On a night when Dublin 4 felt like an unfamiliar frontier for Irish fans, massively outnumbered as they were by the Polish support, there were glimpses of new horizons opening up to Giovanni Trapattoni’s side.
The Irish manager and his assistant, Marco Tardelli, had made much of the potential of Derby County’s Conor Sammon but – despite the former Derry City player putting in a shift of admirable energy – it was not the target man whose performance will have given most hope to those desperately searching for positives in the current bleakness of the Irish football landscape.
Jeff Hendrick and Richard Keogh joined Sammon in earning their first international caps, while Greg Cunningham, David Forde, Ciaran Clark and Wes Hoolahan made rare appearances. It was the latter two whose performances were notable by virtue of well taken goals as Clark put Ireland ahead on thirty five minutes, while Hoolahan – on as a second half substitute – doubled the lead with just under fifteen minutes left on the clock.
Ireland’s first goal was undeniably harsh on Poland who had begun, and continued for most of the first hour, in dominating fashion. Jakub Blaszczykowski and Robert Lewandowski pulled and prodded at an Irish backline that looked disorganised. Early in the evening the Irish defence appeared stumped as to how to deal with the quick attacks coming from the Borussia Dortmund duo. Blaszczykowski in particular caused frequent problems down the right wing and his clever movement saw Irish defenders scrambling to cover more than once in the opening exchanges.
Clark was finding his time with Lewandowski taxing early on and he was somewhat fortuitous not to give away a penalty, as the Dortmund striker went flying over the defender's knee in the box. Clark grew into the game, however, and produced an excellent second half display that was both composed and intelligent.
After twenty minutes there had been two botched clearances from the Irish defence that sent the ball to a Polish attacker lurking outside the Irish area, however neither Szymon Pawlowski nor Ludovic Obraniak could apply the finish to properly honour their hosts’ generosity. At that stage there was a feeling of familiar inevitability about the evening.
A thirty fifth minute corner from James McLean, a rare moment of Polish defenders in their own box, caused chaos in the Polish area and a scramble in the six yard box saw the ball cleared to Clark who slid the ball, with excellent composure, into the far corner of the net.
At half time Paul Green was introduced as a replacement for Glenn Whelan, who had been disappointingly anonymous in the first half. Green’s introduction was baffling, as a player who was drafted into the squad to cover injury went on ahead of both Jeff Hendrick and Wes Hoolahan – players whose credentials were in far more need of examination over something approaching an extended period. Worse still was the continuation of the 4-4-2 formation, a plan which had left Irish players isolated and unproductive as Poland easily overran green shirts in the middle of the park, while also having the ability to stretch the play with their wide players.
Conor Sammon’s evening was summed up by a fluffed chance at a debut goal. A failed clearance from the recently introduced Arkadiusz Milik fell to his feet but the striker’s touch was as depressingly heavy as it had been all night and he watched his chance roll into the hands of the grateful Wojciech Szczesny. For all of his industry and physical presence there are serious question marks over whether Sammon can be a viable option at this level.
The introduction of Hoolahan, along with switching to a five man midfield, shortly after the hour mark brought about a significant change in Ireland’s play and productivity. The former Shelbourne midfielder was soon creating space and causing problems for the Polish defence, while the new five man midfield raised questions about Trapattoni’s belief that a two man strike force was an effective way to pressurise the opposition in possession.
With Hoolahan, and an industrious Green backing him up, the Poles were finding less space and more dead ends. Ireland had surrendered possession fifty four times in the first half and it was the new found ability to use the ball well that made the second goal feel far less like larceny than the first.
Hendrick’s introduction to international football was stunning. A poorly cleared free kick saw him control a dropping ball on his chest, just outside the area, before sending a perfectly angled ball over the evacuating Polish backline and into the path of the onrushing Hoolahan. The finish matched the pass as Szczesny was beaten by a fine volley into the far corner.
It was one of the best goals scored by Ireland in the past few years. While that speaks of a barren past it also, undoubtedly, gives hope that this side may yet discover new life.
Image: Wes Hoolahan scores Ireland's second goal despite attention of Marcin Wasilewski of Poland
©INPHO/James Crombie
