This week’s two friendlies against Wales have helped to further boost Northern Ireland’s senior international women’s squad, according to Alfie Wylie.
Northern Ireland Women may have lost both games 3-1 but the National Women’s Manager was very pleased with how his players performed.
And Wylie says the quality of his squad has been extended thanks to the two games in Caerphilly against a strong Welsh side.
Northern Ireland went into the games without nine of the players who performed so well at the Istria Cup in Croatia last month, and five of the regular starting line-up in Croatia were missing from this week’s encounters against Wales due to a mixture of club and work commitments.
“I am disappointed we lost both games, but I was very pleased with our performances and with the levels of fitness. The Welsh deserved their win today, however I felt we could have won the first game on Wednesday. We did not deserve to lose that one,” said the National Women’s Manager.
“These games have helped to extend the quality of our squad. Some of the young players who came in did really well. It means we will now have more competition for places,” he added.
Wylie’s gameplan for the match in Ystrad Mynach earlier today was severely hampered when experienced players Rachel Furness and Ashley Hutton failed fitness tests prior to kick-off.
“There’s no doubt it was a blow. Rachel was the player of the match in the first game, while Ashley has forged a strong defensive partnership with Julie Nelson. However, it did provide an opportunity for others to come in and they did well,” he said.
Debutants for Northern Ireland Women this week included Jana Richards, Beth McKay and Hattie King – and Wylie felt they all performed well on the international stage.
“It’s great that the girls are together more. We have played eight games so far this year (two in Portugal, four in Croatia and two in Wales) and that shows the Irish FA’s commitment to developing and improving women’s football in Northern Ireland,” he added.
