NI relishing pressure of Bosnia & Herzegovina test - Rafferty

Northern Ireland defender Laura Rafferty insists her side are relishing the pressure ahead of their final Euro 2025 qualifier against Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Tanya Oxtoby's side will claim second place in the group with a victory at Windsor Park, which could potentially see them secure a seeded spot for the play-off draw.

And Rafferty believes Northern Ireland will use their experience of playing in previous high-pressure games to their advantage.

"We’ve been in these positions before, it is not new to us, and we look forward to the occasion," she told BBC Sport NI.

The defender, who recently signed for Rangers, believes that Northern Ireland will make the most of being back at Windsor Park for the first time since April.

She also hopes they can take confidence from their 3-1 win against Bosnia & Herzegovina in their previous meeting in Zenica in April.

"Bosnia & Herzegovina is going to be another tough game, but being on home soil will help as will having our fans here at Windsor Park, where we want to be playing," Rafferty continued.

"It is such a quick turnaround, but we have played Bosnia & Herzegovina before and we have that homework done, so it’s just about adding everything up."

She wants Northern Ireland to build on their promising second half display in their 2-0 victory against Malta on Friday night, where they controlled possession and created a well-worked second goal.

"We wanted to come away from Malta with three points and we did that. Sometimes you have to stay in a game and pick moments to make things happen and we did that too," she explained.

"It's a building process and there are games you have to grow into and ride the wave, but we want to be a team that take control and be able to move our opponents."

If Rafferty features this evening it will be her 49th cap for Northern Ireland.

She was included in Northern Ireland's Euro 2022 squad but was not selected in another panel until Oxtoby took over in September 2023.

Since then, she has started the last 10 games for Northern Ireland and has worn the captain's armband three times this qualifying campaign since Marissa Callaghan announced she was stepping down as skipper.

The 28-year-old admits it was hard to imagine her hitting a half century of caps and captaining her country, even a year ago.

"It’s incredible, I’ve been here since I was 15, I remember my first call up in Cyprus and to think that was 13 years ago is crazy, so getting 50 caps would be such an honour," she said.

"I’ve gone from a position where I’ve not played a lot of games to now be playing and I’m very glad I’ve grabbed my opportunity."

Rafferty was also full of praise for Callaghan, who has helped her adjust to her new leadership role.

"Having the captain’s armband is such an honour and I’m learning too, we have someone amazing in Marissa who is a helping hand constantly."