IN THE 1992 movie, A League of Their Own, there is a famous scene when world-weary baseball coach Jimmy Duggan (played by Tom Hanks) screams, "There is no crying in baseball!" at an upset Evelyn Gardner (Bitty Schram) when she breaks down in tears after his rebuke of an error on the field of play.

It is a not-too-subtle, but accurate portrayal of men's perception of women in sports. Thankfully, times have changed, and after Tuesday night's 1-0 World Cup qualifier triumph by the Irish women's team against Scotland, there were more than a few tears and lumps in the throat. And that was just in my sitting room as I watched the unfolding moment of history for Irish women's football.

The joy

As if qualifying for the World Cup for the first time wasn't emotive enough, it was made all the more emotional when you consider the sacrifices and discrimination these players, and countless players before them, endured in their sport.

If that wasn't enough, the knowledge of the convoluted hoops the players endured in the qualifying process, was then followed by this game of near misses, the fear followed by the jubilation of conceding a penalty, and saving it, topped off with the poignant and absolutely appropriate winner being scored by Donegal's Amber Barrett, just days after the tragic events at Cresslough in her home county.

Indeed, it was like a script right out of a Hollywood drama, with its underdog's redemption tale and against-the-odds glory, even down to the hero having the reason and conviction to claim the win, in the end.

While the game itself was a cagey, rather run-of-the-mill affair, apart from the penalty save and the winner. In my opinion, it was not until the post-match interviews that these young women showed their true qualities and excellence.

You would need a heart of stone not to be moved by Barrett's eloquent telling of the significance of scoring her goal within days of the tragic events in Donegal.

Then there was the pleasure of seeing Cork's own Denise O'Sullivan (who provided the winning assist) joyfully explaining what making the finals meant to her, after so many years of exceptional work in the green shirt of Ireland.

That was followed by the interview from Irish boss, Vera Pauw, whose own personal trials and relief at qualifying seemed to combine in an emotional breaking of the dam, as she elaborated on what this meant to her and the team.

The interviews were bright and happy, insightful and expressive, with a level of eloquence and openness long gone, if ever seen, in the men's game.

The team also, rather heartwarmingly, presented RTÉ's Tony O'Donoghue with a signed jersey from the team, in gratitude for his support of their efforts down the years.

It's been a long road to success for this team and those who went before them. Not so long ago, the Irish women's team were forced to share tracksuits, and change in the toilets. To now see them advance to the pinnacle of their sport will be transformative for generations of young women in the sport to come.

But...

Of course, we should have known the warm feeling we had for the team would be cruelly whipped-away. But few could have expected that it would be in the space of one night's sleep.

The video of the team celebrating in the dressing room by singing, 'Ooh, Ah, Up The Ra,' was rightly condemned. And most of us were left scratching our heads at why they would do such a foolish thing.

But we must remember the age of these young women. They have no memory of who the Provisional IRA were or the atrocities they perpetrated. For any of us over the age of 40, it would be obvious not to chant 'up the ra', even if we had strong republican leanings. But this generation has grown up with the IRA and 'Ooh, Ah, Up The Ra' as almost a comic meme, they have seen on the internet.

Time and distance, along with a degree of sinister whitewashing has wiped a lot of the blood stains from the image of the IRA. And inculcated the song into many celebratory events that have really nothing to do with the North or the Troubles, but acts as a catchy chant especially if you are part of a team.

This is not to say that the team and management shouldn't have known better, but it also indicates a naivety about the chant and their innocence in the presence of so many reporters and people obviously recording it for social media.

They had no idea of the impact of the chant or maybe even its meaning and it's why I think the apology should be accepted and that we move on.

Paradise lost

Unfortunately, the incident will provide plenty 'whataboutery' ammunition for those who produce the next outrage moment on the Loyalist side. And worst of all, it will probably kill off the openness and eloquence of these players and management when dealing with social and regular media.

Maybe that would be the saddest loss. The openness, joy, and eloquence of the interviews from these women will be lost to guarded, choreographed, media-safe soundbites, just like the men's game. An innocence lost that should see us all shed a tear.