Heather Payne set for WSL switch following World Cup
In keeping with custom Down Under, Heather Payne encountered a kangaroo this week but she’ll be hopping from American to the English Super League after the World Cup.
A brief spell at Bristol City in her teens was a precursor to moving Stateside for a scholarship with Florida State University but her displays, particularly for Ireland, earned her admirers closer to home.
England has become a magnet for the finest global talent – the league providing the largest volume of players at the World Cup – and another in Payne is on her way for next season.
“It probably will be England,” was as much of a clue the Roscommon native would divulge of her next club move, conscious of not straying from the matter at hand of tournament co-hosts Australia on Thursday.
“I was talking to a few people before this camp but no decision has been made yet. I’ll worry about that when I get back.”
Precisely which date her international odyssey ends may well be influenced by her ability to shackle the wingers of the Matildas, Canada and Nigeria in the group phase.
Payne started the qualifiers as sole striker, her harrying and endurance in running channels pivotal to facilitating teammates joining the attack.
Vera Pauw adopted a different approach after qualification was sealed at Hampden Park last October, planting Kyra Carusa as the hold-up forward while reassigning Payne to the wing-back role her pace suits.
She watched back the Aussie destruction of France from Friday night, noting their penchant for targeting the flanks for joy in the final third. Cortnee Vine will likely be the flanker she’ll have to shadow, though equally explosive alternatives are available to Tony Gustavsson.
A difficult challenge for any defender, compounded by
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