Northern Ireland working hard

Another important month of UEFA WOMEN'S EURO 2009™ qualifiers gets under way on Wednesday when Northern Ireland visit Belarus with both teams aiming to get off the mark in Group 1.

Defeats
Northern Ireland had to come through the preliminary round on their first campaign in the competition since 1991 while Belarus have only previously appeared in the now abolished second tier of the continental tournament. Up against three teams with wide experience at this level life has proved tough with Belarus losing 3-0 at home to Spain and Northern Ireland defeated by England and the Czech Republic. But Northern Ireland captain Stacey Hall believes Alfie Wylie's team could stem the tide in Bobruisk.

'Working really hard'
"Everybody's really looking forward to the game and confidence is high amongst the girls," Hall told irishfa.com. "The last two qualifiers were very tough, especially against the Czech Republic - a match we were unlucky to lose. Alfie has put us on a tough training schedule and we're all feeling fit and ready for the game in Belarus. This is a must-win match for us but we have been working really hard in training."

Germany in action
After this match there is a programme of eight games between 23 and 26 August, including Belarus welcoming the Czech Republic. Among the other fixtures will be holders Germany hoping to keep up their perfect start in Group 4 when they meet unbeaten Switzerland, surprise Group 3 leaders Iceland going to Slovenia and Russia aiming to remain on maximum points in Group 6 with a trip to Austria.