Resilience the word for Northern Ireland in win over Finland
After an agonising loss to Vietnam on penalties a few hours earlier, Northern Ireland showed "resilience" to see off Finland by 8 goals to 1 in the Women’s Stage 2 on Day 4 of the Oslo 2025 Homeless World Cup
Fresh off a seventh place finish in Seoul in 2024, the Northern Irish got their noses in front early with a right foot shot low past the Finland keeper, before a great pass found a player free to slot home for their second. A sweet Finland strike stung the palms of the Northern Ireland keeper, before Northern Ireland went three in front with quick reactions off a rebound. A nice finish from a tight angle saw them score their fourth. Northern Ireland’s keeper then saved a penalty and Finland sought to get on the scoresheet before a great tackle sent a Northern Ireland player through on goal to slot by the keeper to make it 5-0.
Into the second half, Finland’s keeper produced a great save after Northern Ireland fashioned a chance off some lovely footwork, before a deflection deceived the Finland keeper to give Northern Ireland their sixth. Finland then had the chance to pull one back but blazed a shot over the bar before an infringement saw Northern Ireland extend their lead from the penalty spot. A slice of fortune saw Finland finally get themselves on the scoresheet after the ball passed through the Northern Ireland goalkeeper’s legs and into the back of the net, before Northern Ireland wrapped up the game in the dying seconds with their eighth of the match.
Northern Ireland coach Louise McGonnell said:
“They did amazing. Resilience was our word today. I think it showed on the pitch there. They kept going for it and they were hungry for it and they enjoyed it.
“From the first day to now they look like a different team. A completely different team. They were really, really nervous. They had Mexico in their first game so we knew that was going to be really, really hard. But apart from that now they’ve got their confidence up now. They are more confident on the pitch now. They know exactly where to go now. They did amazing. I’m super proud of them.”
Words by Craig Williams | Photos by Donnie Nicholson