International return a 'total dream' for Russell

Julie-Ann Russell made her international comeback this year after giving birth in 2023

When watching Republic of Ireland at the World Cup in the summer of 2023, Julie-Ann Russell assumed her days as an international footballer were over.

Emigration to Australia meant the last of her 60 caps had been against Kazakhstan in 2020 and, upon returning home to Galway, her and her husband Kieran had their first child, Rosie.

Then, she never would have dreamed that she would be back in green and back among the goals as Eileen Gleeson's side moved one step from the European Championships.

"Watching the girls at the World Cup, Rosie was about two weeks old," Russell remembered after helping her side past Georgia and into a final play-off with Wales for a spot in Switzerland next summer.

"I was so proud of them. Watching them, I thought I'd never be back in there and then a year later, there I was playing against England and France."

Despite running the New York marathon just five months after giving birth - in a sub-four hour time, too - the forward was not sure she would return to football in any capacity, never mind at the international level.

But after deciding on a comeback with Galway United, she says "the rest is history".

"I wasn't sure if I was going to come back to football after Rosie.

"I felt good, my body felt strong, so I said I would give it another whack with Galway United. The rest is history.

"It's so special to be back playing for my country and to have Rosie part of it, as well as my husband Kieran. It's a total dream."

Manager Eileen Gleeson says baby Rosie has "26 aunties" among Russell's team-mates

Russell's return was prompted by a phone call from manager Gleeson with the pair's association going back to their time at Peamount United.

"Julie-Ann is brilliant. You see that energy on the pitch but she's the same in everything she does," she said.

"She's committed, she's diligent, she's great round the camp, she's great on the team. We're very lucky to have her."

And, of course, baby Rosie too.

"Rosie is the most important member of the squad," Gleeson laughed.

"They come as a package. She's got 26 aunties now, so she's one lucky baby."

While that "package" of Russell and her daughter in team camps is a first for the Republic of Ireland, Gleeson believes it is important for the game as a whole that such accommodations become the norm.

"It's the women's game and motherhood is part of being a woman.

"We want players to stay in the game and you have to create environments to facilitate that.

"Julie-Ann is back playing, she's super fit, so it's for us to integrate Rosie in and make sure that Julie-Ann can keep playing and, across the broader women's game, that women can keep playing and that motherhood isn't a barrier."