Republic of Ireland - 1 Spain - 1 And so the story ends with another game to be remembered for its heroics.

This time, though, the memory of the heartbreak will also linger just a little while too. In years to come, though, it will be recalled that an Irish team determined beyond reason to live up to the boast of their 5,000 supporters that they could never be beaten took a star-studded Spain the distance and then some

After the 90 nerve-racking minutes of the game itself, Mick McCarthy's men dominated a Spanish side reduced to 10 men by injury. And when the goal needed to win the game wouldn't come, it seemed we might see a rerun of those unforgettable scenes in Genoa 12 years ago. This time, though, penalties turned out to be the rock on which the dreams of this brave team finally foundered.

Robbie Keane, as he had done in the 90th minute of normal time, converted Ireland's first spot kick in the penalty shoot-out without fuss to give his side an early advantage. But a missed kick by Matt Holland and poor efforts by David Connolly and Kevin Kilbane that were saved by Real Madrid's remarkably composed 21-year-old goalkeeper, Iker Casillas, left their team on the verge of defeat after Fernando Hierro and Baraja had both found the net for the Spaniards.

Juanfran and Juan Carlos Valeron went some way to handing the advantage straight back to the Irish by firing their penalties wide, but going into the last round of the required five kicks Steve Finnan needed to do better than Gaizka Mendieta if the process was going to be extended. After the right back pounded the ball into the roof of the goal there appeared to be just a glimmer of hope.

Cruelly, though, it was extinguished by the Lazio winger who badly scuffed his kick only to see it bounce over the leg of Shay Given and into the net.

From the dugout McCarthy and the players who hadn't been involved in the game when extra time had ended started to make their way towards the centre circle. Their World Cup adventure had ended with the same heartbreak Jack Charlton's men had imposed on the Romanians in Italy. Still, the Irish manager must have struggled to take it in that it is Jose Camacho's side rather than his own that will go on to play in next weekend's quarter-finals.

Maybe it just would have been easier had the Irish been well beaten and the game over as a contest before Ireland's supporters had been given the basis for believing it would be another of those magical evenings we were starting to grow accustomed to.

For a while that was indeed how it seemed likely to turn out. Ireland were behind within eight minutes of the start, when Fernando Morientes gave the Spanish the lead with a glancing header from so close in that Shay Given could barely have been expected to react never mind make a save.

And during the spell that followed they dominated a game in which possession might have been shared rather evenly but only one side looked seriously capable of posing a threat to the other's goal.

On nine separate occasions, in fact, either Raul or Morientes were hauled back after being caught fractionally off side.

It was a dangerous game that the Irish defence was involved in, but they were certainly playing it well.

Crucial to the team's survival during that rocky spell was that Steve Staunton was consistently getting the better of his encounter with Raul, Real's 23-year-old superstar.

All around him, though, Irishmen were rising to the occasion. Steve Finnan, in particular, was outstanding, and Gary Breen, the goal aside, showed great composure as he and the rest of the defence repeatedly found themselves on the back foot.

During that first half the Spanish showed a team renowned for the tempo of its game that they knew a thing or two about playing their football at speed. Their work-rate and speed of movement provided the basis for their dominance, especially in midfield where Valeron, Baraja and Luis Enrique seemed endlessly capable of providing support to their front men when required but also of lending a hand to the team's determined effort to get bodies behind the ball while the Irish were in possession.

So while McCarthy's men saw a fair bit of the ball they achieved almost no penetration in attack. When the Spaniards dropped back into defence, they simply allowed the Irish to play in front of them, patiently waiting for the error that would allow them to break swiftly towards Given's goal.

Gradually, however, the Irish came to grips with the challenge, and as they improved the sparkle went out of the Spanish game. Key to the shift in the balance of the game was once again the switch by Damien Duff from central attack to his preferred role out on the flanks. This time it was on the right, but that appeared to matter little to the 23-year-old who promptly started to tie some of the world's best defenders up in knots with a series of darting runs from deep positions.

With his adoption of the changed role having coincided with the arrival of Niall Quinn there was now some height to be aimed at in the Spanish box. The big Sunderland striker, on his last appearance for his country, can scarcely ever have thrown himself about to greater effect, and the 35-year-old caused Hierro and Ivan Helguera a whole range of problems they had come ill-equipped to deal with.

As he did so, Quinn was well supported by Robbie Keane and later by Kevin Kilbane, whose influence grew dramatically after an opening hour in which he seemed incapable of troubling the Barcelona right back Puyol.

Even while he was struggling, though, Kilbane might have been the Irish hero had only his finishing been better, for twice the goal lay open before him and twice the Sunderland winger failed to grab the opportunity.

By far the more painful miss was his attempt to slot away the loose ball after a poorly directed Ian Harte penalty in the 62nd minute had rebounded off Casillas and straight into his path. It looked as though the 25-year-old should have attempted a diving header but he didn't and his shot was badly misdirected.

It was one of a growing number of close scrapes for the Spanish at the back, however, and by the time Hierro rather recklessly took two handfuls of Quinn's shirt and attempted to manhandle him into submission with the referee looking on, Camacho's men were working hard indeed to hang on.

Crucially, though, the game was virtually over at that point, and despite Duff's wizardry and the growing menace of Keane, the Irish had still not found a way of breaking their opponents down when they were gifted their second penalty. With Harte having again been substituted despite a generally improved performance, Keane this time stepped up to take the last-minute spot kick and coolly pushed the game into extra time.

When it started, though, none of the Irish players were aware until long afterwards that the Spanish substitute Albelda had been forced out of the game by the recurrence of a hamstring injury, and so his side was reduced to 10 men.

The numerical advantage combined with the fact that Raul, also because of injury, and Morientes had both earlier been replaced, was obvious immediately with Mark Kinsella and Matt Holland now completing their takeover of the midfield.

The Irish assumed almost complete control, and though some of the play produced by both sides was understandably nervous the chances they created reflected that they were now far more likely to go on and win it. Indeed Breen, Kilbane and Keane all went close again, but in the end time simply ran out.

Finally we were left to hope that history might repeat itself. But sadly it wasn't to be and Spain, for the first time in their long but mysteriously unrewarding association with this competition, won a game that had gone beyond 90 minutes. Perhaps it really is going to be their year.

The only thing certain for now is that, for all of this Irish team's vast reservoir of courage, they couldn't prevent it being Spain's night.