Lineth Beerensteyn brace sinks gutsy Republic of Ireland in Utrecht

There was more pain for a typically gritty Republic of Ireland on Saturday night as they fell to a 2-1 World Cup qualifier defeat in the Netherlands. Katie McCabe's penalty five minutes into the second period looked like it might nick the Girls in Green a precious point at Stadion Galgenwaard in Utrecht after Lineth Beerensteyn put the Dutch ahead in the first half. But Beerensteyn forced home a winner eight minutes from time to inflict Ireland to a second loss in four days after the French took the points from Tallaght on Tuesday. It’s tough at the top. Two commendable performance, zero points, plenty of harsh lessons. Dutch boss Arjan Veurink admitted his players had a clear-the-air...