Northern Ireland 0 - 2 Wales

• Jessica Farry
• Fri, May 27 2011


A dull game between Northern Ireland and Wales at the Aviva Stadium gave Wales their first and only win in the Carling Nations Cup.

Wales started the game with more confidence and alertness than their rivals and were threatening the Northern Ireland defence constantly throughout the early stages of the game. Gary Speed’s side were causing danger down the wings, where the majority of their early attacks came from.

Wales were the team with the first faint opportunity when David Vaughan played in the ball to Steve Morison. Colin Coates was there to prevent the Millwall man from sneaking the ball in to the net and Wayne Hennessy had no trouble saving.

Despite Wales being the stronger side, Nigel Worthington’s men did cause urgency in the Wales box. Johnny Gorman was able to get to ball to Niall McGinn but his effort bounced off Danny Gabbidon. Blackpool player Craig Cathcart had an opportunity in the 17th minute but his effort from long range was once again gathered safely by Wayne Hennessy.

Welsh captain Aaron Ramsey easily could have put his side 1-0 up when an inch-perfect cross from Craig Bellamy landed at the head of Steve Morison. Morison headed the cross across to Ramsey, whose close-range effort was blocked on the line. Wales were able to put their early domination to use in the 36th minute.

The opener came after a minute of madness in the Northern Ireland area. What looked like a miss-hit from David Cotteril reached Craig Bellamy whose cross was fisted away by Tuffey. Welsh skipper Aaron Ramsey controlled the ball very well and took a lovely strike to put Wales ahead.

Niall McGinn was gifted an opportunity to grab an equaliser after Wayne Hennessy and Danny Collins both clashed in to the Celtic midfielder. The ball was left free but McGinn was unable to convert it. Wales were still well on top but were wasting their chances. Neither side made any changes at half-time, which was surprising, given the fact that Northern Ireland were second-best all second-half.

A slow start to the second-half was not aided by the lack of movement from both sides. Craig Bellamy came close early on, when West Ham midfielder Jack Collison floated a good ball to Bellamy whose powerful strike was just wide of the post. If his shot had been further to the left, it would have beaten Jonathon Tuffey in goals. Bellamy’s pace was causing plenty of problems for Northern Ireland who were also struggling to deal with Aaron Ramsey. The Arsenal youngster was at the centre of every single attack from Wales. Northern Ireland were not offering anything up front and looked nervous in defence.

Nigel Worthington’s hopes were sunk when substitute Rob Earnshaw doubled the Welsh lead with a stunning goal on 68 minutes. David Cotteril worked his way around the Northern Ireland defence and crossed to Rob Earnshaw. The Nottingham Forest man smashed home with a perfect turn, beating Colin Coates, Jonny Gorman and Jonathon Tuffey. He even celebrated with his signature flip. The game was a great deal quieter after the second Welsh goal. Neither nation were able to string passes together and the ball was mainly being passed about between the Welsh back four.

Wales were by far the better team and deserved their victory. Nigel Worthington’s side were completely bossed about by the stronger side and need to adjust their team significantly to be victorious in future games.

Northern Ireland: Jonathon Tuffey, Lee Hodson, Colin Coates, Craig Cathcart (Stuart Dallas, 62), Gareth McAuley, Oliver Norwood, John Carson, Robert Garrett (Carl Winchester, 76), Niall McGinn (Jordan Owens, 80), Warren Feeney (Liam Boyce, 72), Jonny Gorman.
Subs not used : Alan Blayney, Josh McQuoid
Bookings:None
Sendings Off: None

Wales: Wayne Hennessy (Lewis Price, 74), Chris Gunter (Adam Matthews, 72), Neil Taylor, Jack Collison (Owain Tudor-Jones, 62), Danny Collins, Danny Gabbidon, David Cotteril, Craig Bellamy (Rob Earnshaw, 62), Steve Morison (Sam Vokes, 80), Aaron Ramsey (Andy Dorman, 89), David Vaughan.
Subs not used:Boaz Myhill, Craig Morgan, Andy King, Jermaine Easter, Neal Eardley.
Bookings:Owain Tudor-Jones
Sendings Off: None.

extratime.ie Man of the Match : Aaron Ramsey
Referee: Alan Kelly