Chloe Mustaki made her competitive debut for Ireland in Tuesday's draw with Sweden in Gothenburg. The Shelbourne player slotted in at left wing-back as Vera Pauw's team picked up a point against the side ranked second in the world.
"What a game," Mustaki told RTÉ after the game.
"No better opportunity to come in. I have a good lot of minutes under my belt at Shels, which probably helped me coming into this game.
"I could have done with the game ending about 10 minutes earlier! We dug deep. Everyone did fantastic. What a shift. We sustained a lot of pressure but we kept them out. We defended with our hearts."
Mustaki overcame lymphoma and a cruciate ligament injury to make her senior Ireland debut against Russia in the Pinatar Cup back in February.
26 February 2012; In attendance at the Three FAI International Football Awards is Chloe Mustaki, left, Peamount United FC, Co. Dublin, winner of the Women's U17 International player of the year award, with Robert Finnegan, Chief Executive of Three. Three FAI International Football Awards, RTÉ Studios, Donnybrook, Dublin. Picture credit: David Maher / SPORTSFILE
"I have to be proud of myself," she said.
"I was reflecting [on Tuesday morning] when she named the team... A year ago, I was doing the punditry for the girls, and a year on I'm starting.
"A few things went my way with injuries, but hopefully I took the opportunity and showed Vera my potential. Hopefully, there will be more games for me to come.
"To be honest, I didn't even look up at any point at the crowd. I was just focused on the pitch the whole time. It was only when the whistle blew that I could have a look around and see how many people are here.
"It's just another game like any other. Luckily, I have a lot of international games underage under my belt. I just used that towards my experience for tonight."
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