King upbeat despite Turkish defeat

IRELAND U21 boss Noel King is adamant his side are still in the mix for reaching the 2013 European Championships after watching them suffer a first competitive loss under his reign in Manisa.

Trailing to a sloppy 10th minute opener, Ireland still mustered a brave effort in their quest to salvage a result, which would have boosted their qualification hopes on the back of last Thursday’s victory over Hungary in their opener.

A lofted ball from Turkey full-back Kamil Çörekçi into the inside-right channel was poorly defended, allowing the alert Sahin Aygünes to take full advantage by rounding the Ireland goalkeeper Ian McLoughlin and tucking home from an acute angle.