There was a bit of bad blood in the aftermath of the Republic of Ireland's 2-1 World Cup qualifier defeat to the Netherlands on Saturday night, with head coach Carla Ward irked by "disrespectful" behaviour from the hosts.
Straight after the match, the Dutch entered party mode as they honoured 16 former internationals on the Stadion Galgenwaard pitch. It's understood Ireland were irritated by that pre-planned decision, which could be interpreted as a belief that a home win was highly likely.
The Dutch FA refuted suggestions that they reneged on an agreement by both federations not to water the pitch, saying in a statement that the pitch watering plan was "agreed upon with the UEFA delegate and away team representative present at (a matchday) meeting".
Oranje Leeuwinnen boss Arjan Veurink did not shake Ward's hand at the full-time whistle but played it down, saying: "As you've seen there were a lot of former international players on the pitch. So I spoke with Carla for I think 20 minutes before the game. I shook her hand before the game so absolutely nothing happened."
"The players have been excellent, messages have been good, staff have been brilliant."
Ward was not as sanguine. "I thought a few things were disrespectful in the last couple of days, but we'll go about our business," she said when asked about the post-game presentation.
She also referenced the Netherlands' employment of "the dark arts" in the dying embers of a cagey contest.
There was one good news story, however: Denise O'Sullivan's knee injury, sustained during last Tuesday's loss to France, is not thought to be serious.
The Cork midfielder returned to Liverpool for an assessment on Friday, then came straight out to Utrecht to support her teammates.
"She'll be back for Poland," Ward said. "It is positive news."
That is obviously a big relief. Ward had previously said O'Sullivan had a medial ligament issue, which can require up to eight weeks' recovery. Ireland travel to Poland in just over five weeks, welcoming them to Aviva Stadium four days later.
It will be a crunch period. Ward has identified those games as the best opportunity for Ireland to get points on the board in their quest to finish third in the group, which would offer a kinder route through the play-offs in the autumn time.
Poland were beaten 4-1 by the French on Saturday but had Nadia Krezyman sent off on the stroke of half-time. They showed in their 2-2 draw against the Dutch that they'll be a tough nut to crack: physical, organised and spearheaded by the attacking class of Barcelona star Ewa Pajor.
As for Ireland, Ward was heartened by another gritty showing.
"We tweaked a couple of things at half-time and I thought we were excellent," she added. "Look, the last 15 minutes, you've a top 10 team in the world trying to slow the game with the dark arts.
"I actually thought we were the better team in the second half."
The decision to start Lucy Quinn in O'Sullivan's absence raised eyebrows. The 32-year-old had a challenging night in the engine room with Ireland starved of possession for long spells. Tyler Toland, Ruesha Littlejohn and Jessie Stapleton didn't get on the field at all, but Ward stood by the call.
"Lucy started all but one of the Nations League games, actually. Tremendous off the ball, disciplined, experienced, good player, plays in the middle at times for Birmingham. So it was a natural placement.
"(Toland and Littlejohn) are both probably in that central role with Meg (Connolly). I think the other two, it's a slightly different role. But, listen, Ruesha is important because she's a very experienced player. She understands the game. Naturally, she's had fewer minutes. But is she still really important for this country? Absolutely."
Ireland have acquitted themselves well over the last week, though the age profile and depth of the squad is a red flag. There's a desperate need for an Under-23s team to improve player pathways, and a lack of FAI funds to make it happen.
They are bigger issues largely beyond Ward's control. She's understandably in 'win now' mode, desperate to get this side to another World Cup.
"This has been probably the most powerful window," she went on. "The players have been excellent, messages have been good, staff have been brilliant.
"I've never, ever witnessed a camp like it, where there's a togetherness, a work rate, an intensity, a mindset. Let me be clear, this is one of the most powerful windows we've had.
"You might look at it and say, 'well, they've got zero points'. Anybody that's watched those two games will see a very, very clear improvement in everything that we do. The players can see it, they can feel it. We can feel it, we can see it. We know we're on a journey."
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