Mary Earps' Lionesses status under threat as Sarina Wiegman unleashes England's two rising stars

When the teamsheets were distributed at Dublin's Aviva Stadium on Tuesday night, few will have been surprised to see Sarina Wiegman ring the changes for England's clash with the Republic of Ireland.

The Lionesses' EURO 2025 qualifying campaign had got off to a slightly tepid start with a 1-1 stalemate with Sweden just four days prior and the need for a radical shake-up of personnel was glaring. It was, though, somewhat of a shock to see longstanding No. 1 Mary Earps replaced in the starting lineup by up-and-coming Chelsea goalkeeper Hannah Hampton.

Earps has been close to an ever-present in this England side for much of Wiegman's tenure. The Manchester United shot-stopper started every game at EURO 2022, helping the Lionesses to clinch their first-ever major trophy, and also starred as they reached the Women's World Cup final last summer.

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She is - as her two consecutive FIFA trophies attest to - the best in the world in her position, having only been anointed the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year a few short months ago. And yet, for the first time in almost three years, her selection for England does not appear to be a foregone conclusion.

Instead, it was Hampton who was given the nod against Eileen Gleeson's side and, while there is little doubt Earps would be reinstated between the sticks if England were contesting a major tournament this summer, there is a very real chance it will be a different story next year, when the European Champions will hope to defend their crown in Switzerland.

It was Hampton's first competitive appearance for the Lionesses in two years and the first time Earps had failed to start a competitive game for her country since September 2022. "It's not down to an injury," Wiegman confirmed to ITV before the match. "I think we're in a very luxurious position that we have two incredible goalkeepers.

"As we saw with Mary on Friday, she did an incredible job but I also think that Hannah is doing a great job for Chelsea. She's growing into competition with Mary so this is a moment for her to shine."

Admittedly, it was not Hampton's finest showing. Though the 23-year-old kept a clean sheet in what was largely a routine England win, there were a couple of occasions where she looked slightly shaky in possession, despite making a decent save from Caitlin Hayes late on.

But the mere fact she was called upon in what was arguably England's most important game since that World Cup final defeat to Spain back in August speaks volumes, and Earps - whose United contract expires this summer - will know she has a battle on her hands to prove she should remain as Wiegman's undisputed No. 1 going forwards.

Of course, the main battleground for the United goalkeeper to state her case will be in the Women's Super League (WSL). It is here where Hampton and current England third-choice Khiara Keating - who was forced to withdraw from this month's camp with a knee injury - currently have the edge over their elder stateswoman.

Though she is yet to win a senior England cap, 19-year-old Keating has been a revelation for Manchester City this term and is currently leading the way in many of the top flight's goalkeeping metrics. According to Opta data, the teenager has prevented more than seven goals that would otherwise have been expected to be scored in the WSL.

Hampton, meanwhile, has prevented just under three while Earps ranks fourth in that category (behind Chelsea's Zecira Musovic) with a score of 0.8. In terms of clean sheets, Keating again leads the way with seven in 18 games.

Earps is just behind her with six, though Hampton has the best clean sheet percentage out of the three, having registered five in just eight WSL matches. Still, when it comes to the ultimate intangibles such as the ability to keep a cool head under pressure and excel for England on the biggest stage, Earps remains peerless.

She is just one appearance shy of reaching the 50-cap milestone for the Lionesses and has kept an impressive 25 clean sheets for her country. In an age where the standard of goalkeeping in the women's game has been a lightning rod for scepticism and derision, Earps has moved the goalposts.

Not content with proving critics wrong on the pitch, she has changed the narrative off it. Those replicas of her England shirt sold out within five minutes of going on sale following her lobbying of sportswear giant Nike is proof enough of that.

"Of course, she was disappointed because she wants to play," Wiegman said when quizzed on Earps' reaction to being benched on Tuesday. "She has been so good for us and very consistent. Yes, she was disappointed, we had that conversation. Then she just showed up and moved on."

Whether Hampton has done enough to convince the England boss to give her a start in May's clash with group leaders France remains to be seen. From an England perspective, the fact that Wiegman now has three credible goalkeeping options to consider is a huge positive as the Lionesses seek to return to the formidable force they were two years ago.

For Earps, though, the focus now must be on finishing the domestic season strongly and showing doubters that, while form may be temporary, class is permanent.