Kenny out of Arm’s way after a system failure at the Aviva
PENALTIES. You hate them but you love them.
Just over 25 minutes after the Ireland under-21s’ historic Euros qualification bid ended in heartbreak in Tel Aviv, Robbie Brady stepped up to the spot to save the blushes of Stephen Kenny’s seniors.
Brady apart, Kenny can thank VAR too, as referee Rade Obrenovic missed Dara Oshea’s shot striking Hovhannes Hambartsumyan’s hand (quite the mouthful!) in Armenia’s box.
Having watched it again, it was an obvious penalty and the Slovenian official rightly pointed to the spot.
Hambartsumyan saw red, as did Artak Dashyan, a bad end to his night after he had given his side a lifeline.
It amounted to a big let-off for Kenny and his team.
Chanting of the manager’s name had given way to boos before Brady’s winner and, had Ireland failed again to beat a minnow on home soil, another winter of discontent lay ahead.
We knew Ireland don’t like a 1-0 lead.
Turns out they don’t like a 2-0 lead, either.
One thought kept coming to mind over the opening 70 minutes at Aviva
Stadium last night.
Namely, just how did Kenny’s men manage to lose their opening Nations League game in Armenia in June?
For this was international football at cruise control and, with 20 minutes to go, the hosts had rarely had it so easy.
Michael Obafemi’s superb 52nd minute strike, added to John Egan’s second headed goal (inset) in as many games, gave them the two-goal cushion that had been a long time coming.
Yet while the lead should have been greater, there was comfort to be taken from the visitors’ utter lack of ambition as they simply parked the red bus in front of their own goal.
Nations League relegation? Are you out of your mind?
And then everything changed. In a brief but shocking system failure in the 71st minute and 72nd minute, Ireland’s fragility was laid bare.
Bad enough that Dashyan followed up to score after Vahan Bichakchyan’s shot was tipped onto the post by Gavin Bazunu, but then sub Conor Hourihane’s awful attempted pass was gratefully accepted by Eduard Spertsyan.
The man who clinched a famous victory in Yerevan at the start of the campaign beat Bazunu and a wave of disbelief fell over Lansdowne Road and the 41,718 attendance.
Ireland simply needed to score again and Nathan Collins, who has been superb in this campaign and looks a future international captain, had a header saved before Hourihane blasted over.
Remarkably, Armenia almost took the lead when Khoren Bayramyan shot wide.
Panic stations, but out of the chaos came O’shea’s close range effort and, eventually, that penalty decision.
Brady, back in the fold after a tough 18 months away, was the coolest man in Dublin 4 as he slotted home.
It was a moment that amounted to a reprieve for Kenny and his players.