Tanya Oxtoby has announced her squad for this month’s UEFA Women’s Nations League games against Poland and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Northern Ireland senior women’s team manager has made just one change from the squad that faced Norway in the two-legged UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 play-off late last year.
Nottingham Forest Women attacker Caragh Hamilton is back in the panel after recovering from injury. She replaces her Forest team-mate Casey Howe, who is still on the road to recovery after suffering an injury in the run-up to the play-off matches against the Norwegians.
A handful of players have moved to new clubs since Oxtoby’s squad last met up.
Midfielder Megan Bell has switched to Nottingham Forest Women from Rangers, while striker Kerry Beattie has gone to Aberdeen Women on loan from Hearts.
Cliftonville Ladies duo Danielle Maxwell and Louise McDaniel have both moved to Burnley Women, while Connie Scofield has signed for Sheffield United Women on loan from London City Lionesses.
Northern Ireland will begin their campaign in UWNL League B Group 1 away to Poland, the top seeds in B1, on 21 February in the port city of Gdansk.
Tanya Oxtoby’s side, who are the second seeds in the group, will then face third seeds Bosnia and Herzegovina at Larne’s Inver Park on Tuesday 25 February (7pm). Romania are the other team in B1.
Poland are ranked 28th in the world compared to Northern Ireland in 44th, while the Bosnians and Romanians are 63rd and 48th in the latest FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking respectively.
The four winners of League B groups in stage one of UWNL 2025-26 will be promoted to League A for stage two, which is the European Qualifiers phase for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil.
The four second-placed teams will play against the third-placed teams in League A. The winner of each tie will play in League A, while the defeated teams will play in League B.
The two best third-placed teams play off against the two best-ranked second-placed teams of League C. The winners will play in League B for the European Qualifiers phase, and the defeated teams will play in League C.
The 23-strong Northern Ireland squad for the upcoming UWNL games is as follows:
Goalkeepers – Jackie Burns (Bristol City Women), Maddy Harvey-Clifford (Crusaders Strikers), Rachael Norney (Liverpool Feds).
Defenders - Rebecca Holloway, Rebecca McKenna and Ellie Mason (all Birmingham City Women), Laura Rafferty (Rangers Women), Rachel Dugdale (Blackburn Rovers Women), Kelsie Burrows (Cliftonville Ladies), Natalie Johnson (Nottingham Forest Women).
Midfielders - Joely Andrews (Hearts Women), Chloe McCarron (Glentoran Women), Louise McDaniel (Burnley Women), Brenna McPartlan (Burnley Women), Megan Bell (Nottingham Forest Women), Connie Scofield (Sheffield United Women, on loan from London City Lionesses).
Forwards - Kerry Beattie (Aberdeen Women, on loan from Hearts Women), Lauren Wade (Hearts Women), Emily Wilson (Glentoran Women), Simone Magill (Birmingham City Women), Keri Halliday (Linfield Women), Danielle Maxwell (Burnley Women), Caragh Hamilton (Nottingham Forest Women).
