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DKLIKNEWS – The Canadians and Irish will look to earn their first victories of the 2023 Women’s World Cup when they face off in Perth on Wednesday.

Canada picked up a point in its opening match against Nigeria, while the Republic of Ireland was narrowly beaten by tournament hosts Australia.

Match Preview

Canada’s World Cup campaign got off to a frustrating start after being held to a draw by Nigeria, who had their goalkeeper to thank for saving Christine Sinclair’s penalty.

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Bev Priestman might be concerned that her side are now winless in three games and have won just one of their last six.

After failing to score against Nigeria and in their round of 16 defeat to Sweden in 2019, they now face going three World Cup matches without a goal for the first time in their history.

However, the Canucks know that a victory on Wednesday will allow them to qualify for their third consecutive round of 16 at the World Cup.

With Canada ranked seventh in the world and 15 places above Ireland, they will enter day two as favorites.

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Ireland, on the other hand, put in a consistent performance in their loss to Australia to show that they are not in the tournament just to win points.

Steph Catley’s second-half penalty was the difference in Thursday’s encounter, leaving Ireland as the only team without a point in Group B.

While there are plenty of positives to take from their fighting performance, Ireland will be knocked out of their first Women’s World Cup if they lose to Canada on Wednesday.

After winning only one of their last six matches (D1, L4), the Girls and the Greens will know that they have their work cut out against Canada.