The Ireland Women's National Team are in the final stages of preparations for their Fifa Women's World Cup clash with Canada in Perth.
The sides will face off at the Perth Rectangular Stadium tomorrow (Wednesday, July 26) at 1:00 pm Irish Time.
511,000 people tuned in for Ireland's opening game against Australia in #FWWC2023
77% audience share, 360,000 live streams and second highest viewership ever on RTÉ.
Don’t miss tomorrow's game against Canada!
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⏰ | KO 13:00
? | LIVE on RTÉ2#COYGIG pic.twitter.com/54H937Nn71— Ireland Football ⚽️?? (@IrelandFootball) July 25, 2023
Vera Pauw's side suffered a narrow defeat to co-hosts Australia in their tournament debut, falling to a one-nil defeat.
But confidence is high in the camp after an impressive display, and the group aim to add their first points against their next opponent.
Speaking ahead of tomorrow's fixture, Pauw is keen to use the opening-day experience to her advantage.
“We have taken a lot of confidence from our performance against Australia but also recognised where we need to improve in order to get a positive result against a very good Canada team," she said.
“Canada are the Olympic champions, they have a very good head coach and some world-class players, so we know the size of the challenge in front of us. This team, though, always stands up to challenges and that is exactly what we are going to do again in Perth on Wednesday.
“The support from the Irish fans – both in Australia and around the world – has been fantastic and we are very appreciative of it. We want to do them proud. Our players and staff have worked incredibly hard, with such brilliant planning around our preparation, so we now feel that we are ready to go again.”
? Larko’s on fire… ??@AbbieLarkin7#COYGIG | #OUTBELIEVE pic.twitter.com/G4FPlH2wtv
— Ireland Football ⚽️?? (@IrelandFootball) July 24, 2023
The sides last met in 2014 at the GSP Stadium in Cyprus. Canada were a 2-1 winner on the day, although it was a fixture that could have gone either way.
Beverly Priestman's side is no stranger to featuring on the biggest stage and has competed in seven FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments – finishing fourth in 2003 and making the quarter-finals in 2015.
Their finest moment came in 2022 when they won the Summer Olympics – defeating Sweden in the Final.
There are currently 15 places separating Ireland and Canada, with Priestman's side sitting 7th and Ireland in 22nd.
A bit of home everywhere we go ?
? Perth, Western Australia #COYGIG | #OUTBELIEVE pic.twitter.com/jIO5vNsJH8
— Ireland Football ⚽️?? (@IrelandFootball) July 23, 2023
Tremendous Irish travelling support has flown in to join the Irish contingent already living in Perth.
The players have been met with a rapturous following, fueling an already eager side.
Defender Louise Quinn has been training with a foot injury picked up in the loss to Australia but will be available for selection.
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