News

Our U21 side played out a disappointing one all European championship qualifying draw with Luxembourg in Dudelange this Tuesday afternoon. Ireland had the edge for the majority of the contest and took the lead on 69 minutes through substitute Colm Whelan who had joined the fray just three minutes earlier. The gloss was taken of the week’s activity with the concession of a converted penalty six minutes from time.

The other Group contests saw Italy defeat Montenegro by one goal to nil while Bosnia & Herzegovina drew one each with Sweden.

Team: Brian Maher, Lee O’Connor, Oisin McEntee, Jake O’Brien, Joel Bagan; Conor Coventry, Gavin Kilkenny; Tyreik Wright, Dawson Devoy, Will Ferry, Evan Ferguson
Substitutes:
Colin Whelan for Ferguson 67′
Andrew Moran for Ferry 67′
Conor Noss for Devoy 81′
Ryan Johansson for Coventry 81′

                       P  W  D  L   F  A   G/D  Pts 
Italy                  2  2  0  0   4  0    4    6
Sweden                 2  1  1  0   7  1    6    4
Ireland                2  1  1  0   3  1    2    4
Montenegro             3  1  1  1   4  4    –    4
Bosnia&Herzegovina     3  0  2  1   3  5   -2    2
Luxembourg             4  0  1  3   2 12  -10    1

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Republic of Ireland U21 Head Coach Jim Crawford saw his team commence their 2023 European Championship Group F qualifying campaign with a two nil victory over Bosnia & Herzegovina in Zenica this Friday afternoon. Save for one lapse which could have proved costly, Ireland gave a well disciplined and organised performance and were fully deserved of the victory. With this group of  players playing their first competitive match the first half was rather cautious with neither side offering any real attacking threat. Ireland dominated  the early stages of the second half and took the lead on 52 minutes through an excellent penalty conversion by Tyreik Wright after Joshua Kayode had been felled in the penalty area. The hosts did offer an improved effort thereafter but the Irish defence stood firm with centre backs Oisin McEntee and Jake O’Brien in calm control. Having weathered  the breeze (no storm), Ireland regained the initiative and scored  the second goal through captain Conor Coventry  following a brilliantly conceived corner kick routine. There were some eye catching  performances from Gavin Kilkenny, who was the outstanding player on the pitch, and Ross Tierney.

In the other Group F matches, top seeds Italy defeated their visitors Luxembourg by three goals to nil while second seeds Sweden take on their hosts Montenegro at 7.30pm.

Ireland will then take on Luxembourg at 3pm on Tuesday afternoon in Dudelange while Bosnia & Herzegovina entertain Sweden at 3.30pm and Italy play host to Montenegro at 4.30pm.

Team: Brian Maher, Andy Lyons, Oisin McEntee, Jake O’Brien, Will Ferry; Conor Coventry, Gavin Kilkenny; Tyreik Wright, Ross Tierney, Louie Watson, Joshua Kayode
Substitutes:
Conor Noss for Watson 80′
Lee O’Connor for Ferry 83′
Evan Ferguson for Kayode 83′
Ryan Johansson for Coventry 88′

Squad

Goalkeepers: Sam Blair (Norwich City-on loan at Bury Town), Brian Maher (Bray Wanderers), Daniel Rose (Schalke 04)

Defenders: Joel Bagan (Cardiff City) Andy Lyons (Bohemian), Oisin McEntee (Newcastle United), Anselmo Garcia McNulty (Wolfsburg), Jake O’Brien (Crystal Palace), Lee O’Connor (Glasgow Celtic), Ronan Boyce (Derry City)

Midfielders: Conor Coventry (West Ham United), Dawson Devoy (Bohemian), Ryan Johansson (Sevilla- on loan at Fortuna Sittard), Gavin Kilkenny (AFC Bournemouth), Andrew Moran (Brighton & Hove Albion), Conor Noss (Borussia Monchengladbach), Ross Tierney (Bohemian), Louie Watson (Derby County)

Forwards: Evan Ferguson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Will Ferry (Southampton-on loan at Crawley Town), Joshua Kayode (Rotherham United), Oliver O’Neill (Fulham), Colm Whelan (UCD), Tyreik Wright (Aston Villa-on loan at Salford City)

                       P  W  D  L   F  A   G/D  Pts 
Montenegro             2  1  1  0   4  3    1    4
Sweden                 1  1  0  0   6  0    6    3
Italy                  1  1  0  0   3  0    3    3
Ireland                1  1  0  0   2  0    2    3
Bosnia&Herzegovina     2  0  1  1   2  4   -2    1
Luxembourg             3  0  0  3   1 11  -10    0

 

The second contest between the sides took place at noon on Tuesday in Turner’s Cross where the visitors secured  a two nil victory. The first half ended  scoreless with the visitors taking the lead early in the second period and adding to their tally just after the hour mark. Ireland did have the opportunity to reduce arrears late on but visiting goalkeeper saved Kevin Zefi‘s penalty kick and also repelled his effort from the rebound.

Head Coach Colin O’Brien expressed satisfaction with the performance levels in both matches as Ireland look forward to the Group 5 qualifying round which takes place in Cork between the 7th and 13th October. Andorra, North Macedonia and Poland will provide the opposition with the top two progressing to the next stage.

Team: Conor Walsh; Luke Browne, Daniel Kelly, Cathal Heffernan(c), Ruadhan Kane; Justin Ferizaj, Darius Lipsivc, Liam Murray; Franco Umeh, Mark O’Mahoney, Kevin Zefi
Substitutes:
Fintan Doherty for Walsh 45′
Trent Kone Doherty for Murray 45′
Caden McLoughlin for O’Mahoney 61′
James McManus for Lipsivc 61′
——————————————————————————————————————————–Our U17 side under the guidance of Head Coach Colin O’Brien recovered from the concession of a 14th minute goal from a powerful Mexico U17 side to score twice in the second half  for victory in the first of two friendly contests played in  Turner’s Cross this Sunday evening. Following the concession of the early goal, Ireland lifted  their game and came close with first half efforts from Kevin Zefi and Sam Curtis while the visitors also came close on two occasions. The equaliser came early in the second half  with an excellent header from local lad Franco Umeh. The winner came in the closing stages with substitute Mark O’Mahoney, another local, calmly slotting home the winner after breaking clear of the visitors defence. The sides are set to meet again at the same venue at noon on Tuesday.

Team: Conor Walsh; Luke Browne, Sam Curtis, Cathal Heffernan(c), Luke O’Brien; Justin Ferizaj, Rocco Vata, James McManus; Franco Umeh, Caden McLoughlin, Kevin Zefi
Substitutes:
Alex Nolan for McLoughlin 69′
Mark O’Mahoney for Umeh 69′
Trent Kone Doherty for Zefi 89′ 

Squad

Goalkeepers: Fintan Doherty (Derry City), Conor Walsh (Sligo Rovers)
Defenders: Luke Browne (Shelbourne), Sam Curtis (St Patrick’s Athletic), Cathal Heffernan (Cork City), Ruadhan Kane (Klub Kildare), Daniel Kelly (Sligo Rovers), Luke O’Brien (St Patrick’s Athletic)
Midfielders: Justin Ferizaj (Shamrock Rovers), Gavin Hodgins (Shelbourne), Darius Lipsivc (St Patrick’s Athletic), James McManus (Bohemian), Rocco Vata (Glasgow Celtic)
Forwards: Trent Kone Doherty (Derry City), Caden McLoughlin (Villa real), Liam Murray (Cork City), Alex Nolan (St Patrick’s Athletic), Mark O’Mahony (Cork City), Franco Umeh (Cork City), Kevin Zefi (Inter Milan)
.

Captain Seamus Coleman has been forced  to withdraw from the Ireland squad for Tuesday evening’s encounter with Serbia and will be replaced  by Cyrus Christie.

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Ireland needed an 87th minute goal by Shane Duffy to garner a point from this afternoon’s 2022 World Cup qualifier in the Aviva Stadium against Azerbaijan. Ireland were hugely disappointing and a mere shadow of the side that produced a memorable performance in Portugal last Wednesday. Ireland did start brightly and dominated the contest during the opening period but thereafter the performance levels dropped.  While there were  a number of scoring opportunities created the standard of finishing was disappointing. Save for one error in dropping a simple cross late in the second half, Gavin Bazunu again performed admirably. There were excellent contributions from Josh Cullen and Adam Idah but the remainder of the starting eleven were below par. The visitors took a shock lead in the minute of first half added time with a fine shot which gave Bazunu no chance but the surprising failure of Seamus Coleman to close down the scorer was very disappointing. Ireland dominated possession during the second half but were unable to find a scoring touch until the closing minutes when Duffy got on the end of an excellent Cullen cross to equalise. There were a couple of other excellent scoring opportunities but our continuing failure to convert remains a painful bugbear. 

Team:
Gavin Bazunu; Seamus Coleman (C), Shane Duffy, John Egan; Matt Doherty James McClean; Jayson Molumby, Josh Cullen, Troy Parrott; Adam Idah, Aaron Connolly

Substitutes:
Daryl Horgan for Connolly 45′
Conor Hourihane for Molumby 63′
Callum Robinson for Parrott 63′
James Collins for Doherty 80′
Alan Browne for Cullen 88′

———————————————————————————————————————–Ireland suffered a deflating and undeserved two one defeat by hosts Portugal in Faro this Wednesday evening. While the outcome most probably puts paid to the chances of progressing to the Qatar World Cup Finals, the performance gives solid grounds for optimism, provided of course that tonight’s levels are sustained and built upon.  The management team provided the players with a clear and astute game plan which was followed with great conviction. There were of course some lapses which have to be expected but they were contained to a minimum.

Statistically the hosts dominated possession but for the greater part did not impose themselves on a disciplined Irish team. Ireland took the lead on the stroke of half time through John Egan and held their advantage until the 89th minute when Christiano Ronaldo scored  the equaliser and the same player reprised the effort in the sixth minute of added  time.

The concession of a lengthy debated 10th minute penalty was disappointing but teenage goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu provided an uplifting tonic with a splendid save. For one so young, Bazunu exudes a calm confidence that offers reassurance to those in front of him. The back three of Dara O’Shea, Shane Duffy and John Egan, which was a positional change from previous outings, looked solid and whilst disrupted by the 35th minute injury which forced  the withdrawal of O’Shea and the brave introduction of eighteen year old Andrew Omobamidele, maintained it’s composure. Captain Seamus Coleman and Matt Doherty occupied wing back positions and performed excellently.
In midfield Josh Cullen, who has been enjoying a very consistent run of matches and performance with RSC Anderlecht, was excellent. Surprise selection Jamie McGrath justified his inclusion on the right side of midfield and provided some fine dead ball deliveries. The front duo of Aaron Connolly and Adam Idah worked tirelessly with the Cork man particularly impressive in his central role. The Galway man offered great energy but will be disappointed with his finishing which lacked composure but that will hopefully improve with time.

The goal scored  by John Egan on the cusp of half-time was impressive with the Cork man reacting brilliantly to a fine corner delivery from McGrath to head an excellent goal. The disappointment of all at the end of the match was palpable and one hopes that they can recover from their exertions and provide a fitting performance against Azerbaijan, who went down to a two one defeat in Luxembourg this evening, when they visit the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

Team:
Gavin Bazunu; Seamus Coleman (C), Dara O’Shea, Shane Duffy, John Egan, Matt Doherty; Jeff Hendrick, Josh Cullen, Jamie McGrath; Adam Idah, Aaron Connolly

Substitutes:
Andrew Omobamidele for O’Shea 35′
James McClean for Connolly 72′
James Collins for Idah 90′
Jayson Molumby for McGrath 90′

——————————————————————————————————————————
Manager Stephen Kenny has named his Republic of Ireland starting eleven for this evening’s 2022 World Cup qualifier against hosts Portugal in Faro-Louie. The inclusion of St Mirren midfielder Jamie McGrath is the only real surprise. McGrath was set to move to fellow Scottish Premiership club Hibernian but the proposed transfer was not completed last night because of on administrative error.

Team:
Gavin Bazunu; Seamus Coleman (C), Shane Duffy, John Egan, Dara O’Shea, Matt Doherty; Jeff Hendrick, Josh Cullen, Jamie McGrath; Aaron Connolly, Adam Idah

It has also been confirmed  that Shane Long has tested positive for Covid19 and he is in isolation from the rest of the group. 

 

There were four Airtricity League Premier Division fixtures played this evening. Leaders Shamrock Rovers were seeking to recover from their disappointing Europa Conference League exit when they visited a buoyant Finn Harps but there was to be no redemption this evening as their hosts secured  a two one victory.. Second place St Patrick’s Athletic overcame Longford Town by three goals to two in Richmond Park. Struggling third place Sligo Rovers visited Drogheda United where the sides played out a dull and dreary scoreless draw. Waterford welcomed Dundalk to the RSC where they played out a one all draw with both sides battling to avoid the relegation play-off position.

                        P  W  D  L   F  A   G/D  Pts 
Shamrock Rovers        24 15  5  4  40 20   20   50
St Patrick’s Athletic  26 15  5  6  46 30   16   50
Sligo Rovers           24 11  6  7  28 18   10   39
Derry City             25 10  7  8  31 29    2   37
Bohemian               22 10  4  8  35 24   11   34
Drogheda United        26  9  7 10  37 32    5   34
Finn Harps             25  9  5 11  26 33   -7   32
Waterford              26  9  2 15  23 43  -20   29
Dundalk                24  7  7 10  28 35   -7   28
Longford Town          26  1  8 17  18 48  -30   11

There was a full schedule of Airtricity League First Division fixtures played on Friday evening. Current leaders Shelbourne defeated bottom side Wexford by four goals to nil in Tolka Park while second place Galway United scored  the only goal to overcome Cabinteely at Stradbrook. UCD defeated Bray Wanderers by four goals to three in The Bowl while Treaty United secured  a three nil success against visitors Cobh Ramblers in the Markets Field. Cork City defeated visitors Athlone Town by three goals to one in Turner’s Cross.

                        P  W  D  L   F  A   G/D  Pts
Shelbourne             21 13  7  1  42 19   23   46
Galway United          21 11  5  5  31 20   11   38
UCD                    21 10  6  5  44 28   16   36
Treaty United          21 10  6  5  32 23    9   36
Bray Wanderers         21  8  9  4  31 22    9   33
Cork City              21  6  7  8  30 25    5   25
Athlone Town           21  7  4 10  27 37  -10   25
Cabinteely             21  7  1 13  20 33  -12   22
Cobh Ramblers          21  5  4 12  17 38  -21   19
Wexford                21  2  3 16  17 46  -29    9 

 

Injury has forced  the withdrawal of Dara O’Shea and Nathan Collins from our Republic of Ireland squad. Stephen Kenny has summoned Alan Browne and Callum Robinson, both of whom missed  the opener in Portugal because of Covid19 issues and new Glasgow Celtic recruit Liam Scales.

Republic of Ireland U21 Head Coach Jim Crawford saw his team commence their 2023 European Championship Group F qualifying campaign with a two nil victory over Bosnia & Herzegovina in Zenica this Friday afternoon. Save for one lapse which could have proved costly, Ireland gave a well disciplined and organised performance and were fully deserved of the victory. With this group of  players playing their first competitive match the first half was rather cautious with neither side offering any real attacking threat. Ireland dominated  the early stages of the second half and took the lead on 52 minutes through an excellent penalty conversion by Tyreik Wright after Joshua Kayode had been felled in the penalty area. The hosts did offer an improved effort thereafter but the Irish defence stood firm with centre backs Oisin McEntee and Jake O’Brien in calm control. Having weathered  the breeze (no storm), Ireland regained the initiative and scored  the second goal through captain Conor Coventry  following a brilliantly conceived corner kick routine. There were some eye catching  performances from Gavin Kilkenny, who was the outstanding player on the pitch, and Ross Tierney.

In the other Group F matches, top seeds Italy defeated their visitors Luxembourg by three goals to nil while second seeds Sweden take on their hosts Montenegro at 7.30pm.

Ireland will then take on Luxembourg at 3pm on Tuesday afternoon in Dudelange while Bosnia & Herzegovina entertain Sweden at 3.30pm and Italy play host to Montenegro at 4.30pm.

Team: Brian Maher, Andy Lyons, Oisin McEntee, Jake O’Brien, Will Ferry; Conor Coventry, Gavin Kilkenny; Tyreik Wright, Ross Tierney, Louie Watson, Joshua Kayode
Substitutes:
Conor Noss for Watson 80′
Lee O’Connor for Ferry 83′
Evan Ferguson for Kayode 83′
Ryan Johansson for Coventry 88′

Squad

Goalkeepers: Sam Blair (Norwich City-on loan at Bury Town), Brian Maher (Bray Wanderers), Daniel Rose (Schalke 04)

Defenders: Joel Bagan (Cardiff City) Andy Lyons (Bohemian), Oisin McEntee (Newcastle United), Anselmo Garcia McNulty (Wolfsburg), Jake O’Brien (Crystal Palace), Lee O’Connor (Glasgow Celtic), Ronan Boyce (Derry City)

Midfielders: Conor Coventry (West Ham United), Dawson Devoy (Bohemian), Ryan Johansson (Sevilla- on loan at Fortuna Sittard), Gavin Kilkenny (AFC Bournemouth), Andrew Moran (Brighton & Hove Albion), Conor Noss (Borussia Monchengladbach), Ross Tierney (Bohemian), Louie Watson (Derby County)

Forwards: Evan Ferguson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Will Ferry (Southampton-on loan at Crawley Town), Joshua Kayode (Rotherham United), Oliver O’Neill (Fulham), Colm Whelan (UCD), Tyreik Wright (Aston Villa-on loan at Salford City)

                       P  W  D  L   F  A   G/D  Pts 
Montenegro             2  1  1  0   4  3    1    4
Sweden                 1  1  0  0   6  0    6    3
Italy                  1  1  0  0   3  0    3    3
Ireland                1  1  0  0   2  0    2    3
Bosnia&Herzegovina     2  0  1  1   2  4   -2    1
Luxembourg             3  0  0  3   1 11  -10    0

Ireland suffered a deflating and undeserved two one defeat by hosts Portugal in Faro this Wednesday evening. While the outcome most probably puts paid to the chances of progressing to the Qatar World Cup Finals, the performance gives solid grounds for optimism, provided of course that tonight’s levels are sustained and built upon.  The management team provided the players with a clear and astute game plan which was followed with great conviction. There were of course some lapses which have to be expected but they were contained to a minimum.

Statistically the hosts dominated possession but for the greater part did not impose themselves on a disciplined Irish team. Ireland took the lead on the stroke of half time through John Egan and held their advantage until the 89th minute when Christiano Ronaldo scored  the equaliser and the same player reprised the effort in the sixth minute of added  time.

The concession of a lengthy debated 10th minute penalty was disappointing but teenage goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu provided an uplifting tonic with a splendid save. For one so young, Bazunu exudes a calm confidence that offers reassurance to those in front of him. The back three of Dara O’Shea, Shane Duffy and John Egan, which was a positional change from previous outings, looked solid and whilst disrupted by the 35th minute injury which forced  the withdrawal of O’Shea and the brave introduction of eighteen year old Andrew Omobamidele, maintained it’s composure. Captain Seamus Coleman and Matt Doherty occupied wing back positions and performed excellently.
In midfield Josh Cullen, who has been enjoying a very consistent run of matches and performance with RSC Anderlecht, was excellent. Surprise selection Jamie McGrath justified his inclusion on the right side of midfield and provided some fine dead ball deliveries. The front duo of Aaron Connolly and Adam Idah worked tirelessly with the Cork man particularly impressive in his central role. The Galway man offered great energy but will be disappointed with his finishing which lacked composure but that will hopefully improve with time.

The goal scored  by John Egan on the cusp of half-time was impressive with the Cork man reacting brilliantly to a fine corner delivery from McGrath to head an excellent goal. The disappointment of all at the end of the match was palpable and one hopes that they can recover from their exertions and provide a fitting performance against Azerbaijan, who went down to a two one defeat in Luxembourg this evening, when they visit the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

Team:
Gavin Bazunu; Seamus Coleman (C), Dara O’Shea, Shane Duffy, John Egan, Matt Doherty; Jeff Hendrick, Josh Cullen, Jamie McGrath; Adam Idah, Aaron Connolly

Substitutes:
Andrew Omobamidele for O’Shea 35′
James McClean for Connolly 72′
James Collins for Idah 90′
Jayson Molumby for McGrath 90′

——————————————————————————————————————————
Manager Stephen Kenny has named his Republic of Ireland starting eleven for this evening’s 2022 World Cup qualifier against hosts Portugal in Faro-Louie. The inclusion of St Mirren midfielder Jamie McGrath is the only real surprise. McGrath was set to move to fellow Scottish Premiership club Hibernian but the proposed transfer was not completed last night because of on administrative error.

Team:
Gavin Bazunu; Seamus Coleman (C), Shane Duffy, John Egan, Dara O’Shea, Matt Doherty; Jeff Hendrick, Josh Cullen, Jamie McGrath; Aaron Connolly, Adam Idah

It has also been confirmed  that Shane Long has tested positive for Covid19 and he is in isolation from the rest of the group.