Refusal to rest on one's laurels - a derivative of a well-worn cliché used by footballers the world over.  But Kevin Doyle reiterated that notion at Croke Park last night after his match-winning goal gave the Republic of Ireland a stronger foot-hold in the Euro 2008 qualification race.

The Reading striker's 12th minute header settled an entertaining contest against Slovakia and secured three vital points to add to those acquired against Wales at the weekend.   But Doyle is still warning of a hard road ahead.

Victory eased considerable pressure on manager Steve Staunton and his players who remain third in qualifying Group D ahead of their daunting trip to Slovakia and the Czech Republic in September.

"The recent criticism has certainly been unjustified because all you can do is win," Doyle said. "That's four wins in a row now. You can't do any more than win the games."

Despite sitting third in the table level on points with both Germany and the Czech Republic, Ireland's position is not as strong as it would appear.

For a start, Staunton's men have played one more game than the Czechs and two more than Germany. 
Also, Ireland have played San Marino twice already, whereas our two main rivals both have another tie against the European minnows - a guaranteed three points respectively.

Significantly, Ireland's next two games on resumption are away to both Slovakia and the Czech Republic where they will find both sides more imposing than when hosting them in Dublin.  Points could be difficult to attain.

"We said we needed two wins and we've gone and done it, which keeps us in the hunt for qualifying," Doyle added. "It feels good to head into the summer with a nice taste in our mouths.

"We said we needed two wins, but that doesn't mean we stop now. We need to keep going, and that's the next challenge. We're not stupid. We know it's going to be tough. But if we play like we did last night then we should be able to get something out of it."

The Wexford man recently returned to fitness having spent eight weeks out with a hamstring injury and  the frustration and isolation of the sidelines, he conceded, was like torture.  No better remedy but to score the winner at Croker.

"I couldn't have asked for anything more personally - to score in front of 70-odd thousand people, and for it to be the winning goal is a great feeling. It's hard to explain how good it is when that ball hits the back of the net, although I didn't actually see it go in. I was on the ground, but then I heard this roar. I was delighted."