Northern Ireland vs Iceland: Joely Andrews not feeling the pressure in the Nations League play-off

Midfielder Julie Andrews insisted there is “no pressure on us” as Northern Ireland prepare for a UEFA Nations League play-off against Iceland.

Tanja Oxtoby’s side finished second in League B2 to set up a two-legged encounter with Iceland, who finished third in their League One group.

The first match takes place at Ballymena Showgrounds on Friday before the return leg on Tuesday in Reykjavik.

Iceland may have finished their group at this summer’s European Championships in Switzerland, but Andrews is not underestimating the task ahead.

“The pressure is on them, so we will use that to our advantage as much as possible,” said the 23-year-old, who plays for Hearts in the Scottish Women’s Premier League.

“It’s a massive opportunity to get into League One, but it’s also a massive opportunity to measure ourselves against a big team like Iceland who have just missed out on the European Championship.

“It’s nice to be at home first. We can prepare the way we want and they have to come here, which is a difficult task. It will be difficult to break us down and hopefully we can give them a good game.”

“Our goal is to have a strong first game on Friday and then take advantage of everything we can.”