WATCH: Impressive goal from Birmingham City striker seals Irish victory over Portugal U19

The Republic of Ireland U19 side produced an impressive display to beat Portugal 1-0 at the 12th U19 National Team Tournament in La Manga this on Sunday afternoon.

 

Birmingham City striker Ronan Hale grabbed the only goal with a stunning individual effort in the 69th minute and Ireland defended brilliantly throughout. Tom Mohan's side also had to show great character after being reduced to ten men for the final half hour due to the dismissal of Dan McKenna for two bookings.

 

Talking after the game Mohan was delighted with his side's performance.

 

"The boys did very well from the start. We'd a couple of good chances in the first half and just didn't finish them off. We defended very well even when we went down to ten men.

 

"Ronan Hale scored a great goal to put us ahead and the players responded very well with ten men and the subs came on to freshen things up and the whole team showed character.  

 



"To beat a top nation like Portugal ahead of going into the UEFA Elite Phase will help give the players a confidence boost. We've looked at a few players here and it's good for them to experience that sort of game.

 

"It sets us up for the next game against Slovakia on Tuesday and we'll look for a similar performance. I felt we were very good in the first half and even with ten men we denied them opportunities."

 

Watch Ronan Hale’s impressive strike below – video courtesy of FAI TV