The Northern Ireland under-15 women’s development team have completed a four-team UEFA development tournament in Bulgaria with a record 100%.
They made it three wins out of three when they defeated Faroe Islands 2-0 yesterday.
After beating the WU15s of Montenegro 2-0 and a 2-1 victory against the Bulgarians in their first two games, they were determined to deliver once again when they took on the Faroe Islands, who had also won their first two games. games. And they kept their best performance until the last game.
Showing four changes from the starting eleven against the Bulgarians, it took a while for Northern Ireland to find their rhythm at Sliven’s Hadzhi Dimitar Stadium, which hosted every game of the tournament.
The Faroe Islands started brilliantly in what was an entertaining game of football. They pressed high and created a great chance after five minutes, however Northern Ireland goalkeeper Abbie Smith produced a fine save to keep them out.
Northern Ireland grew up in the game in the central-eastern Bulgarian city and looked dangerous over wide areas in particular.
Kayliann Clayton came closest to scoring in the first half, cutting from the left and deflecting shots. The Faroese goalkeeper made some good saves in the first half, including twice from Clayton.
The Faroe Islands continued to look dangerous and the Northern Ireland defense had to be on the alert to prevent them from falling behind. Niamh Hassan, usually a central midfielder, had to play out of position in central defense alongside captain Caitlin Carlisle after Ellie McLarnon was hit.
While the first half was fairly even, Northern Ireland were up after the break. They played excellent football, dominated midfield and created quite a few chances.
Second-half substitute Lucy Kelly had a big impact. The Faroe Islands goalkeeper pushed a Kelly effort off the crossbar and then hit the bar with a thud.
However, Kelly made his mark by providing the assists for both goals.
Northern Ireland opened the scoring in the 68th minute through another substitute, Sophie Hutchinson.
An excellent change of play from substitute Morgan Beattie found Kelly on the left and he returned the ball to Hutchinson on the edge of the area, his shot crossing the goalkeeper positioned in the bottom corner. It was a good ending.
The second goal came 10 minutes later. An excellent corner from Kelly found Jessica McGuinness on the edge of the box and she blasted past the goalkeeper with a powerful header.
Afterwards, head coach Stephen Graham said it had been “a fantastic tournament” for the team and staff and said a number of the players have the attributes to perform well on the international stage in the future.
He further noted: “The players saved their best performance for the final match. They were dominant in possession and created plenty of chances. The most pleasing thing is that they successfully implemented and applied all the work done in training in the game.
“It was also nice to see the development and growth of people, while the team consistently produced good performances.”
The player of the match in the third game was Kayliann Clayton. The award was presented by Graham.
And Sophie Pollock was voted Northern Ireland’s player of the tournament. The award was presented by Graham and trainer Heather Mearns.
Northern Ireland WU15s v Faroe Islands WU15s: Abbie Smith, Emma Brown, Caitlin Carlisle (Captain), Niamh Hassan, Caitie McGurnaghan, Sophie Pollock, Jessica McGuinness, Natnicha Mills, Mia Reilly, Molly Weir, Kayliann Clayton. Substitutes: (used) Lucy Kelly, Mia Snoddy, Emi Wynne, Morgan Beattie, Sophie Hutchinson, Isla Mitchell (GK), Anna Walsh; (unused) Lillie Horner, Ellie McLarnon.