The little risk that may have huge payback

MARTIN SKRTEL was unmoved. After Slovakia’s visit to Dublin in September, the defender declared Ireland “predictable”. And Estonian midfielder Martin Vunk echoed those sentiments yesterday. Having studied Ireland’s matches, he revealed the main threat they deciphered was wingers crossing.

Of course, the offset of all that is neither Skrtel nor any of his more creative team-mates managed to score in Dublin. And, tonight, Estonia will be hoping to become only the second team to breach Ireland’s backline in 10 matches.

That apparent conflict between mean defence and moderate attack, however, has occasionally threatened to consume Ireland’s campaign. Indeed, it’s given rise to the most fractious tactical debate in this country since Eamon Dunphy threw a pen across an RTÉ studio 21 years ago.