Robbie Brady and Jon Walters Star as Ireland Beat Bosnia

It was a night to celebrate for Irish football tonight, as the Republic of Ireland defeated Bosnia 2-0, to qualify for the Euro 2016 finals.

In the seething cauldron of the Aviva Stadium – or Lansdowne Road as it is still known to old-timers – the Irish side produced a superb, battling performance to leave Bosnia bereft at the end of 90 minutes.

It was not the most free-flowing exhibition of subtle footballing skills, but in the first half in particular, Ireland produced some fine passages of sophisticated, instinctive football. The Irish victory was built first on defensive solidity, with all four members of the back line – Seamus Coleman (pictured), Richard Keogh, Ciaran Clarke and Robbie Brady – playing superbly and neutralising the threat of the star Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko impressively. Indeed the battle for Man of the Match was surely between Coleman and Brady, with only Jon Walters elsewhere on the park, coming close.

Meanwhile behind the defence, Darren Randolph of West Ham gave an excellent account of himself, exuding a calm confidence which rubbed off on all of those around him.

While the defence deserve the lion’s share of the credit, they were well served by those in front of them. Glen Whelan gave one of his best ever performances in an Irish jersey. And beside him, James McCarthy confounded his critics with a brilliantly focussed defensive display, which also encompassed occasional attacking flourishes.

Out wide, on the right Ireland had the strength, determination and superb footballing nous of Jonathan Walters; and on the left, the resilience and power of Jeff Hendrick. On occasion too, the wingers switched positions with menacing effect. Meanwhile, playing ‘in the hole’, Wes Houlahan ran and challenged and pressed the opposition with great gusto – along the way producing a number of sweet touches and passes which were designed to unlock the Bosnian defence.

Striker Daryl Murphy also made a significant contribution, again producing what was probably his best display in an Ireland shirt, chasing lost causes, winning ball in the air against the odds, and occasionally finding a touch his critics didn’t know he had, in tight situations.

There was an element of good fortune about the first goal. A sweet passage go play down the right involving Wes Houlahan and Seamus Coleman fed Daryl Murphy in space outside the box. He crossed quickly, and en route, the ball struck the hand of the Bosnian defender Ervin Zukanovic. The linesman called the hand ball, a decision about which the visitors will be entitled to feel aggrieved.

There was a moment of terrible apprehension when Jon Walters stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick. The Bosnian keeper Asmir Begovic is a former team-mate of the Stoke striker, and there was a fear that he would have too great a familiarity with the Irishman’s penalty-taking habits. But, in the event, Walters shaped like he intended to steer it into the bottom right hand corner (as he looked at it) – but as Begovic braced himself to dive in that direction, Walters shifted his stance and powered the ball low and true into the bottom left.

The 1-0 lead that Ireland took into the dressing room at half time would have been enough to ensure qualification. But there were scary moments in the offing, as the desperate Bosnians pressed forward in search of an equaliser. They were denied by an impressively solid performance by Ireland. Concentration levels never wavered and the entire Irish team stood up to be counted. And eventually, Bosnian hopes were further squashed by a second goal from the canny Walters.

Overall – as he acknowledged in the post-match interview with RTE’s Tony O’Donoghue – Robbie Brady’s delivery from set-pieces had not been up to his usual standards. But he finally got one right, his free from the left arcing into the space between the Bosnian defence and the keeper, Begovic. A defender got a boot to it, the ball spinning into the air towards Walters who was lurking beyond the back post. The Stoke striker took it on the volley with the side of his foot and the ball struck the near post on the way in, flummoxing a despairing Begovic.

From there on, it was an exercise in defensive discipline, which Ireland saw out in fine style. There was one scare when the Bosnian substitute Vedad Ibisevic hit the bar – but that was just two minutes from the end and, by then, an Irish victory seemed assured.

As indeed it was. There were joyful, emotional scenes as the Irish team celebrated on the pitch, donning France Here We Come t-Shirts – and back on RTE the mood on the panel was also celebratory. John Giles, Eamon Dunphy and Liam Brady all hailed the extraordinary spirit of the Irish team – and gave full credit to the manager Martin O’Neill and his assistant Roy Keane for generating the never-say-die attitude which had successfully carried Ireland over the threshold.

All in all, it was a brilliant night. And now, football fans can look forward to the Euro 2016 finals in France with both hope – and more than a modicum of trepidation! Ah, well. Same as it ever was. Let the party begin…

Player ratings:
Randolph 8; Coleman 8, Keogh 7, Clark 7, Brady 8.5; Walters 8, Whelan 6.5, McCarthy 7, Hendrick 7; Hoolahan 7; Murphy 6.5

Niall Stokes