Euro 2012 qualification - Irish victory gives much needed lift

LET the party begin! Ten years to the day since Ireland qualified for the World Cup in Japan, the national soccer team has won a coveted place in the finals of Euro 2012.

It was a very special night for Irish football, an achievement that puts sport in a context it is meant to have — a field of human endeavour that is uplifting, stirring, moving and inspiring.

Considering that Ireland have not qualified for a major finals since the 2002 World Cup, needing to win a play-off against Iran to reach the Far East, this time, it was refreshingly different. Much to their credit, the team gained the elusive prize at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin without having to go through the unnerving play-off process away from home.

In this sports-mad island of ours, with a population smaller than most big cities, success in sport gives everybody a shot in the arm. Most recently, that was evident when the Irish rugby team played in the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.

Having qualified, they went on to beat Australia, reaching the quarter finals for the first time. Notwithstanding the defeat by Wales, everyone in the country felt a deep sense of pride in their achievement.

The same adulation will now be poured liberally on the heads of our soccer players. Despite being denigrated for playing a more cautious style than most other teams, due largely to the defensive tactics dictated by veteran manager Giovanni Trapattoni, they have been hard to beat. In reaching the finals of Euro 2012, they have often boxed above their weight.

Mr Trapattoni, who has pledged to climb Croagh Patrick in thanksgiving, was absolutely right to remind both players and fans alike of the danger of taking Estonia for granted. A consummate professional to his fingertips, he impressed on every member of the team the importance of remaining focused and of treating last night’s game as the professionals they are at national and club level. Whatever sympathy one might feel for Estonia, football is a ruthless business.

The whole country is now looking ahead to next summer’s European Championships in Poland and Ukraine. For the cash-shy IFA, the team’s achievement will bring a bonanza of €8 million. For the economy, it will also mean a major boost estimated in the region of €100 million in the run-up to the European finals.

Most important of all, perhaps, in these times of great uncertainty on every perspective — financial, economic and political — it has given the Irish people an exciting chance to look forward to something positive and definite, a real sense of goodwill, hope and expectation on an otherwise bleak landscape. The players and managers have given us all much cause for celebration.