Scots rain on boys in green's qualifier party

IRISH fans were feeling deflated after their terrific start to their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign was cut short by an impressive Scotland side.

The Boys in Green were against the ropes for large portions of the game, and when Scotland hit the crossbar on 71' minutes, Irish fans breathed a sigh of relief.

However, this was short-lived, as from the ensuing corner, the ball fell to Shaun Maloney, who sweetly struck a shot which curled past Ireland goalkeeper David Forde for the only goal of the game.

To add to Irish misery, pockets of empty seats were dotted around Celtic Park, which will be a major talking point over the coming days given the controversy that surrounded ticket allocation.

Ireland are now in joint second place with Germany and Scotland. Poland is currently in first position.

Spirit

The build-up to the game had been dominated by Roy Keane's bust-up with an Irish fan, but his players could have done with a bit more of that fighting spirit.

"An absolute disaster," was the sobering assessment of Mark McCoy from Armagh after the game.

"I spent a fortune to get over here to watch that. It's an absolute disaster."

In the end, Ireland were undone by a beautiful finish from Scotland's Maloney.

"There was no stopping that. A moment of magic," offered fan David Flynn.

Ireland's 3,000 fans were cramped into a tiny allocated away end but made their voices known early on with a rousing rendition of the Fields of Athenry.

But the fans managed to drown their sorrows and manager Keith Russell at Molly Malone's Irish bar said around 7,000 football fans passed through his doors.

"The Irish fans are always brilliant, wherever they go," he said.

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