The buzz around Ballsbridge last night was a reminder of why the live experience is one that we have missed so much and which can rarely be overrated.
The light show in the ground, the electricity of Ronaldo, the surge every time that Ireland put in a tackle or sprayed a pass across the field.
If ever you could have a 0-0 win then this was it.
Sure the game had no bearing on World Cup qualification but it was a perfect benchmark for where we are at this point in the cycle of the team.
They had more possession, we gave away more fouls. We had the same number of shots on target, we had more that went off target. It was a game though that could have gone either way and this is the team that won Euro 2016 and has star players from every major league in Europe in the side.
It was a game that showed we need not be afraid of anybody and the style of play was one that we were able to enjoy.
It may not be Liam Brady’s preferred option to feel the engagement rather than look hard at the results but a straw poll among the fams last night would have delivered an overwhelming majority for Stephen Kenny to remain as our long term manager.
His confidence in the players and theirs in themselves is not something we have enjoyed at international level for a while. and it’s great to be back.
That was a delayed opportunity, and unfortunately, the last for a while to show potential commercial backers why taking a punt on the FAI has the potential to be a winner.
It was not just the crowd. It was not just the game. The promotion of the Women’s Internationals and the domestic game in the match programme and on the LED advertising around the ground was substantial.
Writing in the programme FAI CEO Jonathan Hill wrote that “We will continue to work hard to bring the three core areas of the game, namely the grassroots, the League of Ireland / WNL and the international teams, closer together in terms of how they interrelate and how they interact.”
“Noone is trying to sugarcoat the at times difficult relationship between different parts of the game in Ireland but one thing I and the wider team at the FAI is 100 per cent committed to is to talk openly and honestly about those challenges so we can ultimately address them and turn them from problems into opportunities.”
There was evidence too of listening to where the pressure points in the game are. This weekends referee strike in two Dublin leagues brings to light a lack of respect that has to be addressed. Interspersed throughout the night last night was a message that without the ref, there is no game, and that respect has to be given.
We wrote earlier in the week about the rollercoaster nature of being a fan. Last night was a reminder of why we do it, and the fun that can be had.
That connection is one that the right brand can amplify and benefit from in equal measure.
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