Hannah McLoughlin says that while there is no way to be satisfied with a 4-0 loss, there was enough in the Irish performance against the Netherlands to carry into their vital group game against Scotland today.

“We’re 18 extremely competitive people so none of us will walk away being 100pc happy with that scoreline,” the defender said as her side looks to bounce back and get back in the frame for a semi-final spot.

For McLoughlin, a graduate of Avoca and Loreto Hockey Clubs, Saturday’s tie was a first senior international tournament appearance and the latest step in a meteoric rise to prominence.

Last September she was on the fringes of the panel but a star performance in the Irish Senior Cup pushed her claims and a good winter has seen her be ever-present in training camps ever since.

“As cliché as it sounds, it’s been surreal; it’s the only word for it,” McLoughlin said.

The difference in opponent is stark between day one and two; from meeting the world standard-bearers, they now meet the world No 22 who are the lowest rated of the eight teams in Amsterdam this week.

That rating, though, is often a false perspective as the Scots can only pick up a minuscule amount of ranking points in Olympic cycles as the minor party in Great Britain’s Olympic line-up.

It also means little can be drawn from the Green Army’s 4-1 and 5-1 victories over the Scots in Belfast last month.

Three GB players – Charlotte Watson, Sarah Robertson and Amy Costello – are back in the fold since then as is goalkeeper Amy Gibson who plies her trade professionally in Germany.

What Ireland have seen, though, is the Scots’ opening game, a 4-1 defeat to an impressive Spanish outfit.

For Ireland, the good news is Lizzie Holden did not sustain a concussion from the ball that hit her head in the game against the Dutch and she should be available to play a part. And the top two in the four-team group remains the first goal.

“Scotland is definitely a game to target three points and we are confident we can come out of it,” McLoughlin concluded.