There are times when football hits you like a truck.
Ireland, four minutes away from a home game against Denmark with a place in the World Cup at stake, are now facing into a Tuesday night friendly with North Macedonia that no-one really wants to play.
From dreams of glory on the world stage in the summer to a cold March evening against Macedonia in Dublin in the blink of eye.
A third-place play-off game is never an easy sell at a tournament but when it's the only consolation prize on offer after missing out on a World Cup place, it’s a gut punch.
The match, long sold-out with optimistic fans hoping that they’d be cheering on their side to this summer’s tournament, now becomes a curiosity at best.
There’s the concern that Tuesday’s game could have the biggest discrepancy between tickets sold and actual attendance and given the situation, and under previous managerial regimes that may have happened.
However, the way in which this Ireland team has reconnected with their fans and once again, captured the public’s imagination, it’s just as likely now that there’s a big turnout of people eager to show their support for Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side.
More than anything else this campaign, the rekindling of the relationship between the fans and team has been crucial.
It’s been a long time since Irish supporters had genuine belief in their team and even if the World Cup qualifiers ended in such heartbreak, that belief should continue into the Nations League campaign.
The relationship with the supporters was at the forefront of the players in the immediate aftermath in Prague.
Troy Parrott, Ireland’s new hope, put it most succinctly while speaking to RTÉ in the bowels of the Fortuna Stadium.
"All of the Irish that were here, all of the Irish that were supporting us back home, thank you, stick with us."
Tuesday’s attendance at the Aviva Stadium is the first chance that Ireland fans have to show just how committed they are to this team.
The players need picking up, need their heads lifted and those who have a ticket for the match have a chance to do just that.
Now is the time that the Ireland team really needs to be supported and a good vocal attendance against Macedonia will go a long was to doing that.
It’s not going to be easy for Irish supporters over the next few months. There’s little in the way of glamour on the horizon and the FAI really haven’t done the team of the fans any favours in setting up fixtures to get the blood racing.
The game against Macedonia will be followed by May friendlies against Grenada and Qatar, and then a June clash with World Cup hosts Canada, before the Nations League starts in September.
The Nations League campaign, given the nature of the group Ireland were drawn in, will present its own difficulties to navigate.
All eyes will on the two autumn international games with Israel and Halgrimsson and his squad are going to have to navigate the political tension that’s sure to surround those games.
It’s a headache that the team could do without but the manager is going to have to navigate a fine line between taking public sentiment on board while trying to prepare for the games and keeping outside distractions within his squad to a minimum.
There’s few who would envy Hallgrimsson his task over the next few months, and outside of the political issues he still has problems that need addressing within his squad.
Strength and depth and lack of a big 'Plan B’ remains a big concern for the manger.
The soft penalty that Ryan Manning gave away against Czechia was where many observers laid the blame for the hosts comeback but their manager Miroslav Koubek made a double half-time substitution that really changed the course of the game.
Ireland initially responded well to Patrick Schick’s spotkick and went into the break still in charge but the half-time introduction of Stephan Chaloupek and Tomas Soucek was where the game really changed.
Chaloupek helped the Czechs regain control at the back and the 6ft 4" defender was able to deal with the long throws and frees into the box that caused such chaos in the first half, while Soucek’s arrival saw Ireland lose control of midfield as they were increasingly forced deeper and deeper.
Koubek had the squad to make such effective changes on the pitch and while Ireland certainly felt the absence of the injured Josh Cullen, there was no-one really on the bench that Halgrimsson could call on to make a similar impact, particularly in midfield.
That’s got to be the focus of the next few months for the Ireland boss, to identify and bring in players that can offer something different and make a genuine impact off the bench.
Harvey Vale’s first cap is a step in the right direction there and he’ll hopefully get a bigger chance to stake a claim for himself on Tuesday but the manager has to be looking further afield for players that can make a difference.
That’s where the fans might have to step up again. Friendlies against a Grenada, Qatar and Canada will be an opportunity for Hallgrimsson to bring players in and get a proper look at them in a low stakes environment.
We could be in for some strange looking line-ups and systems over the next few months as Ireland begin to build towards the Nations League and Euro 2028 qualifying.
Stick with us, as Parrott said.
