It’s six years today since Robbie Brady put the ball in the Italian net.
Six years since the former Manchester United prospect sent the nation wild with delight, with a Euro 2016 goal on a sweltering night in Lille that earned the Boys in Green a spot in the last-16 of the competition.
Darren O’Dea was a member of the Ireland squad four years earlier in Poland, when Giovanni Trapattoni’s side bowed out with three defeats in three games.
During Euro 2016 he was a columnist with the Irish Daily Star - and his reaction to the 1-0 win over Italy perfectly captured the mood of a euphoric country.
Here’s how O’Dea, in the immediate aftermath of one of Ireland’s greatest ever results, described the action.
Balls of steel. Proper balls of steel.
That's what Ireland had last night - every last player that stood toe-to-toe with Italy.
It was sheer guts, it was glory and utter will to win.
The emotion of the players as they lapped up the applause from their supporters was a joy to see.
And the tears from Robbie Brady probably made every single Irish person in Lille last night and watching at home well up.
I was delighted that Robbie got the goal. Along with Jeff Hendrick, he was our standout player last night.
And for Wes Hoolahan to send over that cross moments after missing a sitter, serious balls of steel.
It was the ball of the tournament; the best cross I have seen in a long time.
He put it on a plate for Robbie, who must have covered some amount of ground to get into the box and get his head on the ball.
It has earned him iconic status and he deserves it, not only because he has been so good for us, but because he has serious drive and guts.
And he has quality as well.
I think that team selection surprised us all. But it quickly became apparent that Martin O'Neill wanted to get as much legs into the team as possible.
And it worked right from the off. With the energy of the Irish performance and the pressure we put on them, the Italians didn't know whether to stick or twist.
They just couldn't get into a rhythm.
It was as good a first-half performance as I have seen. We bullied them.
As I wrote yesterday we needed a 100-mile-an-hour performance, one that brings the best out of Irish players and teams.
The Italians had no answer in the first-half. The only shame was that we didn't cap it with a goal - and we can thank the referee for that.
He missed a stonewall penalty when James McClean was sent tumbling just as he was about to pull the trigger.
It reminded me of Martin O'Neill's Celtic and the blood and thunder performances he got out of his players in big matches at Parkhead.
Of course he set up his side's in certain ways and gave instructions to his players, but in other ways it was sheer guts. It was nearest man getting to the ball.
They were not hugely tactical affairs. Players were running with their hearts; less so with their heads.
Of course O'Neill's Celtic had quality too - and we had quality last night with players such as Brady and Hendrick.
Aside from a spell around the 70th minute we didn't let the tempo slide last night.
At that stage I thought we were dead on our feet. Italy hit the post and they looked like they were getting a grip on the game.
But our heroes dug deep and found reserves of energy to find the crucial goal. It all came together - the guts, desire, tempo and quality.
The players took a bit of criticism after the Belgium game; from themselves as much as anyone else.
So to come out and play with that energy and commitment was incredible. It would have been utterly criminal if they had not won the game.
I'm not quite sure how they are going to recover from that. They will need to sleep in ice baths for the next 24 to 48 hours.
I'm sure they are shattered and they will know that they need an even bigger effort against the hosts France, who have had three days' extra rest.
But hopefully they will just enjoy the moment - take it in for 24 hours and then work harder than ever to be ready for France.
This is up there with anything Ireland have ever done - the Giants Stadium, Euro '88, Robbie Keane's equalisers against Germany and Spain; these are the moments that are remembered.
We will remember those last five minutes against Italy - and the courageous 85 that preceded them.
And we will remember that this was an Irish side with balls of steel!
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