Shine lights way for Irish
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND………………………………………….. 7 (C Shine 23, 33, 42; K McCabe 26, 71; S Newman 29, C Mustaki 84)
KAZAKHSTAN…………………………………………………………. 0
A first half hat-trick by the outstanding Claire Shine was the highlight at Dalymount Park last night, as the Republic of Ireland women’s side got their under 19 Championship qualifying campaign off to a dream start with a 7-0 Group Two victory over Kazakhstan, writes Daire Walsh.
Ireland took the lead after 23 minutes, when Shine broke through on goal, before finishing calmly. Katie McCabe’s strike was followed by an inch-perfect strike from a 30-yard free-kick by midfield lynchpin Shauna Newman to stretch the lead to 3-0.
The hosts continued to dominate, with Shine adding two more to take a 5-0 advantage into the second half. They extended their cushion even further with a second emphatic effort by McCabe.
Captain Chloe Mustaki added a seventh, as Ireland gave themselves the perfect tonic ahead of the games against Greece and Denmark in the coming week.
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Maloney; Dwyer, O’Connell, Mustaki, Rossiter; Newman; O’Connor, Carson (Frawley 46), Doyle, McCabe (Barrett 79); Shine.