World Cup draw 'not the worst' - Ward

Ward guided Republic of Ireland into Nations League A with a play-off victory over Belgium last month

Republic of Ireland manager Carla Ward said her side's draw for the 2027 World Cup qualifiers is "not the worst".

Ward's team were drawn into Group A2 alongside France, the Netherlands and Poland, who all appeared in this summer's European Championships.

Although the Republic of Ireland failed to qualify for the tournament in Switzerland, they met the French in qualifying, securing a 3-1 win in Cork after 1-0 away defeat.

Ward's side are guaranteed a play-off for the 2027 World Cup thanks to their two-leg play-off victory over Belgium which saw them promoted to Nations League A, but she feels "second or third place has to be the aim".

"Any group we got was going to be tough but if you look at teams, we can try to do something and look at our route to the World Cup, it's not the worst draw," Ward said at an online news conference.

"I think this is definitely a better draw than England and Spain (in Group A3).

"Second or third has got to be the aim. Let's be realistic, the aim is third minimum and that's what we want to try to achieve, so we will look at it historically and how many points it takes to achieve that, so we have that target to go after.

"We know that's going to be tough, but this group continues to surprise me and against all those nations, we'll want to get something."

'Hard work must continue following promotion'

The four Group A winners will qualify for the World Cup automatically with the remainder going into the play-offs which are contested over two rounds with two pathways.

Should Republic of Ireland finish second or third in the group, they will face League C opposition in their first play-off, but fourth in the group will see them face either a second or third-place team from League B.

In all, a further seven will qualify through this path, with one more possible through Fifa's intercontinental play-offs.

There are six matchdays with the teams playing each other home and away, beginning on 3 March and ending on 9 June.

"When I came in, I said it was a transition moment, but the goal ultimately is the World Cup," Ward added.

"We've put ourselves in a better position by being in League A, but the hard work has to continue to earn the right to play against these teams."