Amber Barrett came off the bench to spark a second-half Republic of Ireland fightback as they beat an impressive Zambia 3-2 in their World Cup warm-up friendly at Tallaght Stadium on Thursday night.
Zambia took the lead in the 16th minute after Barbra Banda’s cross led to a Courtney Brosnan own goal in the 17th minute. After the half-time break, Ireland made five changes and they looked more aggressive. Barrett equalised from the penalty spot in the 47th minute, Claire O’Riordan expertly headed Ireland in front 16 minutes later and Barrett struck again with 69 minutes on the clock.
The African side got one back with 11 minutes left through Rachael Kundananji, but Ireland held on to win.
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Ireland will be making their debut at the World Cup and are in Group B with co-host Australia, Canada, and Super Falcons of Nigeria in this year’s edition. Meanwhile, in qualifying for the World Cup, Zambia became the first-ever team from a landlocked African nation to reach a men’s or women’s global finals.
This historic achievement comes just a year after they finished third at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, where they narrowly lost out to eventual winners South Africa. Bruce Mwape’s team will open their Group C campaign against former winners Japan before facing Spain and Costa Rica.