2014 Irish Women's Football in Review

The Girls in Green, nicknamed “the History Girls” took the final qualifier spot in the tournament which marked the debut for the Republic of Ireland at these finals. Ranked lowest going into the competition, the girls showed their fighting Irish spirit and mentality from kick off and stunned all corners of the women’s football globe with three wins from three against Spain, England and Sweden. Having topped Group B, the girls secured themselves a spot in the semi-finals only to exit at the hands of the eventual winners Holland.

The second big news story of the year in women's football was current Women's National League Champions Raheny United of Dublin qualifying for the knockout stages of the UEFA Women's Champions League. The girls put Ireland on the map at club level having topped their qualifying group in Romania. They had everyone talking about the Irish Women's National League as they were the only amateur team in the pot for the Round of 32 draw. The Panda's took on Bristol Academy of the FAWSL in England, who showed their strength and has since knocked out Barcelona FC. Bristol's next game is against one of the powerhouse's of women's football FFC Frankfurt of the German Bundesliga in the Quarter-Final of the UEFA Women's Champions League.

The Irish flag is still flying high in the Champions League despite Raheny's exit. Republic of Ireland Senior International Denise O'Sullivan is set to face Paris Saint Germain with her club side Glasgow City in the Quarter-Finals. O'Sullivan who has been a part of the Scottish wining treble side at domestic level has been a vital player in Glasgow's success to date and has been noticed for her efforts after being awarded Player of the Year in early December.

Ex-Raheny United player and Ireland Senior International Megan Campbell has also been earning a massive fan base in America. The defender won the most prestigious women's soccer title in the United States in early December when Florida State University were crowned the NCAA Women's Soccer Champions. Campbell a member of the Republic of Ireland Senior team, has been wowing women's soccer fans throughout the year with her trademark throw-in's. Campbell created two goals with her masterpiece throw-in's against the newly ranked World number 1 Germany in the FIFA Women's World Cup qualifiers, which beat current FIFA Ballon D'or Nadine Angerer in the German net.

Although the Irish Senior team did not qualify for next summer FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada, they did however record their most successful campaign to date. The girls in green finished Group 1 in 3rd place with 17 points from nine games. Having kept an impressive six clean-sheets and went into their final game against Germany without conceding a goal in the previous 407 minutes of action.

Another star of the senior squad and one of the most talked about women in sport this year is Stephanie Roche. Steph became the first ever female footballer shortlisted for the FIFA Puskas Award and beat off stellar competition in the Top 10 from the men's game such as Chelsea's Diego Costa and PSG superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic to the seal a spot in the final three. Not only is Steph's goal driving more coverage of the women's game but has also brought more attention to both the Irish men's and women's league. Steph is currently awaiting the final decision on who will win the Puskas Award with the other finalists Robin Van Persie of Manchester United and James Rodriguez of Real Madrid.

After an exciting 2014, it won't be long before the Irish women's senior team qualify for their first major tournament as their players and potential is becoming unstoppable. Get the ball rolling for another successful year and vote for the next big talking point of 2015 - crowning Steph Roche as the FIFA Puska's winner. The winner will be announced on January 12th 2015 at the Ballon D'or ceremony in Zurich.

Women’s National League Next Fixtures

4^th Jan – 2pm – Cork City Women’s FC v Raheny United

17^th Jan – 7pm - Castlebar Celtic FC v Galway WFC

18^th Jan – 2pm - Raheny United –v- Peamount United