Tyler Toland's return puts a full stop on the end of an era

Tyler Toland's player-of-the match performance against Northern Ireland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday put a big full stop on the end of an eventful chapter in Irish football.

The Donegal midfielder last played for her country four years ago, in a 2-0 win against Montenegro.

Toland, only 18 at the time, scored the opener that night. She'd just moved to Manchester City from Sion Swifts and was considered one of the country's brightest hopes; a technically gifted, tigerishly determined operator with an old head on young shoulders.

It was a period of purgatory for the Girls in Green, who had just seen Colin Bell leave to take up a role with Huddersfield Town. Tom O'Connor took the reins for the Montenegro match, but he would not lead the team again.

Waiting in the wings was an experienced, highly rated Dutch coach named Vera Pauw. She was in charge for the following month's 3-2 defeat of Ukraine and subsequent 1-1 draw with Greece.

Toland didn't get off the bench in either of those games. Indeed, she would never kick a ball under Pauw.

A spectacular falling out involving Pauw, Toland and Toland's father Maurice led to public claims and counter-claims between both parties.

The upshot was that Tyler Toland would enter a long, cold international exile.

Her club career became nomadic, with stints at Glasgow City, Celtic and Levante in Spain. But a summer move to Championship outfit Blackburn Rovers has gone well, with Toland getting a consistent run of games at a decent level.

Gleeson stressed last week that her return to the squad this month was "purely a football decision", and there's no reason to doubt that.

However it's difficult to ignore the symbolism of a player so out of favour under Pauw coming back into the side and playing