Holy s**t!
Ireland 1 Germany 0.
Yes. YES!
The world champions, humbled in Dublin. Third-place guaranteed. What a night.
And here’s how the heroes performed.
Shay Given 5
Didn’t strike the ball cleanly all evening and eventually got injured clearing his lines. Rode his luck as he watched one slide past his near post late in the first half, but was forced off before the break with a twisted knee.
Cyrus Christie 7
Shaky start. Caught out positionally early on as the Germans pressed. Positive run down the right and dangerous ball in to Walters that worried Neuer. Grew into the game brilliantly and got more solid when we needed him.
John O’Shea 7
Terrific first-half block to deny a certain goal. Couple of frustrating hoofs downfield but, overall, grand. And barking out orders non-stop.
The Germans have all the skills, but no one quite does desperate last ditch blocks quite like the Irish pic.twitter.com/FXtuguyWrR
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) October 8, 2015
Richard Keogh 8
Very commanding. Unbelievable sliding interception to deny an open net and turn Ginter’s 15th minute ball away. Always there and always no-nonsense. We could do a lot worse than start him every game.
Stephen Ward 7
His inclusion warranted a few nervous Irish men and women but he didn’t do a whole lot wrong. Even treated the crowd to a backheel in the second half. Twice.
Jon Walters 10
Jon Walters > Germany.
The man’s a hero. A real-life battering ram who’s thankless position was basically to get the f*ck back when we didn’t have the ball and get the f*ck forward when we did. Complete bully. Complete hero. Cannot believe the work he went through.
Jeff Hendrick 6
Quiet first half. Quiet second half. Who cares? Who really cares?!
James McCarthy 9
Ridiculously solid. Started the game by putting out fires all over the place and he was heart-warmingly aggressive throughout. A lot of crucial interceptions in defence. Had that game we’ve been crying about him having for three years. Brilliant.
Robbie Brady 7
Tidy enough and found men consistently with the ball but wasn’t giving us a drive past the full back that we needed. With everyone’s backs to the wall, he too made a crucial interception. Moved to left back and never looked threatened.
Wes Hoolahan 8
Found pockets, turning, turning, turning and keeping possession. He was one of our better defensive players too (again) but that generally gets overlooked because he’s small. Almost paid the price for trying to keep the ball when he gifted Muller one in a dangerous area.
Daryl Murphy 6
Put himself about with a huge heart but didn’t see much by way of chances. And tired gradually.
Subs
Darren Randolph 8
Well his kicking was an immediate improvement on his predecessor. Decent save to deny Muller but it was offside anyway. Strong stop to punch away a stinging Boateng effort and dealt with the storm that blew in his face late on. And what an assist.
Shane Long 10
Huge roar rang around as the Southampton player was sprang from the bench with 25 minutes to go. And boy was it warranted. What a touch and what a finish. Revived the spirited Landsdowne Road roar.
David Meyler 6
Literally threw the referee out of his way to get to a ball with 16 minutes to go. Added to the solidity late on.
Brought to you by SPAR, a proud partner of the FAI.
