Pauw: Ireland ‘not daunted’ by Hampden task
Vera Pauw is confident the Republic of Ireland will not be daunted by their World Cup play-off with Scotland as they continue along the road they always expected to travel.
Ireland finished second behind Sweden, ranked three in the world, in Group A with a 1-0 loss to the Swedes at Tallaght Stadium in October last year their only reverse, and have been gearing up for the play-offs almost ever since.
Manager Pauw said: “The target when we started this campaign was to qualify for the World Cup and we remain in a position to achieve that.
“We expected Sweden to top our group, so we knew that going through the route of the play-offs was a possibility and therefore is not daunting to us.
“It is another massive challenge and we must play the game of our lives to win it.”
A record crowd for a competitive women’s fixture in Scotland is expected at Hampden as the nations meet for the 22nd time, although none of the previous 21 have been anywhere near as significant.
The Scots, runners-up in Group B behind a fast-emerging Spain, dispensed with Austria in the first round of the play-offs thanks to Abigail Harrison’s extra-time winner and have won the last four matches between the sides.
Pauw said: “We have full respect for Scotland, who are a very direct team with a lot of excellent players and they fully deserved to beat Austria in the first round of this playoff series. We have watched them closely and know that we will be facing a very difficult opponent who will also have a home crowd.
“We believe in ourselves and trust in each other – players and staff – but we know that we have to be at our very best if we are to win this game. Making it to the World Cup has always been the dream.”
The two top-ranked winners from the three round two play-off ties – Wales head for Switzerland and Portugal host Iceland – will qualify for the finals with the third facing an inter-confederation playoff in New Zealand in February.
Ireland are ranked third on the basis of their qualification record to date.