Seamus Coleman ‘close to tears’ at Euro 2016 qualification joy

The Irish team hotel was still buzzing yesterday morning as the heroes of the night before packed their bags and said their farewells.

“I said it to my wife coming down in the lift there, it’s still a bit surreal,” said Seamus Coleman, happily mingling with family and friends and, to his credit, sparing a few words for us scurvy hacks, to boot.

“I don’t know when it will sink in,” he went on. “When Jonny’s second goal went in, I was nearly close to tears. It was one of those moments, it was something I wanted all my life.