Lauren Wade scored a magnificent extra-time winner as Northern Ireland defeated Croatia 2-1 on aggregate in the first round of the play-off.
After a 1-1 draw in Croatia and a frustrating 90 minutes in Belfast, the Hearts winger stepped up to score from distance to set up a draw with Norway.
Before that, Oxtoby’s team secured the playoffs by finishing second in their group in qualifying for Euro 2025.
Their campaign began with a home draw against Malta before a first win in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Two defeats to eventual group winners Portugal followed, but NI finished their campaign on a high with a win in Malta and a win over Bosnia-Herzegovina in their final qualifying match.
Before qualifying began, Norway would have been chosen to automatically qualify for the Euros, but Gemma Grainger’s team had to fight to reach the play-offs.
They finished third in Group A1 behind Italy and the Netherlands. Their campaign began with a 4-0 win over Finland before a 1-0 loss to the Dutch.
Norway finished its campaign with four draws: two against Italy, a visit to Finland and one at home against the Netherlands.
Rather dishearteningly, Norway defeated Albania 14-0 on aggregate in the first round playoff to allay any fears that they had lost their relentless lead.
