensed National Team camp when you are battling for a spot is next to impossible) I should be able to get through it. One day at a time…..
Essays on Life 