Ireland thrashed at Turner's Cross

Republic of Ireland Under-21 0 Turkey Under-21 3

The Republic of Ireland Under-21 side were on the wrong end of a 3-0 humbling by their Turkish counterparts in a disappointing UEFA 2011 qualification clash at Turner’s Cross.

Turkey Under-21s remain top of the group after sealing their victory with a memorable third goal in injury-time.

The Irish started brightly, with Owen Garvan – who went close to opening the scoring after six minutes – and Alan Judge impressing in midfield, but lacked cutting edge in attack.

A defensive error eventually broke the stalemate, Republic skipper Eddie Nolan’s short pass handing Deniz Yilmaz the chance to drill home from 10 yards, a chance the young Turk took with aplomb.

Turkey’s second came three minutes from the interval in fortunate circumstances, with Ozkan prodding the ball home from six yards after the ball deflected off him in a crowded box.

Garvan again went close for Ireland after some nice build-up play from the hosts but again their finishing was not as precise as that of their opponents.

Jay O’Shea and substitute James McCarthy also spurned good chances as the Republic tried and failed to get a foothold in the game.

With seconds left to play Sismanoglu showed them how it was done, skipping past Nolan’s challenge as he bore down on goal before burying his shot past Shane Redmond from close range.