THANK the footballing gods for Denise O’Sullivan.
With a swivel of her hips and a swing of her right boot, the Corkwoman tonight nudged open the door to the World Cup a little bit wider.
A win in Slovakia was by no means a banker. Remember their point and performance in Tallaght last November?
READ MORE: Ireland 1 Slovakia 0: RECAP the action from Senec as Ireland overcome Slovakia test
But it’s in these tight moments when world-class players come into their own.
And with a play-off bye riding on the outcome, up stepped O’Sullivan. Her 37th minute goal broke the deadlock in a game of very few openings.
O’Sullivan deserves a World Cup appearance. Described recently by her North Carolina Courage head coach as “world class”, her talents belong on the biggest stage of all.
Now, it wasn’t a perfect performance by O’Sullivan in Senec. A couple of passes went astray, including a big one in the third minute.
She dispossessed Dominika Skorvankova in midfield and raced forward with Katie McCabe to her left and Heather Payne to her right.
She went for McCabe but instead of playing the Arsenal ace through on goal she played the ball behind her.
A rare lapse and one that was quickly forgotten when the 28-year-old popped up with the winner.
Heather Payne and Jess Ziu, as they did so often tonight, linked up well on the right. Ziu’s pull-back took a nick off the outstretched boot of a defender, taking it slightly behind O’Sullivan.
But she took a step back, and turned and shot in one smooth motion, sending the ball low inside the left-hand corner, beyond the reach of goalkeeper Maria Korenciova.
Her sixth goal of the campaign was enough to earn Ireland a bye to the second and final round of the European play-offs, as one of the three best runners up.
Only one player in Group A has found the net more often than O’Sullivan - her teammate McCabe with seven.
That’s some going in a pool that also contained Scandinavian powerhouses Sweden and Finland.
The bottom line is that the Girls in Green are potentially just one game away from qualification, though the spectre of an intercontinental play-off next February in New Zealand still looms.
But with O’Sullivan in the side, Vera Pauw’s heroes will feel confident that they can overcome whatever obstacles stand between them and next summer’s finals.
O’Sullivan deserves it. So too does Katie McCabe. The Arsenal star was booted up and down the pitch and was given little protection by Spanish referee Maria Martinez.
But she kept bouncing back giving Slovakia serious problems on the left flank - and on the right when she switched with Ziu in the first-half.
She came closer than anyone to adding to the scoreline when, on the hour, a Megan Campbell throw-in was headed clear, McCabe caught the ball on the half-volley and sent it an inch wide of the right-hand post.
It’s unfair to single out the two Irish players who undoubtedly fall into the world-class bracket, when this has been a real team effort to get to the play-offs.
Pauw’s defence conceded just four goals over the eight games.
Claire O’Riordan stepped in for the injured Megan Connolly, who played almost a full 90 last week against Finland with fractured ribs and a bruised kidney.
With 63 minutes on the clock O’Riordan justified her selection - her first start in two years - when she cut out a pass that would have sent Patricia Hmirova through on goal.
As for goalkeeper Courtney Brosnan, her dominance of the Irish area meant very few crosses found their target.
Campbell, on her second start in five days, drew gasps from the home support with her spectacular long throws, which caused panic inside the Slovak defence.
Heather Payne might be Ireland’s furthest player forward, but her lack of goals is no reflection on her importance to this side.
Once again tonight, her tireless running and link-up play - often with the impressive Ziu - created openings for her teammates.
With FAI heavy hitters Jonathan Hill and Gerry McAnaney among a small but vocal Irish support, in a crowd that numbered 419, Ireland never looked like letting their lead slip.
When the fourth official held up her board indicating that there would be three minutes’ injury-time, she might as well have added another 30.
Slovakia just couldn’t come up with a play to break down Pauw’s play-off bound Tigers.
SLOVAKIA
Maria Korenciova 6
Kristina Kosikova 5
Jana Vojtekova 5
Diana Lemesova 6
Patricia Fischerova 6
Andrea Horvathova 6
Ludmila Matavkova 5
Dominika Skorvankova 6
Maria Mikolajova 6
Martina Surnovska 6
Patricia Hmirova 5
SUBS: Stela Semanova (for Matavkova 65), Tamara Moravkova (for Hmirova 72), Kristina Panakova (for Surnovska 83).
SUBS NOT USED: Dominica Rezekova, Patricia Chladekova, Zuzana Lukacova, Viktoria Ceriova, Valentina Susolova, Klaudia Fabova, Dominika Kucharcikova, Patricia Mudrakova.
IRELAND
Courtney Brosnan 7
Harriet Scott 7
Claire O’Riordan 7
Louise Quinn 7
Diane Caldwell 7
Megan Campbell 7
Jess Ziu 8
Lily Agg 7
Denise O’Sullivan 9
Katie McCabe 8
Heather Payne 7
SUBS: Ellen Molloy (for Scott 68), Leanne Kiernan (for Payne 83)
SUBS NOT USED: Grace Moloney, Megan Walsh, Chloe Mustaki, Jessie Stapleton, Amber Barrett, Aine O’Gorman, Lucy Quinn, Izzy Atkinson, Hayley Nolan, Ciara Grant.
REFEREE: Maria Martinez
READ NEXT:
Tributes pour in as Galway GAA star Gary Sice’s wife Bevin passes away leaving behind young daughter
Eoin Kelly and Peter Queally join Davy Fitzgerald's Waterford management team
Gabby Logan's husband and ex-Scotland rugby star Kenny battling prostate cancer
Antony explains Man Utd goal celebration after scoring on debut vs Arsenal
Sligo Rovers face potential points deduction over alleged ineligible player in win over Dundalk
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
