That success ensures they’ll be back mixing it with the big guns next year when the Euros come around as they zone in on complementing their World Cup odyssey with another tournament in 2025.

It’s all motoring away nicely, leaving behind the turmoil of Vera Pauw’s fractious post-World Cup exit but progress and profile brings scrutiny.

Amber Barrett – the player whose goal at Hampden Park created history – is no longer in the squad but still operating in a professional setting at Standard Liège.

Her culling, along with new clubmate Claire O’Riordan, wasn’t so shocking given the patterns of selection by interim boss Eileen Gleeson since September but the explanations have been lacking.

Promoting teenagers like Peamount United pair Ellen Dolan and Freya Healy was natural when these matches constitute a stress-free link to the sterner test next year, yet doesn’t dim the spotlight on why two stalwarts, part of the World Cup squad, have been cut adrift.

“It’s a football decision and we have a bigger talent pool that we are looking at right now,” said Gleeson about the calls.

“We have different objectives around transitioning young players through. Amber is also part of that talent pool but we also base our decisions on what type of combinations we might like to play. we base it on game-time, we base it on levels they're playing at.

“There are different objectives for different age groups coming through and Freya is 16 and she is naturally playing here, because you can’t go aboard until you are 18 anyway.

“So if we are going to blood the young talent and under-18s, they will most likely, or more probable, be from our league in Ireland.

“The competition is much higher now and we look at a number of factors around what squad combination we want, what game-time, what level they are playing at, what is the performance in those games. It is not as simplistic as you have always been in the squad so you always will be because we have made a number of changes.

“That’s not to say that a player who is not in this squad won’t be in the next one but this is the squad we preferred for this camp.” 

Gleeson declined to comment on the standard of the Belgian league by way of comparison.

“It’s not my job to base the, or to discuss the level of the Belgian league.

“Players play at a lot of different levels; some semi-pro, some fully pro, and that is what we make the decision on. That conversation is for me and Amber to talk about.” 

Although Hungary were thumped 4-0 by Ireland in Budapest eight weeks ago, they’ve beaten Northern Ireland and drawn with them, as well as collected a point off Albania.

“I’m not too sure they will be in a low block – they are committed to their philosophy of how they play,” said Gleeson of what to expect tonight.

“They’ve been assertive in their press actually and pressed high. We’ve got a lot of creativity now; some really positive and assertive wide players now. We’re using players in different pockets of the pitch then to link the play centrally and also be able to use the wide areas. We’ll be prepared for every eventuality but I do think Hungary will be a little bit more assertive in their starting position when they come out.”