Athlone striker Dana Scheriff has Cup target and Republic of Ireland dream

Athlone Town's American-born striker Dana Scheriff is looking to fire the midlanders to FAI Cup glory this weekend and increase her chances of breaking into the Republic of Ireland squad.

Scheriff has enjoyed a brilliant campaign in the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division, scoring 13 times to claim the Golden Boot award.

Ahead of Sunday's showdown with Shelbourne at Tallaght Stadium, the Long Islander revealed she is eligible to pull on the green jersey. There's been no contact from the FAI yet, but a call-up to the national side is a huge target for the talented attacker.

"My grandmother was born in Dublin so I'm in the process of getting my Irish passport, which would be pretty big for me," she said.

"My mother was born in England and right now I have dual citizenship with the British passport, which is why I'm able to play in Ireland, but I'm trying to get the Irish one.

"I'm not too close to my mom's side, I've never met my grandma, but I ended up finding out that she was born in Dublin and I'm in the process of getting all her documents, which is obviously very challenging.

"But this is actually the first time I'm saying it out loud!

"[Playing for Ireland] would be huge for me. The US and the English are two of the most dominant football sides in the world and the Irish are on their way up right now, and it would be huge to try to break into that if I'm able to."

"It's been a journey but I think it helped me become the player I am today."

Scheriff has had an eclectic career. She played four years of collegiate football in the US and then headed to England to study for a Masters, lining out in the Championship with Durham. A move to Icelandic outfit IA Akrane in the height of Covid followed - she continued her studies