A record high for the Women’s National Team of 593,000 people were tuned into the closing stages of Tuesday night’s game between the Republic of Ireland and Scotland.
They joined as Amber Barrett scored the goal and in increasing numbers, as the team defended that lead to secure a place at next year’s World Cup Finals in Australia and New Zealand.
The average audience throughout the game shown live on RTÉ2 was 354,000 representing a 30 per cent share of the primetime TV audience.
Another 40,000 watched live on the RTÉ Player.
While the number is still only half of what it would have been for the Men’s team in similar circumstances, that is really at this stage on the sporting public, many of whom will regret not being part of the experience and will be there the next time around.
The game was also a winner for the Irish TV production company Nemeton who managed the broadcast for host broadcaster BBC Alba, and the international feed that went out across the world.
Vera Pauw, Áine O’Gorman and Chloe Mustaki faced the media yesterday morning, fresh off a night of celebration but still buzzing on what they had achieved.
“We believed we could do it before, but it’s still hard to believe we are going to a World Cup,” said O’Gorman with a smile that could solve the energy crisis if it could be bottled.
The first item on the agenda for Pauw was to apologise sincerely for the lapse of judgement on behalf of the group for singing a song that was
filmed and shared from within the dressing room.
It was silly but without malice and was part of a medley of songs that included Taylor Swift and pretty much every other song that would be sung as part of a raucous night out.
Most of these players weren’t born when the troubles were raging and the indignation on the part of some is not so far in evidence against the Rangers fans who sang anti-Irish songs at Ibrox last night.
Nonetheless, it was a lapse and one that Pauw and the players stood up to, saying the lesson was learned and that it was completely at odds with what Pauw described as “the first sentence of our being together, to respect everyone.
She did not deflect, she did not excuse, she did the right thing in the circumstances she found herself.
She then spoke with deep intelligence and understanding about the task ahead, the preparation of the players, the tactics and the style they play and who she would like to play in warm up games ahead of July and August 2023.
We will have that interview in full here on Sport for Business tomorrow morning. As a fan, a coach or a student of management it will be worth a read.
