Euro 2022: Northern Ireland and the million-dollar question
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Caragh Hamilton was a BBC Sport pundit for Northern Ireland's three Euro 2022 matches
Northern Ireland winger Caragh Hamilton missed the Euro 2022 finals through injury after helping Kenny Shiels' side to their maiden major tournament. The 25-year-old has scored five goals in 27 games and made history as a 15-year-old by becoming the youngest player to win a senior cap for her country.
So after all the hype and build-up Northern Ireland's Euro 2022 journey is over, yet I couldn't feel more proud.
The scenes at full-time against England were truly special and something everyone will remember for the rest of their lives. I was on air at the time so couldn't really take it all in, and I have to admit I'm slightly jealous.
A lot of teams and countries say they have the best fans in the world, but there's no doubt the Green and White Army are number one. Just like at Euro 2016 they have become the talk of the tournament, and the remainder of this summer will certainly be a less colourful place without them around.
You can just see how much the fans mean to the players, and that is something that is reciprocated. Obviously there was disappointment at conceding five goals and going out at the first stage, despite nobody giving us a chance, but the Green and White Army made them feel like heroes, and rightly so.
That reaction from the fans will help the players take a step back and realise what they have achieved. They are heroes no matter what. They have brought a country together and united a nation.
Yes, we are going home in the group stages, but our tournament has to be considered a success.
I often got the feeling that people thought we didn't deserve to be there because we were the lowest-ranked team, and would be the whipping team in the tournament.
We earned the right to be there. We beat teams ranked much higher than us to qualify and we didn't let ourselves down on the big stage.
In 2017 Norway went out without winning a game or scoring a goal, so we've already beaten that and it's no mean feat to score a goal at a major tournament. There have been some heavy scorelines at the Euros and we've more than held our own by comparison, and that highlights how good a job we have done.
We played some of our best football against England and, although we lost 5-0, it shows the level that we are trying to reach. Hopefully that gives the players the motivation to push on collectively and individually.
Euro 2022: England reach quarter finals after beating Northern Ireland 5-0
The million-dollar question
Now the challenge is set to begin. How can these moments be replicated going forward? It's the million-dollar question.
There is so much that needs to be done and it is hard to pinpoint one particular thing.
The squad are going back to their days jobs and you can't help but feel there is set to be a changing of the guard.
Ashley Hutton has already announced her retirement, and deserved that moment in the spotlight after playing such a crucial role in our journey. It's fitting that she has decided to go out on the biggest stage.
Now we have reached this level, it needs to be normalised that all Northern Ireland women's games get the platform they deserve.
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It's clear that investment needs to continue to keep momentum going and there needs to be more promotion of our league in Northern Ireland to build from the ground up, not the other way around.
We need to drive the momentum from the Euros into our clubs and build a platform for success in the future. That's evident in England, Germany and Austria where the club structures feed into the international set-up. It won't be easy but we need a long-term plan in place for future success.
I've absolutely loved my time at the Euros and, although it was gutting not to make it on to the pitch, I'm delighted to have been able to represent Northern Ireland in a different way.
I wanted to showcase the talent that we have and do what I can to elevate the players' status. I hope I've done a good job of showing how far we have come, where we are now and where will be after this tournament. Hopefully there are more memorable nights ahead.
Caragh Hamilton was talking to BBC Sport's Andy Gray.