Northern Ireland senior women’s assistant coach Gary Boyd says the entire squad is guarding against complacency ahead of their final UEFA Women’s Euro qualifier.
Having seen off Belarus in a dramatic 3-2 win on Friday, they welcome the Faroe Islands to Seaview on Tuesday night where another three points would secure an historic first-ever play-off tilt to qualify for a major tournament.
Kenny Shiels’ players defeated the Faroes 6-0 in Torshavn in September and a similar result in Belfast would signal a true watershed moment for women’s football in Northern Ireland.
Hopefully it’s making people sit up and think that women’s football is in a really good place
And while there’s confidence they can realise their dream of achieving second spot in Group C behind runaway leaders Norway, Boyd, an integral part of Shiels’ backroom team, insists there’s still work to be done.
“The camp is really positive. Everybody is buzzing but they also know the job’s not done yet,” he said.
“The players are focused and they’re determined. They have put the Belarus game to one side for now and they’ve got to get the next job done which is playing against the Faroes and it’s going to be a completely different game.
“I think it will be safe to say we’ll probably have a little bit more possession. We want to get goals, obviously but the Faroes are a really good team. They are well organised now and they are hard to break down. They will try to play so we’ve got to be on our game to make sure that we can get through them and create opportunities to score.
“Hopefully these girls are an inspiration to the next generation and hopefully it’s making people sit up and think that women’s football is in a really good place and can continue to progress.”
Watch our interview with Gary Boyd by clicking on the image above
In pictures - training for Faroe Islands
