When the Irish arrived here in the middle of Saturday night, a small contingent of Lithuanian football officials were present to welcome the party.

"Congratulations on your win," they boomed, stretching out their hands.

"And you on yours," replied the Irish blazers.

"And what was your game like," inquired the Lithuanians.

"Well . . ."

What was it like? Well, it wasn't dull. Saturday's game in Reykjavik reflected the quality of the host city itself: surreal, novel, rugged, bizarre and never dull.

On Saturday, in the ceaseless rain, the Irish flirted with the unthinkable. Amidst the buffeting and the barging they were surprised to find gift-wrapped goals being slipped into their pockets. Before their luck could expire and before they all incurred suspensions, they made a hasty, twilight exit to Vilnius.

And Vilnius won't be dull either. In this dusty little capital, spliced by a meandering river, the Irish will play the locals on Wednesday afternoon and the winner, should there be one, will almost certainly proceed to a playoff spot for the right to advance to the World Cup finals next summer in France. At least that's what the Irish party in Vilnius thinks will happen. The long flight from Iceland to Lithuania was passed in one, airborne huddle as players, fans and journalists tried to extrapolate some sense or meaning from the convoluted FIFA rules which govern these matters.

There is a catch, of course. Should Ireland and Lithuania draw, however, they would then let Macedonia back into the equation. If the Macedonians were to beat Lithuania in their final group game on October 11th, they could then advance to the play-offs if Ireland lose to Romania on the same day. The tangle of complications and permutations didn't help the Irish mood as the team hopped south and east in the immediate aftermath of Saturday's bizarre game.

"We played badly," said Andy Townsend, "but we went out there to get a result. We said that in the dressing room beforehand. It was like that under Jack. It wasn't pretty a lot of the time, but the business is getting three points. We did that."

Townsend was sporting a spectacular gash on his left leg, the legacy of a brutal Icelandic tackle late in the game. To add insult to his injury, Townsend had only realised after the final whistle went that he had been booked earlier in the game for dissent while protesting Iceland's second goal. He will now miss this clash, although at the request of Mick McCarthy all three suspended players will be seeking to stay on with the squad for the duration of the trip.

Townsend, however, who, along with Jeff Kenna and Mark Kennedy, is ineligible for Wednesday's match for disciplinary reasons, has been summoned back to Middlesbrough. McCarthy may summon Ray Houghton and Liam O'Brien to his squad, although he also has the option of drafting under-21 players into the senior ranks.

Slight doubts surround Alan McLoughlin, but the player himself was inclined to think that his right foot, injured in yet another late tackle, would be fine.

By the time the team hobbled into the airport on Saturday evening, the players were absorbing the full implications of the afternoon's results. Townsend had already informed his new club of his spectacular leg wound, which had just had eight stitches inserted into the deepest crevice.

"His boot came all the way through my sock and guard," said Townsend. "I couldn't believe it. It was a brutally physical game for us. There are a few cuts and bruises and we're feeling a bit sore, but a win is a win. "It would have been nice to have won the group, but it's always best to be in a position where your fate is in your own hands. We know that a win will do the job now."

That scant consolation had yet to cool McCarthy's mood. Having seen his protege, Mark Kennedy, join the action and look fleetingly like a good international player, McCarthy was boiling at the couple of moments of crass stupidity which led to Kennedy's dismissal. The Liverpool player will now miss Ireland's final two group games and the first leg of any playoff game which may ensue.

Even as journalists gathered around the manager hours later in the departure lounge, McCarthy's ire had yet to subside. He took out the blunderbuss to his player and the officials who had sanctioned him.

"I've said it so often to players, you can't hold back in tackles, I expect players to get booked from time to time for doing what they have to do. But to get booked and then sent off for stupid things like dissent infuriates me.

"I certainly can't condone what he did. It was stupid and I've had a right go at him. But I also think it's unbelievable when you see somebody sent off for petty offences when an Icelandic player got only a booking for a challenge that could have broken Andy Townsend's leg.

"I watched the under-21 game as well, and I'm not exaggerating when I say there could have been 10 red cards. The refereeing is a big concern to me. The way the two games were handled on Friday and Saturday left a lot to be desired."

A more cheering thought for McCarthy is the improved performance of Roy Keane, who is once again looking as substantial a footballer in a green shirt as he does in a red one.

Keane cuts a unique figure in this transitional squad: too old, intense and introverted to mix with the Take That generation, too young to be completely at ease with the veterans of the Charlton era. He keeps himself to himself, avoids eye contact with anyone, yet he seems newly at ease in the Irish set-up and is often to be found chatting amiably with back-room staff

"It is nice to hear people telling me Roy enjoys being with this squad better than he did with the old one," said McCarthy on Saturday evening. "He has developed into a player of international standing, and yet I'm not sure he enjoyed being with the Irish squad up till a while ago. He was always the centre of attention, but he never liked talking to the media.

"With Brazil, everyone wants to talk to Ronaldo, with Germany it was always Beckenbauer and with Italy always Baresi. With us, the spotlight has always been on Roy. He used to tell me that if he could just turn up and play that would be okay, that would be fine. But he hated all the other stuff, all the spotlight on him.

"But I think that spotlight has changed now. It is more about what he does on the field again. People keep telling me he's a great player and they try to push him for the Irish captaincy, but I know full well what he can do. He is more relaxed with the lads who are in this squad and I think that shows in his approach."

In spite of the problems both men have had when the experiment was tried before, McCarthy is likely to make Keane his captain, in the absence of Townsend, here in Vilnius.

"I can't tell you about that. All I know is that the important thing now is for us to win on Wednesday. If we do, it is game, set and match for second place in the group. And if we draw we've still got a chance of going through if we beat Romania next month. It's come down to that."

Between now and Wednesday afternoon the team will be cosseted in a hotel some 12 miles or so outside the Lithuanian capital as they prepare for the nation's most important game in since McCarthy took charge.