Martin O’Neill is, understandably a proud man tonight.
The Republic of Ireland manager had just watched his side qualify for Euro 2016 after a 2-0 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
In addition to tricky play-off opponents, Ireland had to come through a tough group, overcome defeats to close rivals Scotland and Poland and beat the world champions to reach the tournament.
After such a tough journey to France, O’Neill reserved special praise for his players, who he said relish the opportunity to represent their country.
“I couldn’t be more proud because they are a fantastic bunch of players,” the Derry native said in the post-match press conference.
“They all want to play for their country. That’s important because you hear that some players find it a chore playing for their country. Well, I’ve not experienced that at all in my two years.
“They gave everything. I don’t think they had anything left to give at the end. The spirit has been so strong. We may lack an occasional piece of absolute genius but we’ve been great.”
“We deserve to go and that moment when the referee’s whistle went, and we’ve reached France, was just very special. I thought the Germany game was wonderful but I think it was eclipsed tonight.”
“These are the moments you live for.”
