Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Robert Hynes

Paul McGrath hails 'great performance' as Ireland beat Scotland 3-0

Paul McGrath was impressed with Ireland's performance as Stephen Kenny's side defeated Scotland 3-0 in the Nations League.

Goals from Alan Browne, Troy Parrott and Michael Obafemi, who stole the show at the Aviva Stadium, gave Stephen Kenny's side their first ever Nations League win and their first competitive victory in Dublin since they beat Gibraltar in a Euro 2020 qualifier in June 2019.

Ireland legend McGrath attended the game and took to social media to praise the Boys in Green after the match.

He tweeted: "Great performance by an Irish side who showed commitment all over the pitch tonight, 3 great goals."

Michael Obafemi marked his full debut with a stunning strike as Ireland ended their wait for a first Nations League victory at the 13th attempt by putting Scotland to the sword.

The 21-year-old Swansea striker drilled home a 30-yard piledriver to cement a 3-0 League B Group One win, just Ireland’s third victory in 18 competitive games under manager Kenny.

The strike came after first-half goals from Browne and Parrott.

And Kenny admitted he could not have expected Obafemi to make quite the impact he did after seeing him inspire Ireland to victory.

Asked if he had been surprised by Obafemi’s contribution before he limped off with a groin problem, the Ireland boss said: “I couldn’t have envisaged him scoring a goal like that, but I think having watched him play in the run of games – I watched him play quite a bit towards the end of the season – his performances were the best of all our strikers.

“His overall performances for Swansea towards the end of the season were the best of our strikers, if I was to rate them.

“He worked very hard for the team, but obviously his pass for Troy Parrott’s header, it was just a great combination between the two players, terrific play, and his goal was really a moment of immense quality.

“It was great to see that hit the back of the net and it lifted the stadium. It was terrific.”

Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.