Saoirse Noonan

Saoirse Noonan (/ˈsɪərʃə ˈnuːnən/ SEER-shə; born 13 July 1999) is an Irish dual code footballer from Cork. In association football she plays for Shelbourne of the Women's National League (WNL) and represents the Republic of Ireland women's national football team at senior level, having also represented Ireland at youth level. Since 2018 she also played ladies' Gaelic football at senior level for the Cork county ladies' football team, competing in the Ladies' National Football League and All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship.

As a soccer player Noonan is a forward or playmaking midfielder. She played for her home town club Cork City from joining them at 16 years old until moving to Shelbourne in 2021. In 2017 she was named Women's National League Young Player of the Year and helped Cork City win their first major trophy, defeating UCD Waves 1–0 in the FAI Women's Cup final at the Aviva Stadium. Although her appearances have sometimes been restricted by her Gaelic football commitments, she is Cork City's all-time record goal scorer. Noonan is a former Republic of Ireland youth national team captain and was named under-17 International Player of the Year in 2016. She won her first senior cap in August 2016 and was recalled to the senior squad in November 2020.

In Gaelic football Noonan has a long association with the Nemo Rangers club and she won All-Ireland medals with Cork at under-14, under-16, and minor level. As a prolific full-forward she debuted with the senior Cork team in June 2018 and quickly earned a reputation as a high-scoring "super sub". Ahead of her appearance in Cork's 2018 All-Ireland Senior Ladies' Football Championship Final defeat by Dublin at Croke Park, Cork coach Ephie Fitzgerald said of Noonan: "I firmly believe that Saoirse could be the face of ladies football for the next 10 years".

Noonan has attracted notice for her unusual success in balancing the demands of two sports at the elite level. In November 2020 the Republic of Ireland soccer manager Vera Pa