The European Championships was an obvious career highlight for the goalkeeper when memories were made despite the defeats to Norway, Austria and England in sunny Southampton. There was more to it than that for Burns, though. Two years after her performances at the tournament helped earn a move to the Women’s Super League, Burns is encouraging the new generation of Northern Ireland players to seize their chance to not just enjoy an experience of a lifetime but also grab a potentially life-changing experience too, just like it was for her. Injury may have blighted Burns’ time at Reading but, without that move, she may not be where she is now, chasing promotion back to the WSL with Bristol City Women. While the number of Northern Ireland players playing in England and Scotland has steadily increased of late, a second successive Euro qualification could well come with the added benefit of propelling the likes of Emily Wilson and Keri Halliday into the full-time game. “I think that’s the good thing about where we are. If we make it to the bigger stage, it does set us up to be in the eye of bigger clubs,” said Burns, who was joined at Reading by Lauren Wade in the wake of the 2022 Finals. “I am hoping that could well be the case again this time because we have a squad full of young players who have the potential to go and play at a high level. “Hopefully, if we get to that stage once again, then it will help them in the future.” Standing between Northern Ireland and another Euro Finals is a sizeable barrier in the shape of Norway, the former World, European and Olympic champions who possess a former Ballon d’Or winner and a couple of multiple Champions League winners amongst their ranks. Burns previously faced the might of the Norwegians in both qualifying for the 2022 tournament as well as at the Finals themselves and had to pick the ball out of the net 10 times across those two meetings – she missed the away qualifier, a 6-0 defeat in November 2019, through injury. Despite those previous humblings, however, Burns believes facing a familiar foe puts Northern Ireland in a good position before a crunch two-legged Play-Off with the prize of a place at the 2025 tournament in Switzerland for the winners. “I remember back to the first game of the Euros, and a lot of things happened,” recalled Burns of the 4-1 defeat ahead of facing them again at Inver Park on Friday night. “I think that we can’t really plan for a better opponent because we have played them so many times in the past, and we can take that as a major advantage. “We know what they have done in the past, and we are now very familiar with them. “If we can go out in the first game and have a solid performance and possibly get something from it, then it means that we can plan ahead going into the next game, and maybe it won’t be as tough a job when we go out there for that.” If there is a fear over facing the threat of Ingrid Engen and Caroline Graham Hansen, who have helped Barcelona win the last two Women’s Champions Leagues, as well as 2018 Ballon d’Or Feminin winner Ada Hergerberg, who has six Champions League winners’ medals herself, Burns isn’t showing it. She’s taking it all in her stride. “You can’t take away what they have achieved in terms of the honours that they have won – Ballon d’Ors and Champions Leagues. It’s important to remember that they are footballers at the end of the day, and that’s what we’re all here to do – we’re here to play football,” said Burns. “I can only prepare as best I can for what is to come and, hopefully, what I do is enough.”Israeli war cabinet approves ceasefire deal with Hezbollah
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