Ireland will believe they can reach the semi-finals at next month's European Hockey Championships, according to former player Gill Pinder.
Sean Dancer named his 18-woman squad for the tournament this afternoon. It mixes experience - Anna O'Flanagan and Chloe Watkins have over 200 caps each - and youth, with UCD's Michelle Carey yet to play for her country.
Ireland will compete in Group A alongside the highest (The Netherlands) and lowest seeds (Scotland) heading to play in the tournament at Wagener Stadium.
Michelle Carey is looking forward to her first senior tournament as @IreWomenHockey gear up for the European Championship @irishhockey #roadtotokyo #rtesport pic.twitter.com/NVzIJB6TAZ
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) May 20, 2021
The Green Machine have never reached the last four of the Euros before, but with qualification for next year's World Cup also up for grabs the prize on offer is big.
The Netherlands and Spain, as hosts, don't need to qualify for the World Cup, but there are places on offer next month for the three best-placed teams who haven't already qualified.
Ireland will play the Dutch in the opening game of the European Championships in a first meeting between the pair since the final of the 2018 World Cup.
There was disappointment for the squad that day when they lost 6-0, and Pinder tells RTÉ's Game On that the match on 5 June will be another massive test.
"They're the number one team in the world," she said.
"They've been consistently winning medals at the top level over a long period of time. It's going to be very difficult to get a result.
"But it might not be about getting three points, or even one point. It's about setting the tone for some good performances and if they're happy with how they've played against Holland - regardless of the result - it sets them up nicely to take on Scotland.
"They'll be expected to win that, and hopefully by a couple of goals. And then they'll play Spain to decide which of those two teams will go through to the semi-final, and which will be playing in a relegation pool at the end of the tournament.
"Europeans is probably the most difficult continental games out there. The medal winners at the last World Cup and the last Olympic Games all came from Europe.
"It's really difficult to even remain in the top tier let alone finishing in the top four and fighting for medals.
"The team now, having had a little bit of success in the last while, they're really looking to push on and not just remain in the top tier anymore.
"They want to finish in a semi-final spot and be fighting for a medal when the last game of the tournament comes around."
