Republic of Ireland v Moldova: Daryl Murphy brace sets up ‘play-off for the play-offs’ against Wales

Martin O'Neil's team could still top the group

Ireland celebrate with goal scorer Daryl Murphy (Action Plus via Getty Images)

The calm before the storm. Daryl Murphy scored twice to help Ireland to an ultimately easy 2-0 win over Moldova, and set up a momentous ‘play-off for the play-offs’ against Wales in Cardiff on Monday.

This result put Ireland within a point of the Welsh, who lie in second, but those stats are almost immaterial since the bottom line is that both sides need to win to ensure they are not bottom of the nine European runners-up, since only eight go through to the eliminators.

There is also the opportunity of topping the group, after first-placed Serbia slipped up with a 3-2 defeat away to Austria.

Before we get to all the complications of Monday, this much more simplistic night at least saw Martin O’Neill justify his somewhat-debated new contract by taking Ireland right to the last match of the campaign.

That is not to be dismissed given that Ireland were without so many first-team players in the suspended Robbie Brady and James McClean and injured Seamus Coleman and Jon Walters.

Throughout this campaign, as well as much of the last decade, Ireland have had a tendency to make hard work of matches against notionally easy opponents and it did seem set up for a long night after it was confirmed that Wales had made short work of Georgia. A depleted Ireland were instead very quickly in the lead, because they quickly realised how susceptible Moldova were to set-pieces. After just two minutes, Stephen Ward took a long throw-in from the left, it took a deflection, and Murphy was in to steer it past Ilie Pavel Cebanu from close range.

There was more to the striker’s celebration than just the fact Ireland had taken the initiative and taken the lead. It was just Murphy’s second goal for Ireland, but it wasn’t too long until he’d trebled his pre-game account.

On 19 minutes, Wesley Hoolahan played one of his typically glorious crossfield balls to Ward, who then curled in a decent ball of his own. It wasn’t quite perfect, but Murphy’s header was. The Nottingham Forest striker agilely adjusted his body to deftly direct the ball back across goal, and into the corner of the net.

It was the first time in two years that Ireland had been 2-0 ahead at half-time at home, and the reasons for that were shown just minutes before the goal, after the misfiring Shane Long – the first-choice striker – missed a fine opportunity after good work from Callum O’Dowda.

That was the greater value to Murphy suddenly hitting the net twice and hitting form.

Ireland supporter 'The Green Hulk' cheers the team (Getty Images)

Ireland weren’t completed composed yet, though, as reflected when Darren Randolph pulled off a fine save from a long-range Sergiu Platica piledriver.

A certain one-dimensional functionality to Ireland’s play has been a criticism of the O’Neill era even allowing for the fact this is one of the country’s weakest squads for some time, and it is something to concentrate on for the next spell of his time in charge - as is a tendency to sit back unnecessarily deep on taking a lead.

The latter became all too evident again in the second half, creating unnecessary nerves. Those nerves only got worse on the hour when Ireland finally broke through Hoolahan. For once, he picked the wrong pass when through on goal and in the box, the move eventually ending with Long trying to pick his spot in an open net, only for it to drop wide. You could see why he had gone 24 games without a goal for club or country.

Ireland did drop off a bit too much, but it didn’t matter as Moldova’s frustrations rose, leading to Aleksandru Gatcan getting sent off in the final moments for head-butting Harry Arter. That was as hectic as it got, and is just as well given how tense and chaotic Cardiff is set to be. Just another manic Monday