Republic of Ireland captain Katie McCabe has urged the squad to harness the spirit of the underdog ahead of Thursday’s World Cup opener against Australia. The World Cup debutants begin their Group B campaign against the co-hosts, who are 12 places above them in the FIFA rankings and will be backed by the majority of the 80,000 crowd at Sydney’s Stadium. It will be only the second match between the nations but Ireland won 3-2 when they met back in 2021, thanks to a goal from Denise O’Sullivan, who has been declared fit for the fixture. McCabe, who overcome her own injury scare a fortnight ago, said: “Yeah, it is something as a small nation, you kind of carry that (underdog) title I guess. “We know we are debutants in the tournament, but we know what we want to do. We don’t want to just be happy to be here. “We want to compete and give Australia, Canada and Nigeria the hardest games possible. That will start tomorrow night and it is exciting. “We know what Australia have, they have quality all over the park but we also know what we can do.” We're Irish, we don't shy away from physicality. It is ingrained in us Ireland captain Katie McCabe Head coach Vera Pauw referenced their slogan ‘outbelieve’ when looking ahead to playing Australia and insisted they would not buckle under pressure after coming through stern examinations with Sweden, Finland and Scotland to qualify for a first-ever major tournament. “That word will end up in the dictionary because we outbelieve we can do something special here,” Pauw reiterated. “That is how we ended up here because we outbelieve and we did something that nobody expected, but we are realistic. “We are very realistic, otherwise you cannot succeed, but the key thing everybody will feel is we have no fear of failure. “We are a team who so far we did not collapse on the higher pressure, whether it was away in a record crowd with Sweden, away with a record crowd in Finland or at Hampden Park and in our stadium with record crowds.” The Girls in Green only arrived in Sydney this week, but were greeted by floods of Irish fans, with a large community based Down Under. Arsenal midfielder McCabe added: “It’s crazy to think we’re actually here. We landed only a short while ago in Sydney airport, greeted by a number of Irish fans, so it was really nice to see them there. “They are our home away from home, I guess and to see the numbers who have travelled, the pictures online of people here in Sydney, is really special. “I think the whole team feel that. Not just players but staff as well, the support we have from here and back home as well. No doubt we want to do the nation proud tomorrow night.” Pauw revealed: “We knew there would be fans, but again it is so heart-warming every time the way the Irish are reacting on us. It is not just being there, it is way they are there.” Meanwhile, Ireland have firmly put their friendly fiasco with Colombia behind them after 101-capped O’Sullivan was confirmed to be fit enough to face Australia. North Carolina Courage captain O’Sullivan suffered a soft tissue and bone bruise injury during a warm-up match on Friday with the South Americans that was aborted after only 20 minutes due to it being an “overly physical” contest. But Pauw confirmed: “Denise is fit, she will play.” McCabe concluded: “For us now it is full focus on Australia. We knew Colombia would be physical but it will be the case in every single game. “We’re Irish, we don’t shy away from physicality. It is ingrained in us.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live The numbers behind Australia’s decade of dominance as England draw Ashes Amber Barrett hoping Republic can follow example of Morocco’s men at World Cup Football rumours: Leicester’s Harvey Barnes closing in on Newcastle move

Diego Rossi scored his first goal for the Crew in their victory over Toronto.

Slaton family jetted off to Florida to film TLC show '1000-lb Sisters' Season 5

Russia’s Gazprom PJSC said its natural gas deliveries to China have hit a new historic high amid rising

DC United goalkeeper Tyler Miller will miss the rest of the 2023 season.

By Brendan O'Brien CHICAGO A funeral service and burial will be held for a six-year-old Muslim boy on

Bitcoin’s price has crashed dramatically, amid what seems to be a broader worry in the financial markets. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has fallen more than 7 per cent over the last 24 hours, and almost 12 per cent in the last week. Other large digital currencies saw similar falls, though not as stark. Ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency by market cap, has lost around 10 per cent of its value in the last week. The troubles mean that the crypto market as a whole is down 5.7 per cent over the last 24 hours, according to tracking website Coinmarketcap. Trading volumes increased sharply, too, and were up almost 80 per cent over the last 24 hours. Thursday’s drop in the price of the cryptocurrency was the biggest one day fall since November 2022. That happened when large exchange FTX collapsed, sending shockwaves through the crypto markets and leading to widespread fears. This time around, there was no obvious connection to events in the cryptocurrency market. Instead, investors seemed concern about the economy more generally, and more traditional assets were also hit by falls in recent days. Wall Street’s main indexes fell on Friday, extending declines to the fourth session on a drag from megacap growth stocks, as evidence of a resilient U.S. economy fanned fears of interest rates staying higher for longer. The three main US stock indexes are on track for sharp weekly losses as a spate of strong economic data, including a fall in weekly jobless claims, caused investors to dial back expectations of rate cuts and drove up government bond yields. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note hit a ten-month high of 4.328 per cent in the previous session and came within a whisker of its highest level since 2007. “The drivers really have been of late the rising Treasury yields and that is signaling a more risk-off investor sentiment,” said Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B Riley Wealth. “Investors are looking at (better-than-expected economic data) and saying the Fed likely isn’t restrictive enough yet.” Traders see a nearly 91% chance of the Fed holding rates at current levels at its September meeting, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool. On Friday, rate-sensitive big technology and growth stocks such as Apple, Microsoft, Tesla and Nvidia slipped between 0.7% and 2.8% even as Treasury yields took a breather. The communication services and technology sectors housing major growth stocks fell 1.6% and 1.0% respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq hit an over two-month low and is set to post the biggest weekly declines of the three major indices, down 3 per cent so far. The CBOE volatility index hit its highest in nearly three months, reflecting rising investor anxiety. Additional reporting by Reuters Read More How bad is bitcoin for the environment really? Crypto experts discuss bitcoin price predictions What is Solana? The crypto rising 200-times faster than bitcoin Bitcoin’s price is crashing dramatically PayPal launches dollar-backed cryptocurrency World’s first ‘superfast’ battery offers 400km range from 10 mins charge

By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -A "robust use of force" by a multinational police deployment and use of military

Senator Tim Scott used a Fox News town hall on Tuesday night to elevate his candidacy for the

The Danish defense is abolishing the height requirement for people serving with the Danish Royal Life Guards, chiefly known for being a ceremonial unit outside Denmark’s royal palaces

By Brigid Riley TOKYO The U.S. dollar ticked down to a three-month low against peer currencies on Tuesday

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 30, 2023--