Marissa Sheva helping fellow American Erin Healy settle into Ireland setup

Irish Examiner

4 days ago

Success attracts talent and it was inevitable the American diaspora would awaken from Ireland's World Cup watershed.
Courtney Brosnan and Kyra Carusa had declared before qualification was secured in 2022, Sinéad Farrelly and Marissa Sheva pledged their allegiance in time for the trip to Australia, while Erin Healy became the latest convert.
US-born players pursuing international exposure through ancestry is more prevalent in the women's game due to the status of the national team as Fifa's top ranked nation.
Farrelly has since retired and Sheva was omitted from the squad for a period when Eileen Gleeson succeeded Vera Pauw as boss but she's back in favour under Carla Ward.
The attacking midfielder has moved closer by joining Sunderland towards the end of the season and is pushing for a start in Friday's penultimate Uefa Nations League fixture against Turkey at the Esenler Stadium in Istanbul (6pm, Irish time).
Healy could make her debut in attack and Sheva has been mindful about ensuring the newcomer feels at home in her new habitat.
Ward last week flagged a move to England for the striker but her club Adelaide United yesterday announced a contract extension.
'I definitely remember my first camp in Spain,' said 28-year-old Sheva, resonating with Healy's experience this week.
'That always changes things and it's not a home camp in Dublin where everybody feels a little bit more at ease and comfortable.
'I'm trying to just make sure she feels comfortable and is able to perform the way she can and not feel any unnecessary stress outside of being on the pitch.'
Turkey may be bottom seeds in the four-team pool that also includes Slovenia and Greece but they almost embarrassed Ireland in Ward's first game at the helm.
Sheva is adamant progress has been made since that unconvincing 1-0 win at Tallaght in February.
'Hopefully we can beat Turkey by more than one goal,' said the Pennsylvania native.
'I think this will be a better camp than the first camp against the same opponents.
'There was almost an overhaul of tactics of what we were previously playing. It's really tough to implement that in one, two, or even three camps.
'We're being encouraged to build out from the back more, to be a little bit more aggressive from the getgo, trying to utilise our midfield more. You can't change that overnight.'
Once Turkey is done, the squad travel back to Cork for the visit of Slovenia to Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
Unless the group leaders drop points against Greece, then Ireland's mission will be to equal or surpass the 4-0 victory the Slovenians achieved in Ward's second match.
'We've good memories from beating France in Cork last year,' she said about returning to the home of Cork GAA.