Ireland women hoping for more of the same against Greece tonight in Tallaght

The Republic of Ireland will try and make it back-to-back wins in the UEFA Women’s Nations League when they face Greece this evening at Tallaght Stadium, kick-off 7.30pm.

The Girls in Green will go into this game second in the table, three points from leaders Slovenia at the midway point of the campaign.

This will be their second meeting with Greece in less than a week, and it follows a 4-0 victory at the Theodoros Vardinogiannis Stadium in Crete.

Marissa Sheva, Kryra Caursa, Jessie Stapleton and Amber Barrett hit the back of the net on the island, on an evening that saw Denise O’Sullivan wear the captain’s armband.

It was a conformable finish to a game that began with the home side pushing-up and putting Ireland under serious pressure, but failing to create a clear-cut chance.

Now it’s all about another win, and keeping up with a Slovenia side that enjoyed a perfect start to life in the second tier after winning promotion last year.

The two teams will face off on the final day at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, meaning it could be a ‘winner takes all’ clash at the home of Cork GAA in June.

For that to happen, Ireland will need to keep winning and that involves taking all three points on offer at home to Greece in Dublin.

The Girls in Green had to work for the result last week in Crete, as the home side pushed up early on and created a number of problems for a team that had to operate without captain Katie McCabe.

Greece had a lot of the ball but failed to create clear-cut chances, while Ireland struggled at playing Leanne Kiernan through at the other end.

None of this mattered at the full-time whistle as Carla Ward’s players were able to hit the back of the net four times in the second half.

This was on the coach’s mind while speaking to the media in Crete, and the former Aston Villa and Birmingham City boss stressed how early she is into her tenure with the Girls in Green.

"Concerned, but not concerned," she replied when asked about the first half in Greece.

"There's a lot of new messages going in. On the back of Slovenia as well, there'll be some natural human nerves, we're human beings, it's natural to doubt a little bit. 

"It was just a case of, stay calm, stick to what we want to go after. And we did that.

"I keep saying it, we've not had long on the grass. The amount of things we did in the week that have come to life today, particularly in the second half, was great to see.

"I thought the second half was superb."

Everything clicked after the break and it started with O’Sullivan teeing up Sheeva for a shot that went in via a deflection in the 49th minute.

Things got considerably easier once the first goal went in, which did not happen during Ireland’s last visit to Tallaght Stadium.

The Girls in Green struggled to get a second and kill the game off against Turkey, and the visitors almost got a late equaliser.

The hope is that Tuesday night in Tallaght is easier, and for another victory in the push for promotion.