Republic of Ireland sweating on fitness of Katie McCabe ahead of World Cup

Vera Pauw says Republic of Ireland must wait to discover the extent of the injury that captain Katie McCabe suffered only two weeks before their opening World Cup game.

Arsenal player McCabe rolled her ankle during the first half of the 3-0 Dublin defeat to France as Ireland received a painful World Cup send-off.

McCabe had to be substituted after 29 minutes and Republic manager Pauw admitted they now have to play a waiting game ahead of their World Cup opener against tournament hosts Australia on July 20th.

“It’s an ankle injury, she rolled over, she stepped off the foot of the opponent and we can’t say anything now,” Pauw told RTÉ after Ireland were picked apart after making a promising start at the Tallaght Stadium.

“We’ll see how it goes but hopefully it will not be too bad.

“Katie was fantastic on the pitch and you miss that. It definitely changed the game, we were in control (until the injury).

“You can not blame the one coming on. Issy (Atkinson) did really well but Katie is extraordinary and of course you miss that immensely.”

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