Cork's Denise O'Sullivan confirmed to start against Australia after recovering from injury

CORK'S Denise O’Sullivan has shaken off her shinbone injury to start tomorrow’s World Cup opener against Australia, Ireland manager Vera Pauw confirmed.

Pauw and team captain Katie McCabe conducted their pre-match press duties at Stadium Australia on the outskirts of Sydney, which is expected to be a 75,784-sell out for the meeting with the co-hosts (8pm local, 11am Irish time). 

Capacity at the Olympic arena has been downgraded by FIFA from the original 82,500.

The participation of 102-times capped and midfield maestro O’Sullivan was plunged into doubt when she shipped a late tackle from Colombia last Friday, prompting Pauw to abort the training match just 20 minutes in.

While no fracture was visible in the x-ray scan, soft tissue damage had to be assessed but the Cork native’s powers of recovery facilitated her return to training on Monday.

The Houston Dash playmaker took a full contact part in Tuesday’s session and again during Wednesday’s final workout, held at the nearby Leichhardt Oval stadium.

“We said from the start that we are very open and have nothing to hide,” said Pauw, after the delegation took the 60-minute flight from their training base in Brisbane to Sydney.

“Denise is fit and she will play unless (something happens) today. She trained yesterday and after a full training today she can play tomorrow.” 

Asked if she’s happy to have O’Sullivan available, the response came from both guests at the top table – “yes, so am I!” replied the Arsenal star.

Ireland were welcomed by a flock of Irish fans, some visiting, others expatriates, upon arrival at Sydney Airport, triggering emotional scenes.

Ireland’s preparations weren’t helped by a 35-minute delay to their arrival at training, apparently due to traffic.

That’ll raise questions about the decision to leave until the eve of the game to fly into Sydney. They are due to arrive in Perth on Sunday, four days in advance of meeting Canada.

“We just gave them (the players) a little time and I’m not sure everyone was happy with that,” said Pauw about allowing the players to enjoy the airport welcome, which includes some members of family.

The prize sealed by Amber Barrett’s winner in Scotland nine months ago is now getting real.

“We landed only a short time ago in the airport greeted by a number of Irish fans and it was really nice to see them there.

“They’re our home away from home. You can see the numbers that have travelled, and the pictures that are going online and how much support we have here in Sydney, not just today but more importantly tomorrow.

“It’s really special and the whole team feel that, not just the players but the staff as well feel the support from here and at home. And we want to do the nation proud tomorrow night.

“It was such a special moment because we’ve seen a lot and heard a lot and we felt a lot when we were back in Dublin in our pre-camp but to see it in person when we arrived was obviously a very special feeling.

“For us, it’s amazing to have that moment with our fans but of course now it’s full focus on Australia and they will come out in huge numbers for us tomorrow night.” 

Australia are one of the pre-tournament favourites, especially so given the presence of Sam Kerr as their captain and lead striker. The Matildas legend has been instrumental in Chelsea’s domination of Women’s Super League over the past three years.

“We will play our game, we have a game plan, and the final bit is dealing with Sam Kerr,” said Pauw with a smile.

“But Australia is not just Sam Kerr. They have a lot of good players. We have watched and analysed them.” On the prospects of Ireland causing a shock, Pauw said : “We qualified by doing something that nobody expected.

“But we are realistic - very realistic. Otherwise, you can’t succeed.

“The key thing is that everybody has no fear of failure. We will go into this game in a way that we think we can play against Australia and without any fear.

“Whether it’s the crowd or the pressure of the opponent, we are ready for that and we will see if it is good enough.”