Soccer

Ireland under-15s get their international careers off to a winning start

A Ben Quinn goal in the 25th minute proved to be enough for Jason Donohue’s side

Ireland’s Ben Quinn celebrates his goal against Poland. Photo: FAI

Tue Nov 20 2018 - 19:50

Poland 0 Ireland 1

The Republic of Ireland under-15s began their season with a well-deserved 1-0 victory away to Poland.

A Ben Quinn goal in the 25th minute proved to be enough for Jason Donohue’s side, as the team were given their first taste of international football. The winger found himself free at the back post, and cooly scored from a Sean Fitzpatrick cross.

Head coach Jason Donohue spoke after the win and said that he was delighted with how the team coped on their international debuts.

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“We were outstanding in the first half. We dominated position and remained composed throughout dominating position,” said Donohue.

“In the second half, Poland improved. They had some long-range shots, and not much more. The team were very resilient and I thought they were very calm under the Polish pressure.”

The teams meet once more on Thursday morning in the Polish town of Police.

POLAND: Oliwier Zych; Jakub Kolan, Mateusz Lipp, Jakub Zloch, Borys Freillich, Joshua Klockner, Ivo Kaczmarski, Antoni kozubal, Patryk Romanowski; Michal Samborski, Kacper Sommerfeld.

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Lee Morris; Tommy Fogarty (Craig King 55 (Aaron O'Reilly 70), Ben Curtis, Darragh Reilly, Cian Kelly; Glory Nzingo (capt), Luke McGlynn, Jamie Mullins (John Joe Power 55); Sean Fitzpatrick (Conor Campbell 55), Evan Ferguson (Michael Leddy 75), Ben Quinn (John Ryan 80+3).