Four-goal Ireland ease past Morocco in Marbella

Morocco 0-4 Republic of Ireland

The Republic of Ireland begun their World Cup preparation with a 4-0 friendly win over Morocco in Marbella on Monday evening.

A bright start and finish bookended what was at times a scrappy encounter, but it was the Girls in Green who always possessed that extra bit of quality to ease to victory.

Two goals up in the opening seven minutes, Vera Pauw's side looked on course to open the floodgates, but the energy and tempo that marked the opening 10 minutes soon faded.

For 20 minutes either side of the break the play was a little more laboured, but Ireland's strength told, with Louise Quinn on her 100th international appearance getting on the scoresheet before substitute Kyra Carusa rounded off the scoring in the 79th minute.

Pauw signalled her intent to treat the fixture with one eye firmly fixed on next year's World Cup by starting the strongest team available to her

Hampden Park match-winner Amber Barrett got the nod in the absence of Heather Payne - unavailable due to college commitments in the US - in a formidable looking Irish starting XI.

However Morocco's own line-up was far from full strength, due to the involvement of most of their frontliners in the African Champions League final as AS FAR beat Mamelodi Sundowns 4-0 on Sunday.

Ranked 76th in the world - 52 places below the Girls in Green - Morocco were always going to be up against it and they conceded from Ireland's first attack of the game

Not even two minutes had elapsed before the underdogs found themselves in arrears in a phase of play that started and finished with Campbell.

The Liverpool player launched the first of her trademark long-throw deliveries and from the attempted clearance, Denise O'Sullivan regained possession and slid the