Courtesy: FAI


Ireland Futsal team defeated by strong Libya side

Saturday, 20 December 2008

Having gotten off to a fantastic start with a 3-3 draw against England yesterday (Friday), the Republic of Ireland Futsal side were outplayed by a strong Libya outfit by four goals to nil earlier today.

Derek O’Neill’s Irish squad are taking part in a friendly tournament in Loughborough University, England as part of their preparations for the UEFA Futsal Championship qualifiers which take place in Dublin in February.

The boys in green put in a great effort against England, an experienced side, who have over sixty senior international Futsal games under their belt. Ireland went 1-0 down but came back to lead 2-1 at the half time whistle with two goals from Dane Massey. England came back strong in the second half scoring two goals but the Irish responded with a goal from Alan Lynch.

Ireland manager, Derek O’Neill said, “We really took the game to England from the start. We were unfortunate not to win. Considering we have to play England at home in February in the UEFA Qualifiers, this close contest will ensure that the players will be up for the challenge.”

Earlier today, Ireland took on a strong Libya team who has just returned from a relatively successful FIFA World Cup campaign in Brazil where they ran World Champions Spain very close. Ireland matched and outplayed them for periods of the game but basic errors gave away three goals within a five minute period. Luck was not on the Irish team’s side as they hit the post in the first half and dominated play for long spells throughout but were unfortunate not to score.

The Republic of Ireland youngsters have evolved together from the U21 set up and have only recently played their first senior Futsal matches in Hungary where they performed well. Their overall display was very encouraging as the Irish players learn to adapt to Futsal at this high level after just 4 senior games.

Derek O’Neill said: “There are a lot of positives to be taken from the team’s performances in this friendly tournament. The players showed great resolve and dedication throughout. We did well against a very experiences professional Libya side hitting the post in the first half but they punished us on a couple of basic mistakes. The scoreline doesn’t really reflect how well the players did."

The Ireland team complete their programme tomorrow (Sunday) against Lithuania. Derek O’Neill said, “We’ll be looking to take something from this tournament and pushing hard for a result tomorrow so that we can go into the European qualifiers with confidence. This tournament has been a fantastic experience for the players and they will know what is expected of them in what will be a tough qualifying campaign.”






Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com