Claire O'Riordan will return to her home town of Newcastle West, Co Limerick this weekend to switch off from all World Cup selection talk after staking her claim for inclusion with an all-action display against Zambia on Thursday night.
O'Riordan enjoyed a strong end to the club season with Celtic, starring in their Scottish Cup final win against Rangers.
She was handed a start against the Zambians and seized her opportunity, defending impressively throughout and popping up with a great header in Ireland's 3-2 victory.
And now, she plays the waiting game.
Pauw will reveal her 23-player squad [plus three back-up players] for the tournament next Thursday.
O'Riordan, like everyone else in the camp, is desperate to make the plane, but it's beyond her control now with Pauw and her back-rooom team burning the midnight oil as they settle on a final selection.
"I can't tell you what I'm going to be thinking over the next couple of days but I do know I'm going to be going home with my family now, back to Limerick and Newcastle West, and I'm going to spend some time with them as I haven't seen them in quite a while," said O'Riordan.
"I'm going to enjoy the time with them and my feet are firmly on the ground. Whatever comes in the next few days I'm prepared for.
"It is all about waiting and seeing what will happen. We have been here for the last couple of weeks training and putting in the work to get ourselves ready. I'm grateful that I was part of the starting XI and I saw out the game, even if I had a few cramps."
Claire O'Riordan scored her first international goal for Ireland in a 3-2 victory over Tallaght Stadium and she hopes that her display is enough to earn her a place in Vera Pauw's World Cup squad. #RTEsoccer pic.twitter.com/BYAyeWV3cI
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) June 22, 2023
Her first international goal was one to savour - a flying header to put Ireland 2-1 up on an night where they found the going tough against physical, quick opposition.
"Peach of a ball in from Megan [Connolly] and thankfully it landed on the top of my head and went into the goal," O'Riordan humbly surmised.
"For me the most important thing was to focus on my tasks in each and every single situation and try and do the best I can, implementing the game plan that we had. We stuck together as a group and I'm thankful we were able to secure a win in the end and everyone was happy."
At half-time Pauw explicitly told O'Riordan to express herself more, espousing one of her favoured mantras, "if you have a fear of failure, you will never succeed".
The 28-year-old took that advice on board, adding: "Vera is the one who helped set me up for this game. I'm thankful to the staff that are around me to give me that boost and confidence.
"Everyone loves playing football games and that is why we are here because we love the game and it is our passion.
"We enjoy the preparations as we are building team moral and building as a group. We worked towards this game and I'm thankful we got the result."
"There is always an open line of communication there. I'm getting little tips and info so that I can add to my game. Even at half-time, you can never stop learning. They gave me some info that I was able to bring into the second half."
