Watch: Ogbene's star continues to shine with Wembley cracker

The Corkman claimed his first silverware since moving to England from Limerick in 2018.

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 03: Chiedozie Ogbene of Rotherham United celebrates after scoring their side's third goal during the Papa John's Trophy Final between Rotherham United and Sutton United at Wembley Stadium on April 03, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)

EFL Trophy Final: Rotherham United 4 Sutton United 2 

Chiedozie Ogbene’s purple patch is shining brighter after his peach of a goal helped clinch the EFL Cup for Rotherham United at Wembley Stadium.

Fresh from his heroics for Ireland, starting and scoring against Belgium followed by another start against Lithuania, the Corkman has claimed his first silverware since moving to England from Limerick in 2018.

🤌 A beauty from Ogbene!#EFL | #PapaJohnsTrophy pic.twitter.com/YSHyucG9hT

— Vertu Trophy (@VertuTrophy) April 3, 2022

Twice his League One leaders fell behind to Sutton United side sitting in mid-table of the tier beneath but they forced the decider into extra-time by Jordi Osei-Tutu snatching a 96th minute equaliser.

Ogbene – who operates a wing-back role for his club in contrast to central striker with Ireland – fired the Millers into a 3-2 lead with a 20-yard rocket, much to the delight of the 12,000 fans who travelled from Yorkshire. Michael Ihiekwe quashed any prospect of a comeback by making it 4-2 with eight minutes remaining.

“Credit to Sutton, they showed character but this is football,” he told Sky Sports afterwards. “I told the boys to dig deep going into stoppage time because it’s easy to give up. The equaliser was the crucial moment. We all had tired legs going into extra time but the ball sat up well so I had to take a shot. Hopefully this gives us the momentum to finish the season on a high.” 

Ogbene’s Wembley moment caps an incredible year for the 24-year-old from Grange. Having recovered from injury and finalised his eligibility through Fifa’s system, he earned his first call-up to the Ireland squad for the summer friendlies, making his debut off the bench against Euro 2020-bound Hungary in Budapest.

Hamstring trouble kept him out of the September window but he returned to feature in Azerbaijan – scoring his first goal – before starting the friendly at home to Qatar. He kept his starting slot the final World Cup qualifiers against Portugal and Luxembourg, scoring against the latter, before his overhead goal against the Belgium brought his tally to three.

Ogbene is determined to move up a standard to at least Championship level next year, whether or not Rotherham seal promotion. They have the option of extending his contract for a year beyond this summer’s expiry date.