How Twitter Reacted: Moldova 1 - 3 Rep of Ireland
The Republic of Ireland defeated Moldova on Sunday night by three goals to one and our reporter John Manning had an eye on Twitter on how it reacted over the course of the 90 minutes.
Before kick-off, the self-proclaimed “UK’s most popular odds comparison site” @Oddschecker was confident of an Irish victory, considering Moldova’s woeful home record of late.
Moldova have lost their last seven home matches and it is difficult to see anything other than an Irish victoryhttps://t.co/ifGfO7ky6i
— Oddschecker (@Oddschecker) October 9, 2016
And so it proved for Martin O’Neill’s men, but it wasn’t easy and it took a while for the win to manifest.
It started so well for the Irish. Two minutes in and Shane Long ended his barren spell for Ireland.
Shane Long's 1st goal in 1,226 minutes of football. #COYBIG
— Nathan Murphy (@nathanmurf) October 9, 2016
His goal drought on the International stage ended thanks to a magical pass by Wes Hoolahan.
That's why Wes should be in every Ireland team.. What a ball to set up the goal for Long #COYBIG#MOLIRE
— Stephen Burke (@burke_s) October 9, 2016
Wes, Wes, Wes... A class above... Well done Shane Long too #COYBIG
— Niall McGarry (@MrNiallMcGarry) October 9, 2016
That was a top class goal, the flick from Long, the touch from McClean, the pass from Wes and the finish from Long all perfect.. #COYBIG
— Adrian Sheehan (@asheehan180) October 9, 2016
And Twitter continued to rave about Norwich’s diminutive talisman.
????????Wes Hoolahan is a serious player. Great goal by Ireland. Important they win this comfortably after Wales' slip up earlier. #MOLIRE
— Tom Bermingham (@TQPRBermingham) October 9, 2016
How many times has Wes Hoolahan won the ball tonight? And people used to say he was a "luxury" creative-only player? #Ireland#COYBIG
— Gerard O'Shea (@osheagerard) October 9, 2016
Wes hoolahan could get into any team. Magic footballer.
— Tom duff (@GarlicGobbler) October 9, 2016
Ten minutes in and RTE were extolling the virtues of the Irish performance.
10 mins: A real energy to Ireland, looking to keep on the front foot and press home their advantage #MOLIRE#RTESoccer
— RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) October 9, 2016
But could Ireland build on that early goal and push on? Well not immediately. Before half-time, disaster struck. Completely against the run of play, Moldova equalised on the counter-attack just before half-time. The Twitterers were not happy.
Moldova level....that is dreadful. Why has Duffy stepped up so high??
— Gerard (@GerardGrimes11) October 9, 2016
Only Ireland have the ability to make Moldova look like a decent side...incredible how we always play to the level of the opposition
— James Brophy (@JBrophy2705) October 9, 2016
How is this game level? We were streets ahead of Moldova in the first half. We are specialists in self-destruction
— LiamLallana (@liamlallana20) October 9, 2016
But then James McClean stepped up and fired two goals past the Moldovan keeper as Wes Hooolahan shone away from home and the good folks of Twitterland responded in kind…
There won't be a greyhound walked on the streets of Derry tonight ???????????????????? #COYBIG#JamesMcLean
— PadraigMacLochlainn (@PadraigMacL) October 9, 2016
Martin O' Neill says McClean has "a heart the size of a lion" which makes his performance even more amazing, given his medical condition.
— Colm Tobin (@colmtobin) October 9, 2016
Nice point by @RichieSadlier there that the 3rd goal was a League of Ireland special with Wes, Coleman and McClean.
— Oisín the foreigner (@BikesNBukes) October 9, 2016
I do love James McClean
— Thomas O'Connell (@tomthebaggie) October 9, 2016
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About John Manning
John Manning began writing for Extratime.ie this year after retiring from the insurance industry. He has been a regular attendee at League of Ireland football matches since the 1970s. He has particularly supported Cork Hibs, … View Full Profile