Diane Caldwell

In 2011, Caldwell was named to the preseason roster of Women's Professional Soccer (WPS) franchise magicJack but did not sign for the team. Instead, Caldwell played for Albany Alleycats in the Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) in 2011 before joining Icelandic Úrvalsdeild team Þór/KA to finish the 2011 campaign. She scored two goals in eight appearances in all competitions including in a Champions League round of 32 match against Turbine Potsdam.

Avaldsnes

Ahead of the 2012 season, Caldwell moved to Avaldsnes IL of the Norwegian 1. divisjon. She played in 20 of 22 league games as Avaldsnes finished top and won promotion to the Toppserien. In the following three seasons, Avaldsnes retained their Toppserien status with 4th, 5th and 2nd-place finishes with the latter qualifying the team for the UEFA Women's Champions League for the first time, and also reached two Norwegian Women's Cup finals: losing both the 2013 final 1–0 to Stabæk and 3–2 to LSK Kvinner in 2015. With the owner heavily investing in the club including bringing in national team players from Norway, Sweden, Iceland and Brazil, Caldwell faced heavy competition for her place in the squad during the 2015 season. Under the new management of Tom Nordlie, Caldwell was limited to four appearances in 2015 and decided to leave at the end of the season: "At that time, a new coach had come in. I was working really hard to try to prove him wrong, but he obviously didn't fancy me as a player, didn't give me a…

Caldwell made her Republic of Ireland under-17 debut at 14-years-old. She appeared during qualifying cycles for the 2005 and 2006 UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship, earning 18 caps up to under-19 level by 2005. On 15 March 2006, Caldwell made her senior Republic of Ireland debut at the age of 17, appearing in a 4–0 defeat to Denmark in the 2006 Algarve Cup. Her first competitive appearance came later that month, in a 2–0 2007 FIFA World Cup qualifying defeat by Switzerland at Gurzelen Stadion. Having agreed with Hofstra to be released for any international call-ups, either under-19 or senior, Caldwell was frozen out of international contention by manager Noel King after he threatened to leave her out if she didn't attend the 2009 World Student Games in July 2009, something Hofstra had not agreed on as an unofficial non-FIFA competition. She was not recalled until King was replaced by Susan Ronan who named Caldwell in her first squad, a friendly against Switzerland in August 2011. Caldwell scored her first senior international goal on 6 March 2013 in a 5–1 win over Northern Ireland in the 2013 Cyprus Women's Cup, her 21st cap and her first playing in the number seven shirt following the retirement of Ciara Grant the previous month. In Autumn 2021 Ireland coach Vera Pauw dropped Caldwell from the starting line-up in favour of Savannah McCarthy but insisted that Caldwell remained an important player: "It doesn’t mean she's out forever, she's a very good player Diane Caldwell,…

Club

As of 16 March 2022.

International

As of 11 March 2020. Ireland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Caldwell goal.

Born in Balbriggan, County Dublin, Caldwell attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School and played for local club Balbriggan FC. In January 2006, she moved to Raheny United of the Dublin Women's Soccer League.

College career

In autumn 2006, Caldwell enrolled at Hofstra University and played four seasons for Hofstra Pride while studying for a bachelor's in physical education teaching. She played in 15 games in her debut year including 14 starts, scoring once, the tying goal late in a 2–1 comeback win over Fordham. She was named to the Colonial Athletic Association All-Rookie team. In 2007, Hofstra won the CAA Tournament title with a 1–0 win over VCU Rams. Caldwell assisted the game-winner in the final. In total, Caldwell made 76 appearances and scored eight goals. Having exhausted her college eligibility for football, Caldwell returned to Hofstra to study for a master's in sports science in 2010. She tried out for the field hockey team in spring, eventually earning a place for the 2010 season. She had previously played hockey as a teenager and was offered a trial for Leinster but declined to focus on football.