Saoirse Noonan wants another taste of Aviva 'field of dreams'

Saoirse Noonan is ready to soak up every minute of a landmark day when the Republic of Ireland line up at the Aviva Stadium's "field of dreams".

The Cork native is desperate for a chance to impress against Northern Ireland on Saturday (Live on RTÉ2) after missing out on selection for the summer's World Cup.

Noonan has played at the Lansdowne Road venue before; she won the FAI Cup with Cork City there back in 2017. But there's a unique vibe to this occasion.

Around 30,000 fans are expected to turn up for the first game post the Vera Pauw era - an international derby to kickstart the UEFA Nations League campaign.

Pauw's exit has left some painful wounds. Diane Caldwell delivered a scathing assessment of her tenure on Monday, opening up a whole new can of worms and, perhaps, increasing the pressure on this Irish team to prove they are good enough to break away from Pauw's regimented, defensive approach.

Noonan offered a guarded take - and some perspective - on the fallout, when acknowledging: "Of course there's going to be noise where women's football has grown bigger and more people are getting involved and looking at it. We're aware of all that, but at the end of the day we are so proud to represent our country.

"Everyone is entitled to their opinion. Things happen, sport changes so quick. For me, not being in the World Cup squad, that's hard, but it's life. We all have to try and move on.

"A football career is not long, you've got to enjoy every minute.

"We can't change the past, we have to move forward now. Everyone is going to have their own views. I'm just glad to be back in. I want to look at Saturday and move forward."

The 24-year-old is now fully settled at Championship side Durham after a nasty hamstring/knee injury