Forde offering no excuses as Irish brought ‘back to reality’

David Forde says Ireland’s 2-1 defeat to Serbia brought the squad “back down to reality” — but that there are still plenty of positives to be taken from the game.

Martin O’Neill suffered his first loss as Irish manager in the game, as the side seemed to badly flag in energy after an initially promising opening period that saw Shane Long score the opening goal. The Serbians gradually worked their way back into the game, however, as Ireland lost momentum as well as impetus.

“Well, it just brings you back down to reality,” goalkeeper Forde said. “We’ve got a really important summer ahead. We’ve got some important games coming up and we need to get some hard work done. Those three weeks over the summer will be vital.