Filed under: Football, Match Reports
Gary Speed picked up his first win as manager of Wales following goals from Aaron Ramsey and Robert Earnshaw against Northern Ireland in Dublin.There was only a tiny crowd at the Aviva Stadium but at least Speed is up and running in his new job, after three defeats from as many games in his first five months.
With the host nation playing the following day, the organisers struggled to get the crowd into quadruple figures, particularly with the two teams battling for the Carling Nations Cup wooden spoon.
Speed picked his strongest team possible and predictably they saw more of the ball as the match wore on, with Ramsey getting on the ball and picking his passes.
Wales goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey did save from Oliver Norwood and Niall McGinn but Speed's team were ahead with nine minutes of the first half remaining.
Ramsey had already missed a close-range effort when Steve Morison headed across goal into his path, then he made no mistake with his next effort.
Craig Bellamy's cross from the left could only be punched to edge of the area by Jonathan Tuffey and Ramsey controlled the ball before lashing a volley into the roof of the net for the third Wales goal of his career.
Earnshaw came on for Bellamy just after the hour mark and he netted with 22 minutes remaining, turning Colin Coates and finishing powerfully into the bottom corner.
REACTION:
Wales manager Speed was delighted with getting off the mark:
"I'm pleased that we won the game and pleased with the performance in parts. When the game kicked off I wasn't concerned about the atmosphere, it's about our development and trying to put things in place for the Euro qualifiers."
On the tournament:
"With the stresses of two matches in three days, you have to speak highly of the players - they are here. It shows what they want to achieve. You are never too old to learn and I think we'll learn from this."
On Ramsey:
"He's a great player, great to have in your team you can give him the ball any time."
Northern Ireland manager Nigel Worthington believes the tournament will now be scrapped:
"The fact I didn't win any games is irrelevant. I would like those international dates for friendlies I want to play for the style of teams we'll face in qualifiers."
On his team's performance:
"I thought it was our best performance of the competition with a very young team, it was more like what we were about. To play against Ramsey and Bellamy is a great experience."
On the crowd:
"When you're a football player you want a big crowd but we were in the same scenario against Serbia five weeks ago."
WHAT IT MEANS:
Wales finish third in the Nations Cup, with Scotland and Republic of Ireland facing each other to see who wins. But the low crowds raises questions over who benefits from the competition. Northern Ireland will wonder why they bothered.
NORTHERN IRELAND 0 WALES 2 (Ramsey 36, Earnshaw 68)
PLAYER MARKING:
Northern Ireland (4-4-1-1): Tuffey 6; Hodson 6, Coates 5, McAuley 6, Cathcart 6 (Dallas 62, 6); Carson 7, Norwood 6, Garrett 6 (Winchester 76), Gorman 5; McGinn 7 (Owens 80); Feeney 6 (Boyce 73, 6).
Subs (not used): Blayney, McQuoid.
Wales (4-3-3): Hennessey 6 (Price 75, 6); Gunter 6 (Matthews 73, 6), D Collins 6, Gabbidon 7, Naylor 7; Collison 7 (Tudor-Jones 62, 6), Ramsey 9 (Dorman 90), Vaughan 7; Cotterill 7, Morison 6 (Vokes 80), Bellamy 8 (Earnshaw 62, 6).
Subs (not used): Morgan, King, Easter, Eardley, Myhill.
Attendance: 529
REFEREE: Alan Kelly
NEXT UP:
- Wales v Montenegro (home), Euro 2012 qualifier, 02/09, TBA
- Northern Ireland v Faroe Islands (home), Euro 2012 qualifier, 10/08, TBA
MAN OF THE MATCH:
Aaron Ramsey (Wales): Dictated the play from central midfield and showed his fine range of passing. Deserves to be wearing the armband and deserves to be a regular for Arsenal if he can influence matches in the Premier League like this.
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