Soccer Football - Women's World Cup - Women's European Qualifiers - Republic of Ireland v Wales - Dublin Arena, Dublin, Ireland - December 3, 2024 Wales' Carrie Jones and Ffion Morgan celebrate qualifying for the Women's Euro 2025 REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne
More than 50 years after losing their first-ever international 3-2 to Ireland, the women of Wales finally got their revenge with an aggregate playoff victory by the same scoreline to book their spot at Euro 2025, marking the first time the side has made it to the finals of a major tournament.
A 1-1 draw at home in the first leg set them up for a tight, tense encounter in Dublin but a Hannah Cain penalty and second-half effort from Carrie Jones saw them through despite Anna Patten's 86th-minute goal and a furious late onslaught from the Irish.
"Honestly, I've got no words. There's nothing that will ever compare to this feeling," an overjoyed Cain said following the final whistle. "You can see what it means to everyone. I was crying when I scored."
For Wales record cap-winner and goal-scorer Jess Fishlock, Tuesday's success has been a long time coming. The 37-year-old made her international debut in 2006, and 18 years later she has finally qualified for a major tournament.
"I can't put it into words. This is 20 years in the making. I wouldn't change a second of it," she told the BBC.
"The ups and downs are part of the process and the journey, it all led to this moment with this group of girls. This is by far the proudest moment of my life - my hamstrings are shot, but that doesn't matter right now."
The result is a major setback for the Irish, who made their tournament debut at the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand only to fall at the Euro playoff hurdle again, but it will provide an enormous shot in the arm for Welsh football manager Rhian Wilkinson said.
"Those boys and girls back home are seeing a generation of football that's going to change everything," she told the BBC.
(Reporting by Philip O'Connor, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
