A crowd of 3,314 were present on the night to help Pauw’s women end a seven-game skid with a strong win over the side that finished fourth at this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo.

It was the seventh time out of the 23 games the women’s national side has played in Tallaght Stadium that there were over 3,000 supporters in attendance – the fixture against Australia adhered to Covid restrictions.

Ireland WNT Manager Vera Pauw wanted to thank the fans for their incredible support.

“I’ve always said it, from the first moment that I came here, that our fans are truly unbelievable. From when they arrive into the Stadium right the way until the very end, they are cheering us on and that makes such a difference as it helps to inspire our players.

“It was far too long not playing in front of our fans, even though we all appreciate and respect the effects of COVID-19. But on Tuesday, it was like they had never been away. There was an electric feeling around the place and the fans never got tired and never stopped supporting us.

“From myself, the players & the backroom staff, we want to thank everyone who came out to support us. They made a big impact and reminded us that football needs to be played in front of fans because the game belongs to us all.

“We are delighted with our performance and result against Australia, but now we turn our attention to the FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifiers – starting at home, in Tallaght Stadium, against Sweden on October 21st. I really hope that we can get as many fans as possible into the Stadium for that game because it will be one of the biggest games in the history of the Ireland Women’s Team.

“We would also like to thank Sky Ireland, who enjoyed their first game as our primary partner. We are excited to work closely with them. And we also issue a special thanks to the media who continue to cover our team and help to raise the profile of women’s football as a result.

“For our fans, we never take their support for granted and it fills us with great pride when we can show our appreciation by signing autographs or taking selfies after the game. We have built a great connection together and we are already looking forward to the Sweden game and seeing our fans again.”

Ticket news will be announced soon for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier between the Republic of Ireland and Sweden on Thursday, October 21st.

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The Matildas played their first game since competing in the Olympics against a side 22 places below them in the world rankings but could not break the blossoming losing streak they currently hold.

It is Ireland’s biggest win over a higher-ranked opponent in over two decades and they set off to achieve it straight away with Amber Barrett unleashing a stinging shot inside two minutes.

Australia barely had a chance to catch their breath when debutant Lucy Quinn curled a powerful free-kick at goal, which struck the post and rebounded in off goalkeeper Mackenzie Arnold.

The game was back and forth in many ways but Ireland were never outclassed by a team led by star striker Sam Kerr, who was making her 100th appearance for her national side.

Mary Fowler twice got the visitors back into the contest, albeit with a bit of luck, but Ireland also profited when a strike from Denise O’Sullivan was deflected in.

At the end of a thrilling first half, it was 2-2 but Ireland will have felt that they were slightly on top. And they continued to play with confidence in the second period.

Louise Quinn powered in a header early in that half to reassert a lead that they would not surrender as Pauw’s team showed how recent performances against top-quality opponents stood to them.

Ireland, who were roared on by a vocal crowd, finished the game by battling for every ball and proving that they belonged in competition against such a good team.

Next up is their 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup campaign, starting at home to Sweden on October 21st.

Republic of Ireland: Brosnan; Fahey, Louise Quinn, McCarthy; O’Gorman, McCabe; Finn (Caldwell 90), O’Sullivan, Barrett (Farrelly, 60); Payne (Kiernan 90), Lucy Quinn (Whelan 72).

Australia: Arnold (Williams HT); Polkinghorne, Kennedy (Checker HT), Nevin (Beard 68); Yallop (Gant 68), Logarzo (Wheeler 53), Cooney-Cross, Catley; Gielnick, Kerr, Fowler.

Referee: Paula Brady (Ireland).

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The men’s tournament was scheduled to go ahead alongside the women’s tournament and the wheelchair tournament this Autumn in England.

Ireland had qualified for the men’s tournament and was drawn into Group C with New Zealand, as well as Lebanon and Jamaica.

Australia and New Zealand had said that it is “simply too unsafe” to travel and have further cited player welfare and safety concerns as reasons for their withdrawal.

The RLWC issued a statement on Thursday morning which read: “Rugby League World Cup 2021 (RLWC2021) and the UK Government have today announced their intention to stage the flagship event in the international Rugby League calendar in 2022.

“The extremely difficult decision was taken by the RLWC2021 Board, which includes representation from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, and the International Rugby League (IRL) Board.

“This follows extensive and urgent consultation conducted by RLWC2021 Chief Executive Officer Jon Dutton and his team, which engaged players, competing nations, the Rugby League Players Association (Australia), UK Government, hosts, commercial and broadcast partners.

“Tournament organisers faced several unique and complex challenges with the most significant being the non-release of up to 400 players, match officials and staff members from the NRL competition in Australia. This is despite all requests from international rugby league federations having been met which included the rigorous health measures that have been keeping thousands of elite athletes from around the world safe whilst competing in major sporting events across the UK over the last year.

“Ultimately this decision has been detrimental to the plans and ambitions of many of the competing nations and potential replacement teams. A key factor was ensuring that fans of Rugby League are able to enjoy the best possible tournament, which was not possible under these circumstances.”

Jon Dutton, RLWC2021 Chief Executive Officer, said: “Today is a challenging moment for everyone involved in Rugby League, but most importantly the players and fans of the competing nations.

“Ultimately, time and competing priorities from others forced us to make the most difficult decision in our six-year history. However, we and the sport of Rugby League are resilient, and next year we will deliver our vision of the biggest and best Rugby League World Cup ever.

“We have always prioritised player voice and player choice. We have established a player working group, met with senior players and in the last few days commissioned a player survey to domestic players in Australia and New Zealand that showed more than 85% wanted to compete at RLWC2021 this year.

“However, following the disappointing decision of the ARLC and NZRL to withdraw, and the subsequent impact on player availability for other competing nations, it is apparent that delivering the tournament this year would not be feasible.

“The wellbeing of all those involved in the tournament, particularly players and team officials, has been our priority. I would like to thank the RLWC2021 Board and my team for the relentless hard work and extraordinary measures that had been undertaken to create a safe and secure environment in line with other major sports events that have been successfully hosted in the UK this year.

“I would also like to thank all our committed partners as well as the Rugby League community at large who have been so supportive of our trailblazing event. We appreciate the continued and unequivocal support of the UK Government, as well as the understanding of our competing nations.”

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The two teams, one the holders and another the number one-ranked side in the world, have cited player welfare and safety concerns as reasons for their announcement.

The rise in cases in RLWC host nation England is what has led to this decision.

The RLWC is scheduled to kick off on October 23 with the final to be played on November 27 – both teams were strong favourites to reach it.

The ARLC and NZRL have requested that the competition be postponed until 2022 to minimise the risk of participating players contracting Covid-19.

International Rugby League chairman Troy Grant issued a statement later on Thursday.

“I appreciate Peter calling me to explain the rationale behind the ARLC’s decision and, whilst I can appreciate the ARLC’s intent to ensure player safety and welfare, I find it difficult to find the words that adequately describe my disappointment with that decision,” Grant said.

“Every sporting organisation, every industry, government and family globally have been impacted by this pandemic.

“I have been in regular communication with the RLPA and a number of international players and coaches who have been satisfied with the world cup’s biosecurity arrangements and expressed a clear determination to travel to England and proudly represent their nations. They have expressed to me that they feel their own personal choice to participate or not in the world cup has been taken from them.

“The obvious question being asked of us is why rugby league players are not able to make the same sacrifices as players from other sports? Sadly, players are telling me they haven’t had the opportunity to make that decision for themselves.”

There are 14 teams left in the competition after the announcement, including Ireland and host nation England.

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The tournament, hosted by England, is set to begin on Saturday, October 23rd when the hosts face Samoa.

Ireland was drawn into Group C with New Zealand, as well as Lebanon and Jamaica.

Australia and New Zealand have said that it is “simply too unsafe” to travel and have further cited player welfare and safety concerns as reasons.

Both teams were coming into the competition as the top two teams in the world and had automatically qualified after their performances in 2017 and were the two finalists that year.

As the cases continue to rise in England, the two nations have decided not to travel and have also repeated calls for the postponement of the competition until 2022.

The decision to withdraw from the RLW means the Australian Jillaroos and Kiwi Ferns will not participate in the women’s division.

A joint statement from the two nations said: “The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARLC) and New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) today informed the International Rugby League (IRL) and Rugby League World Cup (RLWC) organisers that Australia and New Zealand will not compete in a 2021 World Cup because of player welfare and safety concerns.

“The ARLC and NZRL have again requested the RLWC2021 be postponed until 2022 to minimise risk of players contracting COVID-19 and ensure the best outcome for player well-being.

“The ARLC and NZRL have resolved, that in the present environment the risks to athletes and officials travelling to the UK to participate in the tournament this year are too great, and it is unable to endorse Australia and New Zealand participating in the RLWC in 2021.”

NZRL chief executive Greg Peters cited “stark differences” between the management of the pandemic in the UK and Australasia and declared it was “simply too unsafe” for the Southern Hemisphere powerhouses to take part in the tournament.

He said: “The safety and well-being of our people is the main priority, and unfortunately, that cannot be guaranteed to our satisfaction.

“There are stark differences between how the pandemic is being managed in the UK compared to Australasia and recent developments have highlighted how quickly things can change.

“The tournament organisers have moved heaven and earth to make this work, so it is not an easy decision, but the Covid-19 situation in the UK shows no sign of improving, and it’s simply too unsafe to send teams and staff over.

“We understand how disappointing this is for fans and those involved; however player and staff safety remains paramount.”

ARLC chairman Peter V’landys AM reiterated his New Zealand counterpart’s concerns and issued a renewed appeal for the tournament to be rescheduled for next year.

“In the current environment, the risks to the safety, health and well-being of the players and officials travelling from Australia to participate in the tournament this year are insurmountable,” he said.

“The majority of NRL players are currently living away from home under difficult biosecurity protocols. They would then be required to remain under protocols and away from home for the duration of the tournament before again quarantining on return to Australia. This is too much to ask our players and officials to do.

“We have again requested the IRL and Rugby League World Cup consider postponing the event until 2022 to enable all players to participate.”

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The schedule for the 2021 Rugby Championship was recently unveiled with a full roster of teams, including South Africa. The bulk of the Rugby Championship matches will be played in Australia and New Zealand, with both countries hosting five matches each and South Africa two.

The All Blacks play the opening Bledisloe Cup Test before the start of the Rugby Championship, at Eden Park, Auckland, on Saturday 7 August.

The second Bledisloe Test is at Optus Stadium, Perth on Saturday 21 August. The third will be at Sky Stadium, Wellington on Saturday 28 August.

Busy September for the All Blacks

September will see four Tests in a row for the All Blacks, with back-to-back Tests against Argentina, at Eden Park on Saturday 11 September and Sky Stadium, Wellington on Saturday 18 September. The latter is a “home” game for the Pumas.

The first of the back-to-back Tests against South Africa at Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin on Saturday 25 September will be the 100th Test match between the two famous foes. The 100th year anniversary game between the sides will be played in the same city as that first ever Test. It was Played at Carisbrook on 13 August 1921 with the All Blacks winning 13-5.

The All Blacks’ final Rugby Championship Test against South Africa will be at Eden Park on Saturday 2 October. This is a “home game” for the Springboks.

The All Blacks will play three Tests in the earlier Steinlager Series, one against Tonga and two against Fiji. They will also play four Tests on their Northern Hemisphere Tour against Wales, Italy, Ireland and France later in the year. The All Blacks will play 14 Tests in total this year, their busiest year since 2017 when they played 14 Tests and two non-Test matches.

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The six-week tournament will feature 12 Tests on back-to-back weekends between the Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina.

Each round will be played as a doubleheader with the opening fixture at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium on Saturday, 7 November before five straight doubleheaders across Sydney and Newcastle.

ANZ Stadium and Bankwest Stadium will each host two rounds of The Rugby Championship while Newcastle’s McDonald Jones Stadium will be set for the clash between reigning Rugby World Cup winners, the Springboks, and the All Blacks on Saturday, 28 November.

Australia’s fixtures against New Zealand during The Rugby Championship will also double as matches for the Bledisloe Cup. Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium will host a Bledisloe Cup Test on Saturday, 7 November before Sydney’s ANZ Stadium hosts the final trans-Tasman clash on Saturday, 12 December.

November’s historic tournament will also be the first time that Tier One Rugby nations will have ever featured in a Test match doubleheader.

Kick-off times for the double-header matches will be announced in due course.

The Rugby Championship 2020 fixtures

Round One – Saturday 7 November 2020
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Argentina v South Africa
Australia v New Zealand

Round Two – Saturday 14 November
Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
New Zealand v Argentina
South Africa v Australia

Round Three – Saturday 21 November
ANZ Stadium, Sydney
New Zealand v South Africa
Australia v Argentina

Round Four – Saturday 28 November
McDonald Jones Stadium, Newcastle
Argentina v Australia
South Africa v New Zealand

Round Five – Saturday 5 December
Bankwest Stadium, Sydney
Argentina v New Zealand
Australia v South Africa

Round Six – Saturday 12 December
ANZ Stadium, Sydney
South Africa v Argentina
Australia v New Zealand

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Australia were due to host the West Indies in three warm up games in Queensland ahead of the start of T20 World Cup. However, due to a rise in virus cases worldwide and in Australia itself the International Cricket Council have decided to postpone the games. Cricket Australia released a statement confirming that the games will not be going ahead and that they will take place at a later date in 2021 or 2022.

The statement read, “In light of this development, and given the preference to host the warm-up three-match T20 series against the West Indies to coincide with the rescheduled T20 World Cup in Australia (which will take place in either 2021 or 2022), it has been agreed to postpone the matches,”.

It’s not the first time that Australian cricket matches have been postponed with a two test series with Bangladesh in June which was part of the ICC World Test Championship. The Aussies though are currently working on rescheduling a delayed tour to England for limited over matches in September.

The cancellation of the West Indies games has now meant several other events have been pushed back or pushed forward. The Australians are still scheduled to face India in a T20 series from 11 to 17 October, but that series will also have to be shifted given it now falls in the middle of the IPL. The Indian Premier League will run from 19 September to 10 November this year, in the United Arab Emirates.

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The bid seen off competition from Columbia. However, earlier in the bidding, Brazil and Japan dropped out. In the evaluation report New Zealand’s and Australia’s bid received the best score of 4.1, while Columbia’s only received a score of 2.8. The report published by FIFA also stated that the bid was the most favourable coming from a commercial perspective.

BBC Sport report it will be the first time a women’s tournament will see 32 teams, instead of the current 24 teams. Gianni Infantino, the President of FIFA said, “The bidding process was highly competitive. We would like to thank both of the bidders for their remarkable work. It was really, really well prepared”. BBC state that 22 of the 35 votes which were cast went in favour of New Zealand and Australia, while the remainder went the way of Columbia.

Infantino as well as announcing the winning bid, announced a funding boost for women’s football. He said, “We have decided to award $1bn (£805m) to the development of women’s football in the coming four years,”. He continued, “We experienced last year in France a fantastic Women’s World Cup. It broke all records. It brought women’s football to a truly global stage.”

The president of the football federation of Australia said the competition will be “ground breaking”. He said, “Not only will it be the first ever co-confederation hosted Fifa World Cup and the first ever Fifa Women’s World Cup in the Asia-Pacific region, but we will unlock the huge potential for growth in women’s football in the Asia-Pacific region.” New Zealand Football President Johanna Wood said “We believe we have been given a treasure, and we will look after that treasure.

There are 13 proposed stadiums where the two countries intend to host the games. This includes eight in Australia and five in New Zealand. BBC Sport that these stadiums are:

Australia

• Stadium Australia, Sydney (the final), capacity: 70,000
• Sydney Football Stadium, capacity: 42,512
• Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, capacity: 30,052
• Brisbane Stadium, capacity: 52,263
• Perth Rectangular Stadium, capacity: 22,225
• Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide, capacity: 18,435
• Newcastle Stadium, capacity: 25,945
• York Park, Launceston, Tasmania, capacity: 22,065

New Zealand

• Eden Park, Auckland (opening game), capacity: 48,276
• Wellington Stadium, capacity: 39,000
• Christchurch Stadium, capacity: 22,556
• Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, capacity: 25,111
• Dunedin Stadium, capacity: 28,744

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