Her name may hint at the contrary, but Ruesha Littlejohn’s impact on her debut for Shamrock Rovers was far from minute. There she and her side ran out a 1-1 draw against last year’s league champions Athlone Town in the second round of the League of Ireland Women’s Premier Division.
Littlejohn scored Rovers only goal and was named player of the match in debut.
After the match, the 87-time capped Ireland international spoke with Balls.ie, shedding light on the real reason she chose to sign for The Hoops.
“It was a couple of things really,” Littlejohn explained.
“I think it worked out better for me personally [to move to Shamrock Rovers].
“I think on the pitch especially, with the training, I know I’ll be managed and it’s not going to be an issue. I think at my age it becomes so frustrating when you have to fight that corner all of the time.
“Off the pitch then too I can still do my podcasts and stuff away from football.”
Having been a free agent subsequent to parting ways with London City Lionesses, the Ireland WNT star teamed up with another legend of Irish women’s football in order to orchestrate the deal with Collie O'Neill’s team.
Who you might ask? Well, none other than Puskas nominated wonder goal scorer Stephanie Zambra (née Roche), who, having retired last year, recently moved into the coaching set up at Shamrock Rovers.
“Steph Roche was on to me a while ago about maybe making it happen, and at that point I was a wee bit unsure, I had other things I was thinking about” Littlejohn describes.
“In the end it made the most sense, so I got back onto Steph again, and we kind of got it over the line,” she says.
The best of both worlds in terms of securing vital playing minutes while maintaining the ability to engage with her ever evolving media opportunities, Littlejohn explains how she intends to continue to make everything work.
“I’ll probably be able to fly back to London every second week, and if we play a home game on a Saturday, you can do your own recovery Sunday and you’re off Monday, so I’ll be able to do my podcasts on a Monday if all goes to plan,” she says.
“Make sure everyone keeps liking and subscribing please, don't be leaving me now,” she adds in jest.
Shamrock Rovers 1-1 Athlone Town
At home in the familiar environment at Tallaght Stadium, the Ireland international scored just 13 minutes into the game, from a stellar, pinpoint freekick, that came off the crossbar before ricocheting in.
Despite that early lead, herself and The Hoops nearly went on to rue their good start, allowing The Town back into the game via a Kelly Brady goal on 33 minutes.
Halftime came and went, with the defining moment of the second half emerging around the 70 minute mark, where Kellie Brennan pulled down Joy Ralph in the box, resulting in a penalty.
None other than retired Ireland WNT centurion, Aine O’Gorman, stared Megan Plaschko down from the spot, but it was the American who came out jubilant, diving correctly to the right to relieve the pressure for her side.
1-1 the final score despite the home side’s second half dominance, both of these heavy hitters in the league would have been happy enough to come away with at least a share of the spoils.
“We were a bit disappointed not to get the three points but I think we made hard work of the game. so I think maybe in the grand scheme of things we’ll take the point and move on,” Littlejohn herself said after the match.
