Irish determination and desire were a match for English skill in their 1-1 draw at Wembley, according to Republic of Ireland captain Robbie Keane.
Ireland had to dig deep in the second half to earn a draw after Frank Lampard had cancelled out Shane Long’s terrific headed opener.
Resolute defending was complemented by a fine display from goalkeeper David Forde, who made a number of crucial saves as English pressure began to build late in the game.
Keane said: “If we look at the performance we showed against England, it was a good performance. We always have the determination and desire to win any game.
“They probably had a lot more possession than we had. They keep the ball for maybe 10 to 12 passes, whereas we probably get three or four passes. When you are playing against these teams you know you have to set your stall out and know your strengths.
“Our strengths are getting in people’s faces. When we are playing against the Faroe Islands we can get the ball down and pass it and more often.”
Some of the other positives for Keane on the night were the performances of Seamus Coleman and Long, who combined for the goal, as well as keeper Forde.
“It was a great ball by Seamus and it was a great leap by Longy,” was Keane observation on Ireland’s well-worked goal on 13 minutes.
“It was like Quinny (Niall Quinn) in the day. It was good as it set the stall out for us. It was disappointing to concede the goal after that. On reflection, I think 1-1 is probably a good result for everyone.
“He [Forde] made three good saves. They obviously had more chances than we had. There’s no question about that. David Forde was brilliant, not just his saves, but I think in the way he came for corners and collected the ball. When you have a goalkeeper that does that it breeds confidence into the team.”
The build-up to the first game between the sides in 18 years had been dominated by the violent events at Lansdowne Road in 1995.
Keane had stressed in his pre-match press conference that he would like to see a healthy rivalry renewed and on the basis of last night it looks like both sets of fans and players would welcome regular meetings.
“Full credit to the Irish fans again. They were superb,” he said.
“They came out in numbers as usual and they were the same as they are in any game. I think both sets of fans were good.
“If you look at 11,000 Irish fans the way they were singing and the way they behaved themselves was a full credit to them. You could easily get a few people coming over here for the wrong reasons, you know, but from what I’ve heard they behaved themselves.”
Coleman was most people’s man of the match and the former Sligo Rovers defender said his consistent form this season has been down to a regular starting role as Everton’s right-back.
The Donegal native was a constant threat on the attack and whipped the ball in for Long to score, while at the back his speed was a welcome asset in combating English winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
“We scored the early goal and we were hoping to win the game, but I think towards the end we sat back a lot,” said Coleman.
“They had a few chances and David Forde made a great save against Oxlade-Chamberlain, so maybe in the end it was a fair result.
“You had lads throwing their bodies on the line. The likes of [Sean] St Ledger and Josh (John O’Shea) were getting some crucial blocks in. I thought Stephen Kelly done brilliant up against Theo Walcott all night.”
Coleman labelled the experience of taking on England at Wembley as “brilliant” and hopes last night’s positive experience can be repeated in the near future.
Playing against the likes of Lampard and Wayne Rooney in the English Premier League every week also meant Coleman and his team-mates would not be overawed by facing them in the international arena.
He said: “It’s something that since the fixture was announced that we were all looking forward to and we wanted to go out there and give a good account of ourselves because as you seen out there our fans are brilliant.
“I thought we played lovely football at times and I suppose a draw isn’t the worst result.
“You’re used to their strengths and weaknesses and you are up against top class players every week in the Premier League, but it is a bit different on the international stage.
“You are playing with lads that you don’t play with week-in week-out at your club. It’s a bit different, but they’re all top players.”
Ireland will now prepare for the friendly against Georgia on Sunday and the key World Cup qualifier against the Faroe islands on Friday 7 June with confidence levels boosted.
For Coleman, last night’s performance will count for little unless they back it up against the north Atlantic minnows.
He said: “It’s never nice to lose games and that’ll give us confidence, but the main reason for this trip is the Faroe Islands, so we need to be prepared for that.
“We have got a big game against Georgia on Sunday to prepare for the Faroe Islands, but that game is one we can’t afford to slip up on.”
