Tyler Toland making her mark coming from exile to Ireland’s midfield maestro

There is something about Tyler Toland that feels timeless, as though she’s been through every battle and carried every scar, even at just 23 years of age.  

The Donegal midfielder, now captaining Blackburn Rovers, moves with the quiet assurance of someone who has lived a few lifetimes in the game already. 

To look at Toland now - leading her club side with poise and stepping back into the Ireland fold with a calm maturity - you’d scarcely believe the turbulence she’s endured. Yet, adversity has shaped her.  

It has polished away the sharp edges of frustration and left behind a player who is at ease with both the armband and the responsibility it brings. 

The Tyler Toland story, for a while, seemed destined to be one of unfulfilled promise. She was the prodigious teenager from Sion Swifts who earned a move to Manchester City, only to find opportunities scarce. Her career turned nomadic, with spells at Celtic and Levante, while her international prospects evaporated in the wake of a very public falling-out with Vera Pauw. 

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It wasn’t just the absence from Ireland that stung - it was the noise. The accusations of harassment Pauw levelled at Toland’s father, the swirling controversy over what had gone so wrong between a manager and one of her brightest talents. 

For four years, Toland was left to wonder. At one point, she was a spectator to Ireland’s famous World Cup qualification play-off victory over Scotland, watching from her Donegal home. 

“It was unbelievable to see us qualify,” she recalls now, the words tinged with both pride and wistfulness. “But now, to have the opportunity to be part of this squad . . . that’s all any girl wants. To be playing for their country, pulling on the green shirt.” 

Blackburn Rovers might not have the allure of City or the glamour of Levante, but for Toland, it has been a place to rebuild. Her captaincy there, bestowed at the start of the season, has been less about shouting from the rooftops and more about steadying the ship. 

“I like to think I have a mature head,” she says with a smile. “I just do my best to help the team as a whole. It’s not about me; it’s about all of us.” 

Toland operates from the middle of the park, a vantage point that allows her to influence the game and connect with her teammates. She talks about leadership not as a burden but as an opportunity to make those around her better. 

And now, as she prepares for Ireland’s crucial two-legged play-off against Wales, Toland is ready to be that same steadying influence for her country. 

The Girls in Green, buoyed by their World Cup exploits, have a chance to take the next step - a first-ever qualification for the European Championships. It begins with Friday’s first leg in Cardiff, where Ireland will meet a Welsh side that Toland knows will push them to their limits. 

“We are very similarly matched,” she acknowledges. “It’s going to be a difficult test, but we are fully confident that we are capable of doing it.” 

There’s a pragmatism to her words, a refusal to let sentimentality cloud the hard work that lies ahead. The end goal, as Toland describes it, is to make qualification for major tournaments feel routine. 

“That’s where we want to get to, where we are always expected to qualify. Obviously, now to have the opportunity to be part of this squad qualifying for a major tournament, that’s all any girl wants.” 

For Toland, the armband at Blackburn has come at just the right time in her career. It’s teaching her to view the game differently, to think beyond her own performances, and instead focus on what the team needs. 

“If I can help us gain an extra percent by leading, that’s what I’ll do,” she says. “It’s not about the spotlight being on me.” 

She’s a player who knows the value of patience, the need for adaptability, and the importance of being present in the moment. 

On Friday night, as Toland steps onto the pitch in Cardiff, there will be no sense of unfinished business just a determination to help her team take the next step. 

“I am just really thankful to be here and really excited by the week ahead and what we can achieve.

“Football is a game of many emotions. There can be bad times, there can be good times, but it is just about sticking at it."