At the start of this qualification cycle English-born Birmingham City player Lucy Quinn went above and beyond to stake a claim for an Irish shirt, with the ordeal paying the greatest of dividends when she was selected as one the 23 WNT squad members for the World Cup this summer.
Describing her nomination as “an absolute privilege”, her enthusiasm is unbridled to represent her grandparents’ county Sligo roots on the world stage Down Under.
“I can't wait to get a flag, I can't wait to do the best I can do and hopefully make that little part of like such an amazing country so proud” she says, speaking of her delight in serving as the northwest’s WNT star.
The process of obtaining her Irish passport was far from black and white however, and actually “a long old road at some points.”
The former Portsmouth, Yeovil Town and Tottenham Hotspur woman admits that she nearly lost hope across the five year escapade, but is ultimately glad her persistence paid off.
“I thought it was never going to happen and I'd give up at one stage, but thankfully I didn't and now I'm here. That’s down to that perseverance”.
“It was a bit of a journey for me trying to get hold of birth certificates of grandparents and they were very poorly written and we had the wrong birthday and things like that, which really made my journey getting here a bit more complicated but it was something that I really wanted to dive into because I wanted to know exactly what my grandparents did.
“We knew roughly where they were from, but we didn't know maiden names and what they did for jobs, and that was information that we all uncovered.”
The procedure was further complicated then with matters like Covid and Brexit but the resulting outcome is something she wouldn’t trade for the world.
“It was a really touching moment to do that with my dad, who knew so little about his parents. We kind of learned our story and family history and yeah, it just fills me with pride to be here, and he's so proud and my whole family.
“I'm really proud to be one of the fewer members from Sligo. I think there's only a couple of people that maybe have like a parent born there or whatever.
“So yeah, I hope I do them proud”.
Doing just that during her debut game vs Australia back in 2021, the 29-year-old didn’t quite envision how everything would pan out on the international stage.
14 caps and two official goals later (her debut goal went down as an OG), she’s now preparing to take on the Matildas once again.
“Hopefully that opening game in Australia will be another [big moment]” she says.
“That's the one that is obviously the first one in your mind, the host team and a massive stadium like it's going to be hopefully the biggest women's World Cup that we've ever had.
When I found out that that was a draw and we were opening the tournament, I just couldn't believe it, I felt it was an absolute honour and it’s something we’re really excited for.”
Lucy Quinn - All the heartache will be worth it
Soaking in a flash of reflection before such a monumental moment, Lucy Quinn ponders on what she would say to her younger self at this juncture, truly delving into the much beloved character behind the player.
“It's just that it would all be worth it.”
“I've always had the full support of my family and their belief that I would go on and do some big things in the game, that I'd be a professional and I was really lucky to have that from them, but obviously there are challenging times throughout your career and for your life and I think I'd just tell little me that it's all worth it.
“And to keep being you, keep your personality because that's half of what will get you to where you are.”
Channelling her heritage in that sphere, there’s no doubt Quinn will continue to make an impact come the tournament’s kick off on July 20th.
