Irelands remarkable wins over Portugal and Hungary were among the stories of an incredible international break and booked the Boys in Green an unlikely place in the World Cup play-offs.
Thursdays draw saw the Boys in Green pitted against Czech Republic on March 26 before a potential final date with either Denmark or North Macedonia five days later. Crucially, if they get past the Czechs, they will play in Dublin.
The playoffs bring up plenty of bad memories for Ireland
There isnt a huge amount of history between Ireland and Czech Republic with the countries having only met on eight occasions and not in a competitive game since September 2007.
However, as fate would have it, that encounter in Prague was a defeat that all but guaranteed Steve Stauntons side would not make it to Euro 2008, and the end of his short but shambolic reign in charge.
90+5mins: 2-3 Ireland holds its breath, on the last throw of the dice... Hattrick for Parrott @rte2 @rteplayer https://t.co/xaKTb2LBVG @rteradio1 https://t.co/PEszeaDYyf Updates: https://t.co/TC5xt2IxRd pic.twitter.com/Ags3WrAwOzNovember 16, 2025
Thousands will descend on Prague in late March, hoping for an away day to rival Budapest and a passage through the Czech capital to a date with destiny in Dublin
While there isnt much of an added narrative with their semi-final opponents, both potential final foes have enough lore for a set of fantasy novels. North Macedonia might not stir much emotion for many nations but for Ireland, they were the nemesis of the late-1990s.
A glorious decade in Irish football could and should have had more finals appearances but for two calamitous days in the former Yugoslav republic. The first came fittingly close to April Fools Day in 1997 where Ireland fell to a 3-2 defeat in an infamous orange shirt that was quickly retired afterwards.
The phrase I had a Macedonia slipped its way into Irish pop culture and folklore and the nightmare repeated itself two and half years later, this time with Euro 2000 automatic qualification on the line.
In the final game of the campaign with Ireland battling Yugoslavia and Croatia for top spot in quite the geopolitical group, Niall Quinns goal looked to have top spot sealed only for Goran Stavrevski to strike in the 90th minute and force Ireland into the play-offs where they lost to Turkey on away goals.
Thankfully, there are no away goals in the current single-game format and if North Macedonia do reach the final, itll be in Dublin, not Skopje. A relief to anyone who lived through those scarred campaigns.
Instead, the likely visitors to the Aviva Stadium are the last team to beat the Boys in Green in a World Cup final playoff. The Danes will have their own fears after the shock failure to beat Belarus led to their dramatic loss in Scotland, but they will be nothing to compared to those of the hosts.
Just over eight years ago, after navigating a fine 0-0 away draw in the first leg, Shane Duffy gave Martin ONeills an early lead in Dublin and had the nation dreaming. It soon turned into a nightmare with Christian Eriksen leading Denmark to a stunning 5-1 win, with the midfielder hitting a hat-trick.
A chastening night spelt the end for both Irelands World Cup hopes and their status as a semi-competent football nation, with the misdemeanours of those running the sport in the country coming home to roost. The intervening eight years have been the lowest in their history.
There has been next to nothing for Irish fans to cling onto in recent times, with wins a rarity and the concept of rock bottom changing by the year. That was until Parrott breathed new life into Irish football with possibly their best-ever back-to-back results.
Hope has returned. Belief is growing and will only swell over the next four months. Theres a positivity around the national team that hasnt existed since before that harrowing night in November 2017.
So perhaps its fate that Denmark and Eriksen could be the last obstacle between Ireland and a first World Cup in a generation.
