Honest Ireland still on course

Drawing 1-1 was a good result for Republic of Ireland against a very disappointing Bulgaria team on Saturday night but then again you have to give Ireland credit for making them look disappointing.

The result puts Ireland in a tremendous position within the group and I’m sure Giovanni Trapattoni will be absolutely thrilled.

It was interesting to see what he did  in substituting Robbie Keane. We don’t know if maybe Robbie had a little injury or if he was saying that he had not been getting the service that he wanted but the team must come first. And if you are such a coach that you are able to take off such a big player and you get the right result then that really helps in terms of your authority and your respect in the dressing room.

Ireland tried to get a result. Players are not stupid and they knew the importance, after having got a point against Italy, of getting another one in Bulgaria.

They had a really good start which gave them a foundation, The zonal marking – used for Richard Dunne’s goal - was a poor choice by the Bulgarians, though it was a really quick response when five minutes later, a mix-up between Sean St Ledger and Kevin Kilbane, led to the equaliser, which by the way was a top-class finish.

But that aisde Bulgaria were poor, Martin Petrov and Valeri Bojinv were not fit. But this Irish team, though it is quite ugly and not that aesthetically beautiful, is effective. And the honesty and the heart of Keith Andrews and Glenn Whelan at the heart of midfield – two guys who are very easy targets – was key to the performance because they neutralised Stiliyan Petrov and gave Dimitar Berbatov very little space when he dropped deep.

Don’t expect Ireland to be beautiful. They are on a mission to get to South Africa. It’s hard to watch but it’s all about graft and about honesty. They are essential ingredients to success as well and they deserved their point.

There is a question now, with a below-par Italy, of whether Ireland can actually win the group. This team is not over-achieving, it’s not under-achieving; everything is on target. The natural place for them in this group is for them to finish second and in a playoff place. That gives them a good chance of going to South Africa, but it is not actually qualification.

What happens with teams at international level is that players get great confidence and feel good about themselves when the results come. You find that if there is a sustained period of grinding out results that you actually build on that and the performances improve as well.

The qualification campaign is all about results. The time to play really well and flourish is when you qualify, then you can put on a great result in South Africa.

Pat Dolan was speaking as part of Setanta Sports' live coverage of Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifier in Bulgaria.

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