We will take the Irish win and hope for more in the future

Thursday’s match against Finland did offer hope of Ireland finally getting off the mark with a positive result in this Nations League group.

The Finns are maybe the only side in a worse state of confidence than Ireland. Fifa’s rankings would suggest so too. Ireland a whole two positions better off than the Nordic nation, languishing back in 64th place. So, there was a sliver of hope for the Irish entering Alexander Stavrev Stadium, an ugly sports ground with all the warmth of a 1980’s greyhound track.

The game of two halves cliché was never more appropriate as Thursday’s game, and the first half may have been one of the hardest 45 minutes to watch in a long time, which is saying something after our abject efforts in recent years.

With two sides struggling for confidence the early first-half action was a phony war of midfield standoffs. But soon the Finns noticed that the Irish were not inclined to advance beyond their own half. So, they went on the front foot.

Bad enough that Ireland let the Finns run affairs, as has been so often the case in recent times, the only pressure Ireland put on a goalie was on our own. Poor old Nathan Collins’ woeful short back to Caoimhin Kelleher allowed Joel Pahjanpalo to step in and bag them the lead.

Collins had a bit of a nightmare all evening, which is unfortunate for the Kildare centre back, as he’s been having a remarkable run of good form with Brentford in the Premier League.

The half time gathered all those old feelings of dread, with us seemingly heading down the well-worn track to defeat. And worst of all we seemed devoid of the ion and effort that has defined Irish football forever. But to the great credit to players and management, they resumed the game with a fire and hunger absent in the first half.

Welcome step-up

The defensive line stepped up and finally closed down the Finns. Chiedozie Ogbene was released to do what he does best and his raids down the right wing suddenly had a previously unbothered Finn defence rocking on their heels. On the other side, Robbie Brady, who was probably the only Irish player to collect credit from his first-half performance, was cutting in and out on the Finnish fullbacks leaving them out of place for Sammie Szmodics and Evan Ferguson to finally get some efforts on target.

Ogbene’s pressure on the ball saw him fouled in a great wide position that Brady made the most of with a sweet floated free kick, that Liam Scales did really well to get a head on for our opener. The 20 minutes or so of Irish dominance, unfortunately, tailed off and the dread returned that the Finns would come back, and they very nearly did. But for a couple of centimetres the Nordic men could have been back in it. But credit to Heimir Hallgrimsson, his substitutes revitalized the side again as Adam Idah, and especially Festy Ebosele, made the Finns think twice of pushing into the Irish half.

The highlight of the evening saw a great Festy cut inside from the right wings, topped by an exquisite cross to Brady on the left, who beautifully controlled the first touch before hammering it into the roof of the net. With just three minutes left the Finns had nothing left for the comeback.

So that rarest of events in Irish football, an away win against European opposition. And we should enjoy what positives accrued, even if some of the old inconsistencies are still there.

The confidence an away win engenders should not be underestimated. The new boss has his first win only in his second game, which when you consider he is learning about his players in the raw heat of competition, without the benefit of time with the squad or the opportunity to see them in friendlies, is an achievement.

It was also great to see the team pick themselves up in the second half when it would be so easy to drop the head and accept another defeat. The higher intensity and the ion was great to see.

Concerns

There are still a lot to address for the players and management. The defence were too often left on the hook for the pressure exerted by the Finns. Sure, there was Collins unforced error but when the entire side backs off from defensive and pressing duties, then it’s just a matter of time that your defenders will come under the cosh.

Hallgrimsson maybe should have brought on the subs a bit earlier. It was clear that Ferguson was struggling with his match fitness, while Szmodics and the ironically named Finn Azaz had run themselves ragged before management rang the changes in the 71st and 80th minutes. Thankfully Festy had enough time to make the difference from the wing.

Maybe another concern is that the man-of-the-match performance and the match winner came from a veteran player from the last of the good old days for Ireland. Brady’s rocket reminded us of 2016 and his wonder strike against Italy in the Euros. Is it a bad sign that we still are relying on a veteran star, or will it be the inspiration for something better for the up-and-coming players?

But hey, it’s a win, and our first comeback competitive win since back in 2013, we will take that for now. Meanwhile, Greece were outstanding in their victory over England at Wembley and they will offer a far tougher test tomorrow in Athens than the Finns did in Helsinki. This rebuilding will take a lot of time and there is no guarantee that this process will work. But if we can keep improving and avoid another Nations League drop that will be seen as progress.