Katie Mullan eyes semi spot for Ireland ahead of EuroHockey Championships
Ireland, who have been drawn in Pool A in Monchengladbach, get the eight-team tournament under way with an arduous opener against the Netherlands on Saturday (Live on RTÉ).
After facing the side at the summit of the world rankings, fixtures against France (world ranking 19) and Germany (world ranking 6) follow for Gareth Grundie's charges, who themselves are 11th in the global standings.
The 31-year-old Mullan, who made her international debut back in 2012 against Wales, recognises the rigours in achieving a semi-final berth but believes a last-four place is obtainable.
"This is going to be Europeans number six for me," the Coleraine native told RTÉ Sport. "We've never cracked it, the highest we've finished is fifth, but we've never made that semi-final so that's a big motivator for me and for the rest of the team.
"I was just explaining that to the girls the other day, the journey we've gone on each Europeans, it's the hardest continental games by far because of the standard of hockey.
"You've got so many top-10 teams on the European continent and then the other thing is the set-up of the tournament – you have to finish top two in your pool.
"For us, it means beating a nation ranked a good bit higher than us. That's a challenge, but we're ready for it now and we've had a lot of practice games and we're just looking forward to getting going now."
Mikayla Power's late, late winner last Friday at the Sport Ireland Campus in Dublin secured the home side a 2-1 series win over a Spain outfit ranked seventh in the world, delighting fans and buoying confidence ahead of the Euros.
"It's huge, and do you know what? It's been the greatest pleasure to play these games here in Dublin," Mullan explained.
"I can't remember the last time Spain came over and played us.
"It's been brilliant to have these games here on home soil, get a bit of a crowd around the pitch, just to drum up momentum going into next week, and it's fantastic that RTÉ is showing the games live throughout the Europeans tournament. It's so important for our sport and for the growth of our sport.
The encounter against the Netherlands is likely one where Ireland will come up short, while the France fixture has to be regarded as one of the must-win variety, meaning there is a strong likelihood that pool finale against Germany will decide Ireland's knockouts fate.
"I think Germany is a really important game for us," Mullan acknowledged. "We used to play the Germans quite a lot and we haven't played them in the last 18 months so much.
"They've had a lot of retirements, their team is very, very different, so we've been watching them closely in the Pro League.
"I think there is opportunity.
"One thing I've noticed is the Europeans immediately after the Olympics is always an exciting one because people don't know one another as well.
"There have been retirements, there are new players, there are changes of coaches, there are all these different variables that you find within 12 months of an Olympics.
"It won't disappoint, I can guarantee you that!"
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