After turning the final page on the calendar, most people are now looking ahead to see what 2025 holds in store.
But rather than thinking about 2025, Tanya Oxtoby is approaching Northern Ireland’s final game of 2024 with her mind cast much further into the future.
Deep down at least, Oxtoby knows that she won’t be leading her team into the Women’s Euro 2025 Finals. Turning around a 4-0 deficit after Friday night’s defeat to Norway at Inver Park all but killed off the Play-Off tie.
There is, therefore, little importance on the result of Tuesday’s return leg in Oslo’s Ullevaal Stadium. For Oxtoby, though, it is about so much more than that.
Northern Ireland Women’s boss Tanya Oxtoby leads training ahead of her side’s clash with Norway
The bigger picture is not what happens now or in 2025. Oxtoby will use the final 90 minutes of 2024 as an indicator of what needs to be done through 2025 in order to be ready for the World Cup qualifying series to take place throughout 2026.
Oxtoby made no bones about her target when she became Northern Ireland manager in September 2023 – making it to a major tournament is still the goal, and facing a team of Norway’s immense quality gives a perfect insight as to what that involves.
It won’t be a gung-ho approach – it can’t be because Norway are too good to allow that to happen – but Oxtoby is determined to be positive.
Norway’s strength is reflected by the fact that Sweden are the only team ranked higher than them who haven’t yet secured qualification for the Euros.
“We want to be brave and we want to be front-footed,” said Oxtoby.
“Part of that is going to be challenging against a world-class team so, firstly, a 90-minute performance, our ability to manage the game with and without the ball – I’ve said that in every game.
“We have to be comfortable to manage the game when we don’t have it, and we need to be a little bit calmer when we win it back, especially against a really good side who can counter-press.
“There’s that element, but I just want to continue the growth with this group.
“They are a young group, they’ve taken a lot of learnings from the first game, and we get to come here and challenge ourselves again against a world-class team and, for us, at the end of 90 minutes, to see where we’re at and see the areas where we need to develop on, that for me is a win.”
Northern Ireland Women’s boss Tanya Oxtoby wants a front-footed display against Norway
Winning the actual game, a huge task for Northern Ireland anyway, isn’t the be-all and end-all on this occasion. How they can impact in an attacking sense against the 16th-ranked team in the world will be more of a measure than the scoreline.
Repeating the second-half performance from Friday night – when Northern Ireland posed much more of a threat than in the first 45 minutes and restricted Norway to just one scruffy goal – and even improving on that is the challenge that Oxtoby has set for her players.
To that end, she is also expected to field the team that started that second-half, with Chloe McCarron coming into the line-up in place of Danielle Maxwell.
“The first thing I said to them after the game was that I was proud of them,” said Oxtoby.
“I want them to know that because it is important that where we started to where we are now, how much growth this group has had both on and off the pitch is massive, and I think when you are in it, you can really appreciate that.
“For them to come out in the second-half and really challenge themselves and be brave the way they did on Friday night is a credit to them.
“I just want them to go out and enjoy it, challenge themselves, stretch themselves.
“We will be in a really good position to see where we’re at in terms of wanting to qualify for major tournaments because this Norway side is world-class, so we need to be brave and challenge ourselves and see where we’re at.”
Danielle Maxwell in action during Tuesday night’s Northern Ireland training session in Norway
There will be a competitive edge for Norway’s main players, despite them being virtually assured of qualification.
Caroline Graham Hansen took her international tally to 49 goals with her brace at Inver Park on Friday night, which also moved her level with Ada Hergerberg, and the race is on between them to reach the half-century mark.