FAI yet to begin talks over new Pauw deal
TALKS have yet to begin between the FAI and Ireland women’s manager Vera Pauw over a new contract, despite the current arrangement only running until the end of the World Cup qualifying campaign.
The Ireland boss, who wants to remain at the helm, insists that contract talks haven’t entered her head as her complete focus is on the upcoming qualifiers against Finland and Slovakia.
If Ireland beat the Finns at a sold-out Tallaght Stadium on Thursday, they will guarantee a play-off spot.
‘It is just not in our thoughts,’ Pauw said. ‘We have Finland to go,
Slovakia to go, hopefully a play-off and hopefully go to the world cup. To me, we are in the middle of a qualification campaign.
‘If we win the next game, we have the game against Slovakia. So I am not thinking of this.’
In the past, the FAI have liked to nail down contract negotiations before the conclusion of a campaign. Should Ireland beat Finland on Thursday and confirm a play-off place, clamour will grow to ensure that they are able to retain the services of the Dutchwoman, irrespective of whether the team reach the World Cup.
VERA Pauw smiled when the issue of her contract was raised on Friday morning. She has been around the game long enough to know that the question was coming. She probably feels that these things have a tendency to sort themselves out even though, sometimes, they don’t.
It is hardly surprising that Pauw suggested a new contract hasn’t been in her thoughts. As far as she is concerned, her team are still in a qualifying campaign.
There are still two group games left, the prospect of a couple of play-off ties, even the possibility of another qualifying tournament in New Zealand.
Her focus is firmly on Finland. Contract talks can wait. But it still beggars belief that nobody in the FAI has broached the subject.
Ireland’s recent results in Helsinki and Gothenburg haven’t gone unnoticed around the world.
If another smaller nation has similar ambitions of making strides, they may have pinpointed Pauw to lead their project.
Pauw insists she wants to stay in the Ireland hotseat. And it is not difficult to see why, given the way that this group has grown over the past two years. While they can boast world-class talent such as Katie McCabe and Denise O’Sullivan, the most impressive aspect of the team that Pauw has built is the sense of togetherness and resilience.
The manager calls the players ‘her tigers’ because they never give up. Significantly, the squad feels like a family.
In Helsinki and Gothenburg, players on the bench celebrated the result the most, a clear sign that everyone is pulling together.
Pauw has engendered that spirit. The FAI should be doing everything it can right now to ensure she continues her good work, irrespective of whether this team reach their first major tournament or not.