Denise O'Sullivan was Ireland's match winner in Shkoder on Tuesday evening, in a bizarre, rain-delayed UEFA Nations League clash with Albania.
The game got underway in dry conditions but, by the 20th minute, torrential rainfall had begun to waterlog parts of the pitch, and the conditions would only worsen as the first-half went on.
Ultimately, when the players retreated to the changing rooms at half-time with large puddles covering areas of the playing surface, the referee made the call to delay the start of the second period, with the match finally resuming almost 80 minutes later than scheduled.
When Ireland did eventually take to the pitch, they would slug it out for a narrow 1-0 win, with Denise O'Sullivan's close-range finish two minutes from time enough to get the Girls in Green over the line.
Speaking to Balls.ie and the Irish media at full-time, O'Sullivan explained how the players had approached the lengthy rain delay:
I think the mentality going in was that we were going to come back out and play. That was always in the back of our minds once we went in at half-time, that we would be coming back out to play. I think, as players, we just stayed focused and knew that we had to come out and do a job in the second-half.
The first-half was crazy. I've never experienced anything like it. It was literally a monsoon, you couldn't do anything, couldn't trap the ball, it was just getting stuck. I was kicking puddles!
It was a lot of resilience. We just had to keep going and get to half-time, and then luckily it cleared up.
Three points is three points. We know we had a slow start tonight...I think we put it right in the second-half. It was a relief that we did get the three points, we can go in with six points again and look forward to the next camp.
The results across Ireland's group on Tuesday mean they have been promoted to Nations League A, and O'Sullivan said that the players would have a massive boost from climbing up through the ranks.
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Ireland v Albania: O'Sullivan and Gleeson react in Shkoder
31 October 2023; Denise O'Sullivan of Republic of Ireland, centre, celebrates with teammates after scoring their side's first goal during the UEFA Women's Nations League B match between Albania and Republic of Ireland at Loro Boriçi Stadium in Shkoder, Albania. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Soon after Ireland's game in Albania concluded, Northern Ireland secured a similarly late result in their home game with Hungary - and the draw in Belfast, coupled with the 1-0 win in Shkoder, means the Republic of Ireland are promoted.
Nations League A status not only brings with it more games against major opposition, but added opportunity to qualify for EURO 2025. The top two teams in each League A group next year will qualify automatically for the tournament in Switzerland, with every team guaranteed at least a play-off.
Denise O'Sullivan would go on to say that the squad were thrilled with promotion to League A, but was quick to return focus to finishing off this campaign with six points in the final two games next month:
It's absolutely massive. I think it gives us a lot of confidence, it's a big boost for us.
We know we still have very important games coming up in December. It's a very quick turnaround.
As happy as we are, our full focus will still be on those games, because they won't be at all easy and we want to get the six points in that camp as well.
It was a much tougher affair for Ireland than might have been expected going into Tuesday's game, given their 5-1 victory against the same opposition in Tallaght last Friday.
31 October 2023; Republic of Ireland interim head coach Eileen Gleeson after the UEFA Women's Nations League B match between Albania and Republic of Ireland at Loro Boriçi Stadium in Shkoder, Albania. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Interim manager Eileen Gleeson spoke at full-time about how challenging the extended half-time period had been, with Ireland somewhat in the dark as to whether the game would continue.
She revealed that the players had returned for the second-half on just ten minutes notice, after a near 90-minute break, and praised the squad for a gritty and effective - if less than stellar - performance:
The first half was absolute chaos...you literally couldn't walk on the pitch, never mind passing the ball. You couldn't dribble - if you tried to dribble it was left behind. It really was unplayable.
Then, you come in and you've got that uncertainty. It's a huge testament to the girls to be able to come out and perform in the second half after that long break.
We didn't know what was happening until 8:10 and the game was kicking off at 8:20. You don't even have the opportunity of an extended warmup, and you're waiting until the last minute.
Performance overall - we're not going to dress that up and say it was great but what they did show was adaptability, it was grit, and they played right til the end and we came away with three points.
Ireland are now assured of top spot in group B1 of the UEFA Nations League with two games to spare. They face Hungary in Tallaght on Friday December 1, before travelling to Belfast for the return fixture against Belfast on December 5.
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