FT – Republic of Ireland 1 (McAteer 21) Senegal 1 (Sarr 82)
Report: Seagulls circle as Senegal swoop for late draw
And finally, to play us out, here’s what Ken Early made of this evening’s action at the Aviva.
“Ireland’s performance in the first half was the kind that managers love while the fans rose en masse at the 40-minute mark to beat the queues at the bar. Solid, organised, going close on a few occasions, denying the opponents any sight of goal, getting a goal and keeping a clean sheet? There may not have been much to cheer about, but there was very little to complain about either,” Ken writes.
“The start of the second half was enlivened by the invasion of a flock of seagulls, maybe attracted by the smell of half-time chips. They glided low over the seats in the west stand hunting for food before perching on the huge steel girders of the roof. The birds all sat facing the stands rather than the pitch. They were missing Senegal gradually working their way back into the game.”
Have a read of his analysis in full below:
That’s all from me, hope you’ve enjoyed. We’ll be back on Tuesday for more of the same as Heimir Hallgrímsson’s men play Luxembourg.
Until then, have a lovely weekend.
Here’s Gavin’s match report:
[ Seagulls circle as Senegal swoop for late drawOpens in new window ]
And Mary Hannigan felt three Irish players were deserving of 8s for their efforts against Senegal. Have a read of her ratings below and see if you concur:
[ Ireland 1 Senegal 1: How Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side rated at the Aviva StadiumOpens in new window ]
Gavin Cummiskey’s full report from the Aviva will be with us shortly, as will Mary Hannigan’s player ratings and some reaction from Ken Early.
Here’s what Man of the Match Kasey McAteer had to say to RTÉ after the draw:
90+3 mins: After all that messing the free kick comes to nothing. And there’s the final whistle.
Idah and Ndiaye shake hands and all is well again.
FT – Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 1
90 mins: Handbags as we wait for this free kick. Adam Idah takes except to some messing from the Senegal players behind the wall trying to put off Kelleher. Idah and Cherif Ndiaye get yellows for their troubles.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 1
89 mins: Changes to see Ireland to full-time. Festy Ebosele Andrew Moran and Liam Scales come in.
Harsh free called against Phillips but Senegal have the free. Caoimhí Kelleher sets up his wall.
Three minutes added on.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 1
In case you missed it: Sarr’s goal to bring Senegal level.
82 mins: Goal for Senegal.
Caoimhín Kelleher gets a save to the first shot but Ismaila Sarr bests him on the second attempt for the equaliser.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 1
70 mins: Heimir Hallgrímsson is roaring on the sideline. He’s calling for Ireland to get back into formation. Ireland have got loose at the back and Senegal are trying their best to capitalise.
That said, Ismail Jakobs has just let off a wild shot. No defending needed against that one.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
68 mins: Messy in front of Ireland’s goal. A bouncing ball nearly undoes Kelleher but his sharp reflexes see him swat the ball from the line. After a bit of a scramble Ireland eventually play it out.
Risky business but they managed it well.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
63 mins: Senegal look to their bench to turn this ship around. They make two changes; Lamine Camara comes in for Diatta and Ismaila Sarr swaps in for Sima.
Ireland respond. Killian Phillips and Jake O’Brien slot in, Manning and Doherty make way.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
59 mins: McAteer causing more chaos up front. He runs on to another long pass in, but Ismail Jakobs puts himself in the way to see it out for a corner. Ireland protest a handball, but the referee’s call is correct. To the corner we go.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
57 mins: Ireland are dealing with this early second-half pressure well. They need to settle themselves back into the shape they held in the first half.
Evan Ferguson is in, Jack Taylor makes way.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
51 mins: Chance for Senegal. Ismail Jakobs plays a nice shot in to Krepin Diatta who gets his head to it. Caoimhín Kelleher manages the slightest of touches and aided by the crossbar it stays out of net. Nathan Collins shepards it to safety.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
46 mins: And a chance for Smallbone down the other end. Comes down the middle, has Manning on his left but goes for the shot. Diouff gets himself behind it and Manning’s on the rebound but the shot is flicked right of the post thanks to some pressure from Antoine Mendy.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
45 mins: Adam Idah gets us back under way at the Aviva.
Early pressure from Senegal but Caoimhín Kelleher puts an end to it. Early sigh of relief from Ireland.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
HALF-TIME: Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
An impressive first half from Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side.
Confident on the ball, tight in defence. Kasey McAteer with the goal to put them ahead. More of the same please.
44 mins: Senegal attempt on goal but it’s a poor finish.
Play is played in high to the edge of Ireland’s box and Robbie Brady gets up for the header to deal with the immediate pressure. It bobbles back to Antoine Mendy but luckily his shot is a howler, miles off the target.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
37 mins: Ireland are really well set-up out of possession. They’re making it difficult for Senegal to find a path through on goal.
Caoimhín Kelleher having a quiet opening half.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
32 mins: Taylor takes a knock so he’s being tended to.
Evan Ferguson seems to be under instruction to be ready on the bench, but he’s not called into action just yet.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
In case you missed it: Kasey McAteer’s 20th-minute goal.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
28 mins: Ireland’s long passing is really bringing the challenge to Senegal. Great pace up front and some clever link-up play is giving them all the momentum.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
20 mins: GOAL!
Kasey McAteer finds the net in his first start for Ireland.
His first shot is masterfully saved on the line by Diouff but McAteer pounces on the poor goalline clearance and has it in the net.
Republic of Ireland 1 Senegal 0
17 mins: Senegal have pushed right back in response to Ireland’s waves of attack.
McAteer finds himself on the end of another inch-perfect long pass from O’Shea. McAteer takes on Ismail Jakobs and draws the tackle. The ball juts to Smallbone who lets off a shot on goal, but it pulls left.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
12 mins: Good play from Ireland. Dara O’Shea plays it long to Kasey McAteer on the wing. His shot comes of a Senegal player for an Ireland corner.
Smallbone goes high from the corner and Senegal’s goalkeeper Yehvann Diouff deals with the threat with little effort.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
8 mins: Ireland grab possession at halfway and Smallbone is quick off the mark to spot a pass to McAteer. He hasn’t the support and Antoine Mendy intercepts, but his clearance isn’t the best either. It’s out for an Ireland throw.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
5 mins: Ireland survive two Senegal corners on the hop. The first nearly ended in messy disaster only for Dara O’Shea.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
3 mins: Nice early press from Ireland.
Early action for Kasey McAteer. He finds possession in the corner and charges on goal. He delays the pass though and two Senegal defenders stop him in his tracks.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
Not a huge crowd at the Aviva.
Boulaye Dia gets us under way.
Republic of Ireland 0 Senegal 0
Teams are out. Time for the anthems.
Five minute warning!
But while we wait..
Robbie Brady has supplied some memorable moments for Ireland over the years, latest among them is the rousing speech he gave his team-mates after picking up the FAI’s international player of the year award earlier this week.
“It shows how s**t you’ve all been if I’m winning this,” Brady said collecting his latest snazzy paperweight.
He last picked up the prize in 2016, the year he nabbed that magic goal against Italy in the group stages of the Euros, which he then followed up with a penalty against hosts France in the Round of 16.
“This one means a little bit more to me,” Brady added. “In 2016, I was a lot younger and playing really well at the time. Not that I expected to win then, because I was in a really good team, but I was in really good form.
“To come back now, after a little time out, the staff have helped me to get back to a level where I feel comfortable. I am playing some good football at the minute and really enjoying it, so it means a lot to me.”
Gavin Cummiskey took a look at the twists and turns of Brady’s career so far:
We had money on the mind this week, reportedly up to £18 million (€21 million).
After a decade on Merseyside, Caoimhín Kelleher is packing his bags and heading south to Brentford.
Thanks to a clever little clause in his Liverpool contract, 20 per cent of his transfer fee will find its way back to his native Cork. The 26-year-old goalkeeper’s former club Ringmahon Rangers is set for a very handsome pay-day.
Here’s Senegal’s starting XI:
Y Diouf, A Seck, A Diallo (capt), I Jakobs, A Mendy, M Camara, H Diarra, K Diatta, I Ndiaye, A Sima, B Dia.
Subs: E Mendy M Diaw, K Koulibaly, M Niakhata, E Hadji, M Diouf, I Gana Gueye, L Camara, P Gueye, C Niasse, C Tidiane Sabaly, I Sarr, N Jackson, C Ndiaye, I Gueye.
How did we land a friendly with the 2021 Afcon champions you ask?
Well, while we’re sure Senegal are champing at the bit to face Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side, it likely helps that the Lions of Teranga are off to visit the Three Lions after this. Thomas Tuchel’s side are on hosting duties in Nottingham on Tuesday.
Adam Idah starts this evening, while Troy Parrott and Evan Ferguson are on the bench.
Earlier this week, Gavin Cummiskey took a look at the trio’s track record in front of goal, and how these two friendlies (Ireland play Luxembourg next week) offer a good opportunity for some target practice.
The good news (or bad news, depending on how you see it) is Senegal aren’t in short supply of talent beyond their main man Mané.
Previewing this evening’s game, Gavin Cummiskey gave us a quick run through of Senegalese players whose names ought to ring a bell:
“Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye, Everton team-mates of Jake O’Brien, were a positive presence at Goodison Park last season, while Ismaïla Sarr excelled during Crystal Palace’s FA Cup success, scoring twice in the semi-final win over Aston Villa.
Add Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Pape Matar Sarr and Nicolas Jackson, who scored 10 goals as Chelsea’s primary striker, to the equation and Ireland could face a chastising 90 minutes.”
Read the full preview below:
[ Hallgrímsson stresses Ireland’s World Cup ambitions before valuable Senegal testOpens in new window ]
Fans heading to the Aviva this evening will be denied the privilege of seeing Senegal’s Sadio Mané live in action. The former Liverpool (turned Bayern Munich, turned Al-Nassr) star asked to sit this one out.
We won’t take it personally. He’s also giving the England game a miss, so at least he’s not just snubbing us.
Ireland: C Kelleher, M Doherty, R Manning, D O’Shea, W Smallbone, J Knight, A Idah, R Brady, K McAteer, J Taylor, N Collins (capt).–
Subs: M O’Leary, J Keeley, J O’Brien, T Parrot, E Ferguson, A Omobamidele, A Moran, L Scales, F Ebosele, J Honohan, J Patrick, K Phillips.
Key reads:
- Preview: Hallgrímsson stresses Ireland’s World Cup ambitions before valuable Senegal test
- Double header is perfect opportunity for Ireland trio of Parrott, Idah and Ferguson to hit the target
- Comeback kid Robbie Brady hopes career renaissance takes him and Ireland all the way to the World Cup
Hello and welcome along to The Irish Times live blog for the https://www.irishtimes.com/tags/republic-of-ireland-mnt/’s international friendly against Senegal.
Kick-off at the Aviva Stadium is at 7.45pm.
We’ll be keeping you up to date on all action, as well as reports, ratings and reactions from our writers after the final whistle.
To get us started, here’s Ireland’s starting XI:
Ireland: C Kelleher, M Doherty, R Manning, D O’Shea, W Smallbone, J Knight, A Idah, R Brady, K McAteer, J Taylor, N Collins (capt).
Subs: M O’Leary, J Keeley, J O’Brien, T Parrot, E Ferguson, A Omobamidele, A Moran, L Scales, F Ebosele, J Honohan, J Patrick, K Phillips.
