"Mia is demanding of the younger players and the older players, she is a great all-round kid. Her qualities on and off the pitch are outstanding."

Glentoran captain Jess Foy has watched Mia Moore grow as she came through the club's academy and made her senior debut aged 15.

She then moved on to pastures new, but came back to help the Glens win the title this season.

Now, after a superb campaign, the 18-year-old midfielder has been called into Northern Ireland's senior squad for the upcoming Nations League play-off with Iceland.

Moore netted 12 goals for Glentoran in 27 appearances, and her surge into Tanya Oxtoby's plans is even more remarkable given she had just returned from an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury that had ruled her out of the 2024 season.

"It's a long time to be out, especially for a young player. If you're older it can be a bit easier to cope with mentally," said Foy, who feels Moore played "a massive part" in Glentoran's final-day title success over rivals Cliftonville.

"To even come back from a massive injury at a young age and to be pushing to be starting at one of the top clubs shows the quality she has but also her mental resilience."

While resilience was shown in her recovery, Foy says "everyone was talking about this great talent" when Moore was coming up through the ranks in Glentoran.

After making her senior debut at 15, she moved across Belfast to Linfield and switched to Crusaders in 2024 when her season was cut short by an ACL injury.

However, after recovering, she rejoined her childhood club - a place she described as "home".

"We were devastated when she left but we knew if she came back, she would do great things," said Foy, who won her seventh title with the Glens.

"I just remember from when she was a young kid, everyone was talking about the quality she has and how she was dominating youth football.

"Thankfully she has been able to sustain that and bring it into senior football."

Foy added that Moore "fitted in so well from the start" and her attitude and application in training stood out.

"Mia is probably the hardest worker in training, and that shows on the pitch.

"She is always wanting to get better and improve and is always asking for extra sessions.

"She scores goals and gets on the end of things and creates things, but she is also doing all the hard and dirty work for us as well."

While international football is a sizeable step up from the Women's Premiership, especially against a League A calibre side in Iceland, Foy believes Moore "won't look out of place one bit".

"I really hope she gets some minutes.

"We know the quality that she has and I really hope she gets to show it on the international stage.

"She is quite young to be brought into the senior set-up but it's testament how well she has been playing and how hard she has been working. It's a great achievement for someone so young."

Foy adds that Moore's "infectious" personality will help her blend in with the squad.

"She's very funny. She's probably one of the most relaxed and easy-going people you will meet.

"She always has a smile on her face and she's great to be around. It's quite infectious and she's always up for a laugh."

The teenager won't be heading into camp alone, and is joined by fellow Glentoran youngsters Kascie Weir and Aimee Kerr in the squad, as well as the more experienced Nadene Caldwell and Emily Wilson.

Foy says having a group of players who are all a similar age and friends off the pitch has helped them "gel" on it.

"Off the pitch they are all great friends and they are all pushing each other on to get better, and it's all starting to show.

"It's now the older ones who are trying to keep up with the younger ones with how much they are demanding, whether that is extra sessions or what they are demanding off us as players."

Northern Ireland midfielder Joely Andrews felt the involvement of home-based players Moore and Kerr in Oxtoby's squad showed the "pathway we have is working".

"We have the likes of Mia and Aimee Kerr coming in, and they're not just coming in for the sake of it. They are challenging and pushing.

"They've slotted right in and they're pushing the standards for training.

"Mia is really talented and she's really good on the ball. She is a really exciting going forward and she is aggressive off the ball too.

"She'll bring a lot to this camp and she brings a lot of energy into training, so it's really good to have her."

While Foy believes Moore could eventually play across the water, she says, "timing is everything" and the Women's Premiership is not a bad place for her development under head coach Kim Turner, who is a former international and player for Manchester City.

"For now, she seems quite happy with where she is at and where she is developing."

"Mia could probably use an extra year here, especially coming back off her ACL. She was able to leave a mark on the league this year, and I know she can be even better.

"She scored 12 goals for us this year and we all know she can improve on that next year.

"She has great coaching under Kim, who has been across the water playing and coaching. Mia has no better mentor to make those decisions."