Up until earlier this year, it looked as though the Vera Pauw's Ireland squad was relatively settled. There had been a core group of players that brought the nation to their first ever World Cup, with fans having a good idea as to who would be in the team by the time the tournament in Australia got underway.
However, things have changed somewhat since then.
Ireland have brought a couple of unfamiliar names into the squad, with the US-born duo of Sinead Farrelly and Marissa Sheva coming into the fold earlier this year. Both of those players have gone on to be included in the squad for the World Cup.
Marissa Sheva still processing Ireland World Cup berth
Marissa Sheva was not a name that was on the radar for many Ireland fans, although she has immediately impressed since coming into the setup. Having made her debut against China in Spain back in February, she then started both games against the USA in April.
That was enough to get her into the squad for the World Cup, with the forward going on to play very well in the loss to France earlier this week. She now looks like a shoe in to start the tournament opener against the Aussies in front of 80,000 supporters in Sydney.
Despite this, Sheva admitted that she hasn't quite processed the way her career has gone over the last six months or so.
I don't know if it's fully actually hit me yet, and I'm not packed so I think it might hit me later tonight whenI'm trying to figure out what needs to come to Australia with me!
I'm so grateful that Vera finally brought me into camp, we had been chatting for quite a while so I feel really lucky to be in with this team. It's such an honour, I can't even put that into words. I just feel so lucky to be here with this group.
I can't wait to head down to Australia and represent Ireland with this group. I think that we're going to do the country really proud...
I've definitely thought about that (opening game). I feel like I have to get my mind used to it.
I think visualisation is actually a huge tool. Unless you've done it before, there's no way to replicate playing in front of 80,000 people. I've been working on that with my sports psych, just trying to find ways to minimise the shock factor of that.
At the end of the day, it's 11-v-11, we know what we need to do. I mean 80,000 people is a lot but I think that we're more than capable. We've shown that we're a very resilient group and we know things don't really rattle us.
Marissa Sheva offers something that few other players in the Ireland squad can bring, with her pace being a real asset to the team. A track athlete as well as a footballer during her time in college, her ability to contribute on the break could be key in games against quality opposition such as Australia and Canada.
The 26-year old has not had a huge amount of top level experience since her days in college, only joining NWSL side Washington Spirit in 2022 after brief spells with the likes of Utah Royals and Deportivo Alavés Gloriosas.
As a result of this, stepping out in front of a crowd of the magnitude of the one on show for the tournament opener in Sydney will be new experience for her. When asked about the biggest crowd she had played in front of up to this point, she admitted that this will be quite the step up:
Eh, maybe 25,000 so this will be nearly quadruple that.
Sinead [Farrelly] and I were talking about it: Will we notice that it's quadruple or does 20,000 feel like 40,000, 50,000 you know? I'm sure 80,000 will feel like a heck of a lot of people but yeah, all I know is I think they had to move from a 40,000 person stadium to the 80,000 stadium- and I know that it has to do with demand from Irish fans in Australia.
So I'm looking forward to it feeling like we're not playing the host nation because I think that we're going to have a tonne of fans down there and the Irish will be loud and proud in that stadium.
Her brief time in an Ireland jersey up to this point suggests that she will be up to the challenge.
SEE ALSO: The 11 Most Valuable Irish Players In The Game At The Moment
