A week that will inspire a new generation

Rarely, if ever, have we seen a turnaround such as this.

In the lead up to this international break, the only thing that was notable around the build-up was the general feeling of lethargy around the Irish football team. Did anyone really believe Ireland could muster the points they needed to progress to a play-off?

Having seen what went before, all logic suggested this campaign would peter out and attention would turn to the appointment of a new manager and a hope that, maybe, getting into the Euros in 2028 as hosts would spark an upturn in the country’s fortunes.

Step forward Troy Parrott.

For all of Ireland’s struggles over the past decade, the saddest thing about this country’s decline into the footballing backwaters was that there wasn’t even a sense that Ireland could do something significant on the world stage. In generations past, dishing out a bloody nose to one of the bigger nations in qualifying was always something that helped inspire youngsters to support their country, even if the ultimate aim of reaching the major tournaments was out of their grasp.

But the most recent generation – those young children growing up now and taking their first steps into playing organised football between five and ten – didn’t have a moment to point to where their country stood up and produced a major result; one that makes you want to go outside and pretend you’re playing for Ireland in your back garden. The last week has produced two of those seismic moments.

The win over Portugal was superb in so many ways. Ronaldo’s dismissal will be one of the things to feature in Reeling in the Years in the decades to come, but the result itself was an emphatic statement from Ireland to say that they were still capable of upsetting the odds. The win in Budapest brought it to a whole other level.

Much like for those of this writer’s vintage when Robbie Keane found a way past Oliver Khan in Ibaraki all of 23 years ago, young kids will now point to the moment Troy Parrott nudged the ball past Denes Dibusz as the one which helped them develop a love of following their country.

Perhaps it’s easy to get caught up in the whole furore of it all – and it’s also important to remember that this merely seals a play-off spot, so there’s still a way to go before we’re heading to book tickets to the US – but after such a barren period of heartache, the joy which filled the hearts of so many on Sunday night should be celebrated.

There is a neat symmetry, too, to Troy Parrott netting all five goals in this international window.

The quietly spoken Dubliner was the next big thing when he burst onto the scene at Tottenham and many assumed that when he hit the headlines with a Premier League debut under Jose Mourinho at the age of just 17 that it would be only a matter of time before he became the main man in Irish football. What followed was a series of loan moves to the lower leagues in England, but he has been reborn during his time in the Netherlands in recent seasons. A productive loan spell with Excelsior delivered a permanent move to AZ Alkmaar, where he has been in prolific goalscoring form this season.

He has translated that club form to his country, with his poacher-like instincts last week in both Dublin and Budapest reflective of a striker playing with real confidence.

This was far from a one-man cast, however, with several players contributing handsomely to a perfect international window, not least Caoimhin Kelleher who underlined his class again with a pair of influential displays.

From a local point of view, the window also included a debut for Sligo’s Johnny Kenny, with the Riverstown native almost netting the winner himself late on in Budapest.

Through all of the hype, the contribution of manager Heimir Hallgrimsson can't go unnoticed.

Many were already getting ready to usher ‘the dentist’ to the exit door had Sunday’s result not gone in Ireland’s favour and other names were already being discussed as a potential successor. Any plans to show Heimir the door now are firmly on the back burner and he will take the side into the play-offs in March and, most likely now, into Euro 2028 too.

Hallgrimsson’s spell in charge has been a bizarre period in our footballing history, given he arrived as a relative unknown after such a protracted and messy search for a successor to Stephen Kenny. While that was not of his doing, he was tainted in some ways by a process that left many wondering whether anyone at all fancied the gig.

In spite of a couple of missteps during his time – letting John O’Shea do most of the lifting in his first few games in charge was a mistake, as was leaving Seamus Coleman out of the September fixtures this year – Hallgrimsson has generally provided a steady hand at a time when it was needed. He also comes across as a genuinely decent person.

More importantly, Hallgrimsson’s side is starting to gel together now. Sunday’s win may have come about in frantic circumstances but he did speak afterwards of their plan to introduce certain players at certain stages, depending on how things were going. And amidst all of the pandemonium, both in the aftermath of the defeat to Armenia and indeed during the hectic final moments in Sunday’s match, Hallgrimsson retained his calm demeanour.

Regardless of what transpires with the play-off draw on Thursday, Irish football finally has another moment to add to the highlight reel. Attention will eventually turn to trying to win those play off matches in the new year but, for now, it’s time to savour Ireland producing brilliance on the big stage when it mattered most.