Hungary v Republic of Ireland - Sunday 16th November - 2026 World Cup qualifier

[Eirambler]

I've just realised that the format and the timing of the playoffs means that we're in the World Cup finals draw. Incredible!

[pineapple stu]

Is that the best week for Irish football outside a major finals?

Unbe****inglievable

[passinginterest]

What a difference two games makes. It just genuinely felt like if we equalised the winner would come. Finally premier league footballers are looking like premier league footballers in an Ireland shirt. Even on the stats we had almost as much possession and plenty of attempts. It’s just worlds away from where we were in such a short space of time. It just shows what confidence and organisation can do.

[shakermaker1982]

Wow.

Speechless.

Troy Parrott - unbelievable

[rebelmusic]

Have no words....and yes...this is how we play, this is Irish soccer

[pineapple stu]

Last away hattrick I wonder?

Keane in Denmark under Stan?

[texidub]

Unreal. 5 goals in 2 games... f'in brilliant.

[The Fly]

Is that the best week for Irish football outside a major finals?

Unbe****inglievable
It’s a Yes from me.

[SkStu]

Just incredible. No words.

[Crosby87]

Amazing

Aiden McGeady is on the radio

[SkStu]

I think it’s just kitchen sink time. As likely to finish 5-1 as 2-2…can’t see us winning in any scenario here.

Well well well.

[Neish]

What a ending, Hungry were doing everything to slow down the game and waste time for most of the game so they deserve all they got. Delighted for Parrott too he had a pretty hard time the last 5 or 6 years were he probably wasn't being utilised properly by the clubs he was with, but he has really come on since moving to the Dutch league seem like a really ground lad too even after all the hype about him as a young player.

[The Fly]

How do I embed a tweet/X?

[pineapple stu]

How do I embed a tweet/X?
(Tweet) And the tweet number I think

But with square brackets

[Razors left peg]

Troy Parrott can have my babies

[geysir]

The Iceland media covering the incredible turn around this week, modestly refer to the Irish team as 'Heimir's disciples'.

[Nesta99]

Can this now finally be the last post spouting this ****ing nonsense. We can play our way and be successful. We don't have a Xavi or a Pirlo and we don't need one.

Our game is about being effective, being aggressive, winning the ball and getting on with the play. We inflict our game on the opposition.

Either you work for RTE, they read Foot.ie or its in the national conscience right now as I thoroughly enjoyed the closing highlights reel to that Italia 90 soundtrack. Usually I feed these things cringe but not today, grinch is gone for wee while!!

What a week for Irish football! Even Dundalk FC has delivered good news for this fan....wierd alternative universe we have fallen in to.

It would be a disappointment to not get through the play-offs now, hope will be high, draw dependent, but somehow I dont think there will be that acute, deep cut to the heart if we dont get there. Maybe Im alone here but in many ways progress and improvement does me. We will have gone out fighting. Of course we could be scrambling for time off in the Summer too! Name on a trophy stuff;)

[pineapple stu]

5 December is the World Cup draw

[Nesta99]

Ive seen a few potentials for tomorrow back page headlines but the one I like is 'Troy, Troy, Troy again!' Hungary sick as Parrotts....

[Fixer82]

Do we have any players suspended for next games?

[rebelmusic]

5 December is the World Cup draw

What's the difference with the one this coming Thursday? We'll know our WC group on the 5th if we get through the playoffs?

[pineapple stu]

Yep

Or technically I guess they might have "Europe 1" in the draw and maybe we don't know who that is

[backstothewall]

Ive seen a few potentials for tomorrow back page headlines but the one I like is 'Troy, Troy, Troy again!' Hungary sick as Parrotts....

"The Cure of Troy" for the broadsheets

[Comic Book Guy]

Take Szoboslai out of that Hungary team and they are awful, I don't care though, we have play off that I couldn't even envisage this time last week.
For once it fell our way in injury time. Hungary got what they deserved, ball boys disappeared towards the end,, their injury time subs took nearly a minute. Just thrilled that it fell our way for once.

[passinginterest]

If Kenny was an unlucky manager then Heimir is definitely a lucky one. I do feel like some of the foundations for this were built in the Kenny era. The experience those young players picked up under him was important. What he couldn’t consistently do was balance the organisation and pragmatism needed to maybe generate some of that luck (and the inexperience of the players didn’t help).

Hard to believe there’s a playoff to look forward to now. It was wildest dreams stuff before kick off on Thursday. It really is bonus territory now. Those players now really know what it feels like and what it means to have some success in the national jersey and that will feed them going into the next qualifying cycle.

Have we beaten two higher ranked sides in a row before?
Has anyone scored 5 in two games before?

Feel like my heart rate is still through the roof.

[pixiehead]

"The Cure of Troy" for the broadsheetsHistory repeats itself at Parrott and Scales echoes Keane and Quinn

[The Fly]

(Tweet) And the tweet number I think

But with square brackets
1990090025879355483

[pineapple stu]

1990090025879355483
You had the full url in too

[Nesta99]

Theres a good bit of football in the other groups yet, Scotland at home to Denmark as one which would automatically qualify them with a win. Im presuming higher raanked sides like Denmark, Italy would be straight in to a play-off final?

[pineapple stu]

Nope - 16 teams to whittle down to 4

Seeding but no byes

[punkrocket]

Bound to be Iceland.

[rebelmusic]

Theres a good bit of football in the other groups yet, Scotland at home to Denmark as one which would automatically qualify them with a win. Im presuming higher raanked sides like Denmark, Italy would be straight in to a play-off final?

Nope they play a semi final against pot 4

[pineapple stu]

Bound to be Iceland.

You say, as Ukraine go 1-0 up against Iceland with ten to go

[rebelmusic]

You say, as Ukraine go 1-0 up against Iceland with ten to go

Feel sorry for them, played very well and just switched off for 10 seconds. Never looked like getting back into it though. All about the Macedons now

[Eirambler]

Either you work for RTE, they read Foot.ie or its in the national conscience right now as I thoroughly enjoyed the closing highlights reel to that Italia 90 soundtrack. Usually I feed these things cringe but not today, grinch is gone for wee while!!



It was played in the stadium in Qatar after the penalty shootout win over Canada the last day too. Possibly that's what put it in the RTE producer's head. Thought it worked well in both cases. Though it's maybe a bit like Zombie with the rugby, a good song but you don't want to overdo it either.

[punkrocket]

You say, as Ukraine go 1-0 up against Iceland with ten to go
Ermm.... bound to be Scotland

[pineapple stu]

Last away hattrick I wonder?

Keane in Denmark under Stan?

There has never been an away Irish hattrick

Ever

Until now

[backstothewall]

Either you work for RTE, they read Foot.ie or its in the national conscience right now as I thoroughly enjoyed the closing highlights reel to that Italia 90 soundtrack. Usually I feed these things cringe but not today, grinch is gone for wee while!!

What a week for Irish football! Even Dundalk FC has delivered good news for this fan....wierd alternative universe we have fallen in to.

It would be a disappointment to not get through the play-offs now, hope will be high, draw dependent, but somehow I dont think there will be that acute, deep cut to the heart if we dont get there. Maybe Im alone here but in many ways progress and improvement does me. We will have gone out fighting. Of course we could be scrambling for time off in the Summer too! Name on a trophy stuff;)

I certainly don't work for RTÉ!

[ontheotherhand]

Is that the best week for Irish football outside a major finals?

Unbe****inglievable

I think so. As a rovers fan, what we did was special but to see our players and ex-players (and fans, hello Troy) do it for the national side as well.....really incredible. Phenomenal. I'm shattered.

[TonyD]

Ive seen a few potentials for tomorrow back page headlines but the one I like is 'Troy, Troy, Troy again!' Hungary sick as Parrotts....

Nah, I saw the winner on Facebook. "The Late Late Troy Show" :cool:

[Eirambler]

Nah, I saw the winner on Facebook. "The Late Late Troy Show" :cool:

Ah, that's brilliant in fairness. The early kickoff gives the headline writers plenty of time to steal their ideas from social media!

[Eirambler]

Poor old Slobbysly wasn't in much form in the post game interview.

1990102442940191062

[the 12 th man]

Up there with the indelible nights in Irish Football......right up there with the ones that are celebrated years later.

[SkStu]

Fell in love with Scales as a footballer this window. He was great on Thursday, far from perfect today but he did big things where and when it mattered. That header at the end was monumental, like it was intentionally placed into the zone it landed. So smart. Azaz I fell out of and then back in love with him today. But he’s different class when he is in the middle. One assist and almost 2 or 3 more. Festy too I fell in and out of love with. He was equal crap and class but is so unpredictable that he brings something in those types of games that’s hard to describe but is valuable. We saw it against Finland. Kenny made an impression with me on his debut, not just in the oppo half but his work tracking back and down the channels. I like the look of him. Keeper pulled off a wonder save from him - Kenny did everything right. Speaking of which Kells was class again. Our back three was a bit of a mess but did what they needed to in a weirdly dysfunctional way. Cullen and Molumby worked so hard. Manning coming in for Jake was a good call in retrospect and he was solid. Feel so sorry for Ogbene, he was my MOTM up to when he went off - such a good out ball for us - wins frees and penos - and creates havoc with his pace.

Parrott.

It was a weird game actually. I feel like we had no right to win it but I’m watching it here again and, even though we didn’t really play that well at all, we had chances, proper chances and lots of half chances, they just had the ball and worked it well when they did. But they were too casual. We matched them more or less for all the big stats.

[SkStu]

Up there with the indelible nights in Irish Football......right up there with the ones that are celebrated years later.

Agreed. And it was a pleasure to do it with this little community to share the joy and sorrow and joy with.

[ontheotherhand]

Fell in love with Scales as a footballer this window. He was great on Thursday, far from perfect today but he did big things where and when it mattered. That header at the end was monumental, like it was intentionally placed into the zone it landed. So smart. Azaz I fell out of and then back in love with him today. But he’s different class when he is in the middle. One assist and almost 2 or 3 more. Festy too I fell in and out of love with. He was equal crap and class but is so unpredictable that he brings something in those types of games that’s hard to describe but is valuable. We saw it against Finland. Kenny made an impression with me on his debut, not just in the oppo half but his work tracking back and down the channels. I like the look of him. Keeper pulled off a wonder save from him - Kenny did everything right. Speaking of which Kells was class again. Our back three was a bit of a mess but did what they needed to in a weirdly dysfunctional way. Cullen and Molumby worked so hard. Manning coming in for Jake was a good call in retrospect and he was solid. Feel so sorry for Ogbene, he was my MOTM up to when he went off - such a good out ball for us - wins frees and penos - and creates havoc with his pace.

Parrott.

It was a weird game actually. I feel like we had no right to win it but I’m watching it here again and, even though we didn’t really play that well at all, we had chances, proper chances and lots of half chances, they just had the ball and worked it well when they did. But they were too casual. We matched them more or less for all the big stats.

We were awful for long periods. 😂 Azaz was really bad. Until he wasnt.

Just one of those games. Don't think either rside ever really controlled it. The players stayed in it and Troy wouldn't let us die. Scales has his faults but he will not stop and he's very smart in the box.

[Eirambler]

Azaz has to play centrally or not at all I think. Playing a 5-2-3 makes that hard to accommodate though. It was more a 5-1-1-3 for the last half hour really, a crazy formation in hindsight but it was all or nothing at that stage.

[geysir]

Fell in love with Scales as a footballer this window. He was great on Thursday, far from perfect today but he did big things where and when it mattered. That header at the end was monumental, like it was intentionally placed into the zone it landed. So smart. Azaz I fell out of and then back in love with him today. But he’s different class when he is in the middle. One assist and almost 2 or 3 more. Festy too I fell in and out of love with. He was equal crap and class but is so unpredictable that he brings something in those types of games that’s hard to describe but is valuable. We saw it against Finland. Kenny made an impression with me on his debut, not just in the oppo half but his work tracking back and down the channels. I like the look of him. Keeper pulled off a wonder save from him - Kenny did everything right. Speaking of which Kells was class again. Our back three was a bit of a mess but did what they needed to in a weirdly dysfunctional way. Cullen and Molumby worked so hard. Manning coming in for Jake was a good call in retrospect and he was solid. Feel so sorry for Ogbene, he was my MOTM up to when he went off - such a good out ball for us - wins frees and penos - and creates havoc with his pace.

Parrott.

It was a weird game actually. I feel like we had no right to win it but I’m watching it here again and, even though we didn’t really play that well at all, we had chances, proper chances and lots of half chances, they just had the ball and worked it well when they did. But they were too casual. We matched them more or less for all the big stats.

Your love is fickle, stand by your team.

[rebelmusic]

My only criticism that's stayed in my head is Idah and the offsides. He barely, barely got onside for the second goal and there were a handful. It's been an issue with him for years and he really needs to clean it out of his game.

Otherwise, while I was throwing my shoe at the telly at some points, they ground out a result and that's all that matters. Proud of the lot of them!

[pineapple stu]

Just watching back the goals there on the iPlayer - couldn't hear in the pub - and it's fantastic to hear Houghton going mental at the winner. Couldn't watch the replay in case it looked offside. How many memorable goals has he scored for us, and now he's reacting like we did in 88 and 94 and even 1997.