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INPHO/Donall Farmer
League of Ireland

Ireland finish third in FIFPro tournament

Pat Scully’s side beat Finland in the third/fourth place play-off at the FIFPro tournament in Oslo.

IRELAND’S PFAI SQUAD bounced back from penalty shootout defeat to finish third at the annual FIFPro Winter tournament today.

Shane Tracy and Barry O’Mahony scored in either half as Ireland beat Finland 2-0 in the third/fourth place play-off in Oslo’s Valhalla Arena.

But it is the performances rather than the results that will be the focus for the 18 out-of-contract Airtricity League players who travelled in the hope of catching a club’s eye and securing a new deal for 2013.

The third-place finish was a silver lining for Pat Scully’s side after they drew 1-1 with a Norwegian selection managed by former Leeds United star Eirik Bakke before losing on penalties.

Hoping to go one better than last year’s runner-up finish, Ireland got off to the worst possible start when they conceded in the first minute but equalised through former Dundalk midfielder Stephen Maher who earned and converted a penalty late on.

Ex-Waterford man Peter Higgins missed the decisive kick in the shootout as Norway went through to the final where they were beaten by Jesper Blomqvist’s Sweden.

Limerick to announce Stuart Taylor appointment tomorrow