Yahoo Sport 
Northern Ireland vs Norway: Tanya Oxtoby relishing 'great game' for her players
Tanya Oxtoby believes Northern Ireland's Euro 2025 play-off with Norway is a "great" game for her players. Oxtoby's side take on Gemma Grainger's Norwegians over two legs, the first of which is on Friday night at Inver Park (7pm).
The visitors - who are ranked 16th in the world - hammered Albania 14-0 in their opening play-off game, while Northern Ireland edged past Croatia 2-1 on aggregate.
Oxtoby took over as Northern Ireland manager in September last year, and some 14 months on from her appointment her side sits two games away from potentially reaching next year's Euro finals.
READ NEXT: Northern Ireland FIFA rankings latest after Nations League promotion
"This whole journey has catapulted in the last six months," the 42-year-old told the BBC.
"What a brilliant occasion for us to go and challenge ourselves and learn some more and see the areas we have to develop.
"We want to go to the next level and to do that we have to play the best teams, so this is going to be a great one for us.”
Reflecting on her 14-month tenure to date, Oxtoby added: "I think we've done an exceptional job and that's a credit to everyone involved. Both the association and all the staff involved to get us to where we are now, if I’m being really honest.
"There was a lot of work to do behind the scenes and there was a lot of buy-in from the playing group, which has now come to fruition and we’re in a great place."
Looking ahead to the challenge of Norway, Oxtoby said: "We will have to do things quicker, with a lot more purpose and intent, but we’re not going to move away from who we are and what we are doing.
READ MORE: Northern Ireland squad announced for Euro 2025 play-off against Norway
READ MORE: Sunderland in Guns N' Roses tribute as NI footballer hits milestone
"It's another great challenge for the group and we’re looking forward to it as a collective.
"We respect every opponent but we don’t fear anybody. At the end of the day, any opportunity we get to play a good team is a chance for us to learn and get better."
Sign up to our free sports newsletter to get the latest headlines to your inbox
