Toland and Barrett on the unfortunate end of the result as Ireland fall to Sweden

Donegal’s Amber Barrett and Tyler Toland were unfortunate to be on the losing side last night in the Aviva Stadium as the Republic of Ireland fell short at the hands of Sweden in a 3-0 defeat in front of a crowd of 22,868.  

No goals have been scored by Ireland in 2024 but this fifth blank is the one they’ll regret most given the sitters spurned by Lily Agg and Amber Barrett in the first half. 

A third straight defeat of the campaign ends any outside hopes of qualifying directly for next year’s Euros, reducing the second half, which begins with the return in Solna on Tuesday, to preparation for the playoffs in October. 

Ireland suffered a set back before the game even started with Denise O’Sullivan absent due to a knee injury, with Jessie Stapleton willing to deputise - the teenager preferred in the engine-room to Tyler Toland, although she did make an appearance late on. 

Form and goals for Standard Liege earned the Barrett a reprieve this year but she’ll be haunted by her profligacy here. 

But it was not to be for Ireland in terms of the result and they will have to do it all again on Tuesday as they hope to recover strong.