Katie McCabe says that securing qualification for another World Cup is her main footballing priority and appealed for a big crowd to descend on Aviva Stadium for the pivotal second leg against Poland in December. McCabe drilled home the second goal on the night as Carla Ward's side completed their business against a weak Kazakhstan outfit, who did at least provide more resistance than they had in Astana last Friday. There were some predictions of double-digit margins after the 8-0 win in the away leg but the Cork crowd had to content themselves with a four, with Jessie Stapleton, Lucy Quinn and local hero Denise O'Sullivan accounting for the others. More significant was the news that Poland had dumped out Belgium on penalties in Gdansk. Ireland have already beaten Poland twice in 2026, a 3-2 win in Gdansk and a 1-0 victory in Aviva Stadium, both coming in the space of a week in April. Now, the Poles are all that stand in the way of a successive World Cup appearance for Ireland. "I just heard it [the Poland-Belgium result] there at the end of the game," McCabe told the RTÉ panel in a pitchside interview after the game. "I think for us, obviously for both teams [Poland and Belgium], we played them very recently, but they're going to be a different team come six weeks, so we need to be ready. "There's a World Cup place at stake, so we know they'll be giving it everything. "If there's ever a game to come to this year, it's this one. "[The] fifth of December, I think kick-off is 5 o'clock. Bring everyone, all the kids. It's going to be a fantastic night, hopefully. "We'll be doing absolutely everything we can to get over the line and get this country to another World Cup again." McCabe acknowledged it had been an initially bumpy process to get to this point. Ward's reign got off to a very rocky start after a shocking 4-0 defeat to Slovenia in her second game in charge. In the wake of the failure to qualify for the European Championships, there was a sense that the team may be on the slide. But they corrected things by the end of the year, turning over Belgium in the promotion-relegation play-off and then performing creditably in League A in 2026. "Once Carla came in, it's always a bit of a transition period with managers and coaches and it takes you a bit of time to find your feet. "I think we learned our lesson with that heavy defeat against Slovenia right at the start two years ago and I think we've just built and grown and tried to gather as much momentum as possible. "I think topping League B and then going into League A and staying in League A was massive for us. "We've got ourselves in a fantastic position - two games and we go to Brazil, but full focus now the next six weeks. We need to lock in and be ready." It has been a period of transition for the 31-year old McCabe, following her transfer from Arsenal to Chelsea in the off-season. The Dubliner has adjusted well with Chelsea second in the Women's Super League table after four wins from five. However, she stresses that the most important thing in her mind is reaching another major tournament with Ireland. "I think it was time for me and my career to start a new chapter and I think ever since I've come into work with Chelsea and Sonia (Bompastor) and the girls, it's been brilliant. "We've had a fantastic start to the season. "The role is a little bit different, but I'm loving learning new things from a new coach, playing with world class players as well. "And yeah, I'm just enjoying it. I'm enjoying my football again. "I'm just taking it game by game. Obviously, there's so many games But, for me, what's most important right now is obviously being able to be in the best position to qualify for a World Cup. "These girls know what it takes. Obviously, we've had some highs and lows over the years. Our last one obviously, the defeat to Wales. "So it's going to be really important we stick together going into November." Watch Manchester City v PSG in the Champions League on Wednesday from 7.30pm. Follow our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app