The Republic of Ireland maintained their perfect record in the UEFA Nations League as a second-half Henrietta Csiszar own goal gifted them a scrappy victory over Hungary at Tallaght Stadium.
The Girls in Green won the group last month after beating Albania 1-0. This was supposed to be a bit of window dressing in the run-up to Christmas, a routine win to warm the bones of those who turned out on a bitingly cold December evening.
That's not how it panned out. Hungary made it a scrappy, physical battle, spurning some decent chances to open the scoring before their captain Csiszar hacked the ball into her own net when trying to atone for a Reka Szocs fumble that had sent it spinning goalwards.
The Hungarians were teak tough and showed lots of endeavour; they just lacked the finesse to punish a home team that never hit top gear.
They now require Eileen Gleeson’s top seeds to beat Northern Ireland on Tuesday if they’re to have any hope of joining them in the Nations League top tier.
Ireland can expect a hot reception for their international derby Belfast, but the reality is things will only really come to the boil for this team in the spring, when the Euro 2025 qualifiers begin and their aspirations to compete with Europe’s elite will receive a proper stress test.
Having endured Biblical rain in Albania last month, Ireland returned to the fray on a freezing night in Dublin, where temperatures dipped below zero.
It was an experienced side that started in Tallaght, with Ruesha Littlejohn back in the middle of the park for her first appearance since the World Cup and Peamount United teenagers Erin McLaughlin and Ellen Dolan held back on the bench.
Meanwhile 16-year-old Freya Healy was left out of the matchday panel completely.
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