Ireland's U19 Men secure passage through to Uefa Elite Round

Republic of Ireland U19s qualified for the UEFA European Championship Elite Round after topping their qualifying round group with a 2-1 win over Serbia on Tuesday.

Ireland began the group with a frustrating 0-0 draw against Azerbaijan at the RSC in Waterford.

However, three days later Tom Mohan’s side eased past Cyprus with a 5-0 win with goals coming through a hattrick by captain Jayson Molumby and a brace by Jonathan Afolabi.

Serbia had won their first two games, beating Cyprus and Azerbaijan, meaning Ireland needed at least a point to ensure qualification to the Elite Round and if they were to top the group, they needed to beat Serbia.

It was Serbia who took the lead just before the half hour as Luka Ilic’s free kick found the net off the underside of the crossbar.

Ireland equalised fourteen minutes into the second half through a Lee O’Connor header before UCD’s Neil Farrugia put Mohan’s side in front with 20 minutes to play.

Both sides had players sent off late on in the shape of Aaron Bolger and Aleksandar Popovic with Ireland holding on for a 2-1 victory after what Mohan called a dominant second half.

“Serbia are always a top side in underage European football. For our boys to go 1-0 down and come back show the spirit and the character in the group.

“We dominated the second half, our boys dug in, kept the ball well and converted our chances when we created them. We’re very pleased.

“There is great ability in the group. We are producing good players, no matter what anybody says, and there are plenty of positives to take from the campaign,” Mohan said.

Ireland improved through the qualifying campaign to earn qualification and now go into the Elite Round draw in December as number one seeds.

“Although we didn’t score in the first game we probably created more chances than any other game.

“The Cyprus game gave us a massive boost when we needed it and that set us up nicely for today. We are number 1 seeds going into the Elite Round draw and that is hugely positive,” Mohan said.