I want to speak today about football. We have an Irish team preparing for possibly one of the biggest nights in Irish football and possibly one of the biggest nights in global football. We have a potential shock on the cards - perhaps "shock" should be in inverted commas - for the Irish women's team in France tonight. It is an enormous game. It is at 7.30 p.m. I want everyone to watch the football at 7.30 p.m. Those women have put their lives into this campaign, this game and this sport. We are not talking about or watching them enough. We are not putting them up on a pedestal. It is important that we do so this week.

I was disappointed that the FAI released a statement yesterday, stating that it will not talk any more about this other football matter until the match tonight is over. All it has done is to increase the number of conversations that are happening outside the sport and the women's match taking place tonight. No Irish team, men's or women's, has ever qualified for a World Cup through the direct route. That is what is at stake tonight for Carla Ward's team. I send my best wishes and good luck. I have pride in the Irish women's national team. I hope, and know they will, continue to do us proud. I hope they know that we will all be behind them at 7.30 p.m.