Marissa Sheva's Irish endeavour finally paying off

Marissa Sheva grew up running; now her future could be defined by a two-year chase.

Philadelphia-born Sheva was a surprise inclusion in Vera Pauw’s Republic of Ireland squad for this week’s training camp in Marbella, which culminates in a friendly against China on Wednesday.

The Washington Spirit attacker was a talented track and field star, excelling over the 1500m and 3000m distances.

She joined NWSL side Washington Spirit last June as a short-term Covid-19 replacement but did enough to earn a fresh one-year deal before Christmas.

She’s now on the cusp on earning a first Ireland cap, with two years of behind-the-scenes endeavour finally paying off.

"My grandfather [born in Tyrone] was really insistent on making sure that I had my citizenship," she said.

"We started that process at the beginning of 2021, I think, which has been... it's definitely tested my patience! We've been working at that for quite a while.

"I reached out to Vera last summer, just to kind of see how the squad was looking and to see if there'd be any opportunities to come into a camp. That definitely came from me.

"I waited a while to tell my family and my extended family that the opportunity was coming because I knew that they would be so excited. My grandfather has been burning up the phone lines I've been told. The family is very, very excited."

Sheva and Aoife Mannion are the two new faces in this crucial camp as Pauw freshens things up.

Competition for places is about to get incredibly competitive, especially when you consider the absent quartet of Niamh Fahey [calf], Chloe Mustaki [groin], Leanne Kiernan [ankle] and Savannah McCarthy [still in recovery mode following an ACL injury] are likely to be available for the next window in April.

Any opportunity