General view of the Aviva Stadium.(Image: ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne)
Ireland’s dead rubber clash with North Macedonia on Tuesday have hundreds of tickets up for resale, following their heartbreaking penalty shootout defeat to Czechia in the World Cup play-off semi-final.
The capital was gearing up for a huge clash against Denmark for a place in the 2026 World Cup this summer, set to be hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico.
However, after Ireland had initially taken the lead in the shoot-out following Caoimhin Kelleher’s save, Finn Azaz and Alan Browne then missed their spot kicks, meaning the wait for a place in the World Cup goes on for Irish fans.
Ireland will now face North Macedonia after they were defeated 4-0 by Denmark with Mikkel Damsgaard, Gustav Isaksen (2) and Christian Nørgaard all on the scoresheet at Parken, in Copenhagen.
With nothing now riding on the game, some fans are expected to give it a miss, while others are trying to sell their tickets.
As of Friday morning, more than 100 tickets were listed for resale on Ticketmaster, with prices ranging from €40 to €172.50 each.
Thursday’s game attracted the most viewers for a TV programme in Ireland this year, with RTÉ saying it reached 1.6 million at its peak.
Speaking after the game, a devastated Heimir Hallgrímsson said: “We have shown our supporters that we can compete and punch above our weight and we will grow, I think, as we play more games in preparation for the Euros,” Hallgrímsson said.
“It is sad now to talk about the Euros now, but that’s our job now.
“We are on a journey and we are trying to improve. I think we have improved in a lot of metrics and we just want to continue doing that.”
He added: “And it’s punching above our weight, winning three games in a row, which hasn’t happened for the Irish national team.
“And to show the character again, four times in the last year, we have won games that we have been losing and you have to go 16 years back for the last time that happened.
“So, a lot of things are changing, mentally and on the pitch as well, hopefully we will continue growing.”
Defender Nathan Collins said: “I‘m not seeing many positives right now because we’re in the gutter.
“What we’ve created, the environment created with the fans and country, has been special.
“That’s something we need to keep growing, to get even better at.
“That can help us get better on the pitch. We can push that and get fans to more tournaments.”
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