115-cap Niamh Fahey proud of Ireland legacy after 'natural ending' to international career

Niamh Fahey feels her Ireland career went beyond her expectations after confirming a decision to call it a day yesterday.

Fahey played 115 times for her country, including three caps at the 2023 World Cup, the only time the Girls in Green have ever qualified for a major tournament.

Her last appearance for her country came in December as the side missed out on a spot at Euro 2025, losing 2-1 to Wales in the second leg of their play-off.

Speaking on RTÉ's Game On, Fahey says she knew pretty quickly that it was her last cap for Ireland.

"It felt like a natural ending really," she said on the programme.

"It had been on my mind. If we were to qualify, naturally enough I'd want to stay on but when we didn't manage to do so it was going to be the start of a new cycle.

"[It was] a natural ending and I pretty much knew walking off the Aviva Stadium pitch that it was the last time I was going to wear the green shirt."

Fahey was part of the Galway Gaelic football squad that claimed All-Ireland honours back in 2004, playing the entire final in a victory over Dublin at Croke Park.

Reflecting on the path travelled since, relocating to the UK, making a career as a professional soccer player and signing for her girlhood club Liverpool - who she is still playing with - the 37-year-old says she has surprised herself with what she has achieved.

"I couldn't have imagined starting off in Galway, playing Gaelic football, that this was what was going to happen 17 or 20 years down the line," she continued.

"I feel incredibly lucky and proud of the journey that I've been on and the friendships I've made along the way.

"It's gone beyond expectation in every sense."

And in an outstanding international career, which lasted over 17 years from her debut against