Tanya Oxtoby: Was her tenure as Northern Ireland manager a success?

Ultimately, on the pitch, Oxtoby’s reign will be remembered for moments of brilliance rather than consistent success and she could not guide NI to the next edition of the Euros.

That is a microcosm of performances too, where Northern Ireland often played well in patches but struggled to string a 90-minute showing together.

The most obvious highlight was Lauren Wade’s stunning late winner against Croatia in the first round of Euro 2025 play-offs in October 2024.

Magill stepped up and delivered two memorable late goals to snatch a late win against Bosnia-Herzegovina in February, but there’s also the argument the team should not have been in that position to start with after they conceded twice in four minutes after dominating the game.

The four-goal win in Albania was impressive, and victories in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro were also strong outings.

Of the 11 defeats suffered under Oxtoby, all but one were against sides who have featured at the last World Cup or Euros.

The heavy defeats by Norway, Poland, Portugal, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland were a stark reality of NI’s position in Europe’s pecking order.

And there lies Northern Ireland’s biggest issue.

No matter who Northern Ireland’s next manager is, the biggest challenge is how to make the next step and contend to reach a second major tournament.

Since the Nations League format was introduced, in Oxtoby’s first campaign in charge in 2023, NI have been in League B for every iteration of the competition.

In short, they are too good for League C but any time they have faced League A opposition they have come up well short.

There are no easy answers as to how NI can bridge the gap to the top sides, especially with the young make-up of the squad, who have potential but are far from the finished product.

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