Page 29 - Women's Soccer Scene Issue No.23 2022-23

Scotland will be back in action next month in an exciting double header, first travelling to
London to take on FIFA Women’s World Cup hosts Australia, before facing Costa Rica at
Hampden four days later.
The friendly matches are ahead of the inaugural UEFA Women’s Nations League draw
in May. The fixtures will serve as preparation for the tournament, which will commence in
early Autumn. The Scotland squad will have a training base in southern England to prepare
for the Matildas, before travelling home to host Costa Rica.
SWNT Head Coach Pedro Martinez Losa told www.scottishfa.co.uk: “Playing against
the World Cup hosts Australia is a fantastic opportunity. They’ll be looking to go into those
games positively and we’ll be prepared for that.
“Costa Rica will be a very different challenge for us – they have some top players from
across Europe and beyond.
“Facing two teams of this calibre will provide a good test for the squad as we continue
to prepare for the start of the UEFA Women’s Nations League.
“We are looking to build on the recent wins against Panama and Philippines as well as
the positive aspects of our performances against Venezuela, Iceland and Wales.
“The matches will provide more opportunities for players whilst continuing to build the
team that we want to become ahead of the UEFA EURO 2025 qualifiers.”
Scotland will play Australia at the Cherry Red Records Stadium on Friday 7th April
(1.15pm kick off), with the second friendly against Costa Rica at Hampden Park on Tuesday
11th April (7.35pm).

The Northern Ireland Women’s Under-17 squad for Euro qualifiers against Turkey and
Armenia later this month was announced on Thursday. A 20-strong panel has been chosen
for the matches, which are being staged in Turkey on Friday 24 March and Monday 27 March.
Northern Ireland’s games in the second phase of qualifiers for the 2022-23 edition of
UEFA Women’s U17 Euro will both be played at the Emirhan Sport Center Stadium in
Manavgat, a city in the Antalya Province in southern Turkey.
Northern Ireland senior international player Julie Nelson will be in charge of the team
in Turkey. She is currently managing the WU17s on an interim basis (eight-week period).
Nelson put the players through their paces at a training camp last month and has been
staging weekly training sessions ahead of the tournament.
A new permanent manager for both the WU17 and WU19 teams will be appointed by
the Irish FA in the coming months.
Matchday one in the three-team tournament (League B Group 5) in Turkey will see the
WU17s come up against the host nation. The game on 24th March is set to kick off at 10am
UK time.
Armenia will provide the opposition on matchday two. The start time in Manavgat is
scheduled to be 11am UK time.
All League B group winners, and the runner-up with the best record against the teams
first and third in their section, will be promoted to League A for 2023-24 round one.
Northern Ireland, who are top seeds in B5, will no doubt be looking to repeat their
March 2022 heroics in Israel when they won all of their matches in a mini tournament to
reach League A for qualifying round one of the 2022-23 edition of the WU17 Euro
competition.
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