"I was definitely regarded as 'the girl that plays football'. Coming home from school, I'd have some food, get on my soccer boots and then my mam wouldn't call me for hours. I'd be out there playing non-stop, just playing with the boys."
O'Sullivan was born inCork and grew up inKnocknaheeny. The youngest of nine children, her brother John Paul played soccer for Ireland at youth international level.[3] O'Sullivan learned to playfootball on the streets with her siblings[4] and as a youth looked up toRoy Keane.[3][5] She played for a boys' team, Nufarm Athletic, until age 11 when she had to leave due to rules against mixed-sex football.[3] As a youth being one of the only girls playing football, O'Sullivan experienced pushback from some boys who felt football was a game for men and boys. This behaviour pushed her to prove them wrong. She recalled, "I used to always surprise them. They were stronger and faster, but I was technically better than them."[6] She credits her toughness and passing skills to her childhood playing with boys. "[Back then] you'd only have one or two touches and there would be a boy smashing you. So, you'd have to let the ball go fast."[6]
O'Sullivan began her football career with Irish club Wilton United.[3][7] On 27 July 2008, she won the FAI Women's Under-14 National Cup, scoring twice in the final againstLongford Town.[8] On 7 August 2011, she scored a goal in theFAI Women's Cup final, as Wilton United were defeated 3–1 bySt Catherine's.[9]
After her performance in the 2011 FAI Women's Cup final,[10] O'Sullivan signed withPeamount United, ahead of their2011–12 UEFA Women's Champions League campaign. She made three appearances in the Champions League for the South Dublin club,[2] before returning to her hometown and joining newly foundedCork Women's FC, one of the six teams that competed in theWomen's National League's (WNL) inaugural2011–12 season.[11] On 13 November 2011, she made her debut in a 6–1 loss to Peamount United.[12] On 15 January 2012, she scored her first goal in a 3–1 away win overWexford Youths.[13] In her first season, she scored six goals in 15 appearances and was named to the league's Best XI.[14] In July 2012, O'Sullivan re-joined Peamount United and made three appearances in the Champions League, scoring a goal in a 4–0 victory againstCardiff Metropolitan.[2] After the club's exit from the Champions League, she returned to Cork[15] and finished her second season with two goals in 11 appearances.[16][12]
On 10 July 2013, O'Sullivan joined Scottish championsGlasgow City, ahead of their2013–14 UEFA Women's Champions League campaign.[17][18] She scored on her league debut, on 28 July, in a 2–0 win overRangers.[19] On 8 August, she made her Champions League debut for the club in a 7–0 home victory againstŽNK Osijek.[20] Her goal in a 3–1 win overStandard Liège on 17 October helped Glasgow City progress into the last 16 of the Champions League.[21] On 16 November, it was announced that O'Sullivan had signed new contract with the club.[22] She finished the 2013 season with three goals in 12 appearances in all competitions.[23][24]
O'Sullivan made nine appearances in the2014–15 UEFA Women's Champions League campaign and scored four goals, including a brace in a 4–0 victory againstZhytlobud-1 Kharkiv on 14 August 2014. After lifting the domestic treble and being part of the first Scottish team to ever reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League, she was votedSWPL Players' Player of the Year.[25] On 16 December 2014, she signed a new two-year contract with Glasgow City.[26] In August 2015, she was named SWPL Player of the Month.[27] She was also named Glasgow City Players' Player of the Year, Coaches' Player of the Year and Fans' Player of the Year in both 2014 and 2015.[28]
O'Sullivan warming up for Houston Dash, April 2017
On 19 March 2016, O'Sullivan signed with theHouston Dash,[29] who paid Glasgow an undisclosed "four figure"transfer fee, which was the first time a Scottish women's club was paid a compensation fee for a player.[30] She made her first appearance during the2016 season in a 0–0 home draw withSky Blue on 30 April, coming on as a substitute in the 46th minute.[31] On 7 May, she came on as a substitute at halftime and scored her first goal in a 2–1 away victory against 2015 championFC Kansas City.[32] She finished the2016 season with 2 goals and 5 assists in 18 appearances.[2]
During the2017 season, O'Sullivan appeared in 11 games for Houston and tallied an assist. WhenRandy Waldrum, who had brought her to the club, was sacked, interim coach Omar Morales restricted her to minimal playing time. In the middle of the season on 26 July, she requested to be placed onwaivers to be picked up by another team.[33]
On 28 July 2017, O'Sullivan was claimed off waivers by theNorth Carolina Courage.[34] On 10 August, she made her debut in a 1–0 win over FC Kansas City.[2] The Courage finished in first place during the regular season with a16–7–1 record, winning theNWSL Shield and advanced to thePlayoffs. The game that clinched the NWSL Shield for the Courage was against O'Sullivan's former team, Houston Dash. The Courage won 4–0.[35] On 8 October, O'Sullivan scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute of the semi-final against theChicago Red Stars.[36] She made a total of nine appearances for the Courage in 2017 and scored one goal.[2]
During the2018 regular season, O'Sullivan made 22 appearances with 22 starts playing primarily as a holding midfielder.[2][37] She played a total of 1,932 minutes on the pitch for the Courage.[2] North Carolina finished in first place and won the NWSL Shield for the second consecutive season with a17–1–6 record.[2] O'Sullivan was voted theMost Valuable Player (MVP) on the team by her Courage teammates at the end of the season.[38] On 22 September, O'Sullivan played the entire match as the Courage won theNWSL Championship 3–0 over thePortland Thorns FC, the first time the Courage had won the title.[37][39] O'Sullivan was named MVP by her team.[40]
She's almost – out of the whole team – the one player we can't play without. That's what she's become. She has a massive impact on tactics because she controls the tempo, dictates the tempo and her job functions are multi-faceted. She's the first player on the team sheet every week in Courage country.
During the2019 season, O'Sullivan was a starter in 22 of the 24 games she played.[2] The Courage finished in first place with a15–5–4 record winning the NWSL Shield for the third consecutive season.[2] On 11 October, the Courage announced that O'Sullivan had been voted MVP by the team for the second consecutive year. O'Sullivan had distributed 1,102 passes (50 per game) and had a pass success rate of 84%.[42] After defeatingReign FC 4–1 in the semi-finals,[43] O'Sullivan helped lead the Courage win their second NWSL Championship shutting out the Chicago Red Stars 4–0 in the final. O'Sullivan started and played the entire match.[44] TeammateSam Mewis said O'Sullivan was 'the "glue" that holds the team together, winning tackles and spraying the ball wide from a deeper position.'[45]
In November 2019, O'Sullivan signed a multi-year contract with the Courage. Head coach Riley said, "She is one of the first names on the team sheet every week. She is a massive influencer in the way we play. She has a genius soccer IQ that makes her a brilliant reader and manipulator of the game. She is a tremendous footballer and passer of the ball and she breaks up the opponent's playmaking ability with an intuitive reading of the game."[46] However, she made only five appearances for the Courage in thepandemic-shortened2020 season before going on loan to Brighton.[2] O'Sullivan made 23 appearances with 23 starts in the2021 season, helping the Courage finish in sixth place.[47]
O'Sullivan played every minute of the preseason2022 NWSL Challenge Cup, in which the Courage defeated theWashington Spirit 2–1 inthe final. She made 19 appearances and 18 starts in the regular season as the Courage finished seventh, missing the playoffs.[48]
O'Sullivan was named captain of the Courage ahead of the 2023 season.[49] On April 19, 2023, she scored a last-minute goal against theOrlando Pride to draw 1–1 in theChallenge Cup group stage.[50] She helped the Courage defend that title as they defeatedRacing Louisville 2–0 inthe final.[51] She was named to theNWSL Second XI at the end of the season. She started all 20 games in which she played and ranked top five in the league inpass accuracy and duels won.[52]
On July 29, 2024, O'Sullivan contract was extended to keep her with the Courage through the end of 2026.[53]
O'Sullivan playing for Canberra United, November 2018
On 18 October 2018, O'Sullivan was signed byCanberra United as their guest player for the2018–19 W-League season and was given the number 11 shirt.[54] As a guest player in theW-League, she is permitted to play seven non-consecutive games.[55] On 28 October 2018, she made her debut in a 2–0 home victory againstMelbourne City.[56]The Sydney Morning Herald reported that O'Sullivan had been "a sensation" in her seven games for the club.[4]
For the2019–20 W-League season, O'Sullivan was loaned once again to an Australian club, joining herNorth Carolina Courage teammatesLynn Williams andKristen Hamilton atWestern Sydney Wanderers as a guest player.[57] She made her debut for the club on 22 November during a 1–0 againstNewcastle Jets FC.[2] During a 4–0 win against Canberra United on 26 December, she scored in the 59th minute doubling the team's advantage.[58][59] O'Sullivan was a starting midfielder in all seven games that she played.[2] Western Sydney finished the regular season in fourth place.[60] Their fourth place finish earned the team a berth to the semi-finals where they were defeated 5–1 by eventual champions, Melbourne City.[61]
In September 2020, O'Sullivan moved on loan to EnglishFA WSL clubBrighton & Hove Albion through 31 December 2020.[62] She wanted to be available for Ireland's rescheduledUEFA Women's Euro 2022 qualifying Group I fixtures. Travelling back and forth from the United States would force her to undergo three separate two-week periods ofquarantine within nine weeks.[63] She made her debut for Brighton as a half-timesubstitute for fellow CorkonianMegan Connolly in a 0–0 draw atManchester City on 13 September 2020.[64] She was a starting midfielder in eight of the nine matches she played.[2]
O'Sullivan emerged as a promisingforward with the Irish youth national teams.[71] She developed into a midfieldplaymaker, described by her North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley as one of the most "gifted and complete" in world football: "She has a massive impact on tactics because she controls the tempo, dictates the tempo and her job functions are multi-faceted."[72]
O'Sullivan is noted as an aggressive player and wasnicknamed "junkyard" by her coach.[73] In November 2019, Ireland's head coachVera Pauw declared O'Sullivan one of the best players in the world: "There is no player in the world at this moment that is a playmaker but also the motor in winning the ball back. She has everything."[3] In December 2019, she was included inThe Guardian'sThe 100 Best Female Footballers In The World and was described as "a combative presence in the Courage midfield [and] the heartbeat of Paul Riley's successful side."[74]
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