Soccer

Wales 4 Ireland 1: Ireland player ratings

Ruaidhrí Croke runs the rule over Martin O’Neill’s men after a disappointing night

Ireland’s Cyrus Christie, Seamus Coleman, Shane Duffy and Enda Stevens leave the pitch dejected after their 4-1 loss to Wales. Photo: James Crombie/Inpho

Ruaidhrí Croke's face
Ruaidhrí Croke
Thu Sep 6 2018 - 22:16

Darren Randolph

Couldn’t really do much about any of the four impressive goals he conceded but it will still be a night he won’t want to remember. A good save from a Tyler Roberts shot near the end was a positive.

Rating: 6.

Seamus Coleman (capt)

Impressive on his return to competitive international action. Created a good first half opportunity for Robinson with a typically strong run forward but struggled, like the whole Irish defence did, with the pace of Wales’ attack.

Rating: 6.

READ MORE

Shane Duffy

Never got a chance to make the most of his aerial threat in the Welsh box due to poor set pieces deliveries. Made a few good clearances in the second half to stop the scoreline getting worse.

Rating: 6.

Ciaran Clark

Ball-watching led to him losing Tom Lawrence for the opening goal and from there it only got worse. Whole defence was at sixes and sevens for the duration of a miserable night.

Rating: 5.

Stephen Ward

Was caught a bit out of position for Wales’ third goal and his 50th cap won’t be one he wants to remember. A bad night capped off by a knee injury which could be damaging to his club ambitions.

Rating: 5.

Cyrus Christie

Got forward well and delivered some decent crosses in the first half but faded in the second half after being run ragged by the Welsh attack.

Rating: 5.

Jeff Hendrick

Had his pass intercepted which led to Gareth Bale’s goal in the first half and delivered a few poor crosses from set pieces. Overall quite disappointing.

Rating: 5.

Conor Hourihane

Barely featured at all in the first half, partly due to fact Ireland didn’t do much attacking and was largely anonymous for the whole game.

Rating: 6.

Callum Robinson

Wasn’t afraid to get on the ball and had half a chance to grab a debut goal in the first half but shot over the bar. In a poor Irish side he was one of the brighter sparks.

Rating: 7.

Callum O’Dowda

Invisible for much of the game and didn’t get on the ball enough to show the playmaking skills he posseses. Won’t have done much to push for a regular place in Martin O’Neill’s team.

Rating: 5.

Jon Walters

Had his pocket picked for Wales’ third goal due to a bad first touch and spent most of the game chasing loose balls forward which he was never going to be able to do anything with.

Rating: 5.

Substitutes

Shaun Williams was definitely the highlight and his hard work was rewarded when he robbed Aaron Ramsey of the ball and knocked a sumptuous chip over Wayne Hennessey for Ireland’s consolation.

Rating: 7.

Martin O’Neill (manager)

Tactics were very much exposed by a fast-attacking Wales side but he must be afforded some dispensation for the fact that he was working with such a depleted squad. All in all a humiliating night for everyone involved with Ireland.

Rating: 5.