It was always going to be a tough start against one of the best teams in the world, but there were plenty of positives to take from Saturday’s UEFA Nations League clash between the Republic of Ireland and England, off and on the pitch.

The passion and noise of the fans in advance of the game was a reminder of what the biggest occasions in football can be like.

Sure, it was fired up by, let’s call it, our complicated relationship with England, but the singing of Amhrán na BhFíann was the most impassioned I have heard in the stadium.

 

 

It was probably helped by the new trend across all sports of keeping the words up on the big screen throughout. It’s a simple thing, and of course, we should all know the words, but it helps those who don’t to be included and does no harm at all.

The booing of other national anthems is something that England fans have made their own in stadia worldwide, hardly helping to make them more popular. Still, the Irish fans came down to their level just before the highlight of singing our own above.

Let’s make that a one-off and give respect again to the anthems of those who travel to play us and when we are on the road.

It was perhaps inevitable that Declan Rice and Jack Grealish should have scored the two goals that underscored England’s dominance. Being roundly booed every time they touched the ball was equally so after the perceived slight of their turning towards England rather than Ireland to advance their careers.

Rice deliberately dampened his celebration after the first, Grealish less so. However, anyone who hates him for that should take time to see what a decent human being he is in how he supports those less fortunate than him in many different ways.

Taoiseach Simon Harris and Prime Minister Keir Starmer were present together in the stadium and will have doubtless learned some lessons on how deep the ‘reset’ of Anglo-Irish relations might need to go before we link arms in friendship, but this was sport, and that can raise passions between the whistles that would not be quite so visceral in the calmer morning after.

FAI President Paul Cooke wrote in the match programme that Irish politicians need to deliver “real support now from Government, local and national, to ensure we develop the future generations who can deliver these breathtaking moments.”

The same message was visible in Interim CEO David Courell’s message: “The Association has outlined ambitious plans to improve the foundations for the game through facilities investment and pathways development. I am both encouraged and grateful that the Government (and other political parties) see the value in investing in these initiatives – with record facilities capital awards to be announced in the coming weeks and a clear commitment to invest in our academies.”

The FAI’s AGM will take place in Dublin next weekend, and the result of tomorrow night’s game against Greece is more likely to affect the mood of the delegates than events on Saturday.

Let’s hope it is less fractious than last year and more positive, looking to a future where we can have more positive passion at every level of the game.

 

 

 

 

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