This iconic moment gave me belief more brilliant nights were possible with my country

EUPHORIA OF THAT HEALY GOAL STILL INSPIRING DAVIS

STEVEN DAVIS was 73 minutes into his seventh cap when a moment descended to whet his appetite for more big games on high-profile stages with Northern Ireland.

You have to go back 15 years to find the fixture and fireworks that ignited the Rangers midfielder’s desire to add further history and landmark highlights to his football CV.

Like the pivotal showdown at Windsor Park this evening as Northern Ireland bid to secure their place at next summer’s rescheduled Euro 2020 finals.

The date in question for Davis was

September 7, 2005. The game? A 1-0 win over England.

The moment? Striker David Healy shocking the football world with a winning strike in a World Cup qualifier at a packed Windsor Park ablaze with flares and joy.

“It’s hard to believe it’s 15 years ago now but it’s still a really special memory,” said

Davis, who will win his 123rd cap against Slovakia this evening.

“It’s something

I’ll always fondly remember and it’s definitely one of my favourite games playing for Northern Ireland.

“It was also huge from the point of view that it gave me the appetite and belief that we could go on and get more big results and scalps.”

The clipped pass for Healy’s winner in front of a delirious Kop came from Davis who was only 20 years old at the time.

But does he remember much of the iconic moment?

“I remember David taking a lifetime to get back onside with that curved run he made,” chuckled Davis. “Thankfully I managed to execute the pass properly and David put the ball in the back of the net which was the hardest part. It was an incredible moment.”

While Northern Ireland dined out on one-off wins in the 2000s – beating Spain 3-2 in Belfast is another pulsating example – more sustainable rewards were to come in the 2010s.

Davis would captain the side to the knockout stages of Euro 2016 while being in the mix to qualify for major tournaments has become par for the course.

A World Cup play-off was narrowly lost to Switzerland in 2017, while