Troy Parrott: 'It’s like my mind switched off and my body just took me for the celebrations.' Ryan Byrne/INPHO

Parrott urges Ireland to 'keep same belief and fighting spirit' as he relives heroics

‘I’ve watched this back probably a thousand times now, over and over again. It’s a really special moment that I’ll have forever.’

TROY PARROTT HAS urged Ireland to maintain the “same belief and fighting spirit” as their quest to reach the 2026 World Cup continues.

Parrott was Ireland’s goalscoring hero as they defeated Portugal and Hungary last week to qualify for next March’s play-offs.

The Boys In Green will play Czechia away in the semi-final, before a prospective home final against Denmark or North Macedonia.

Parrott relived his heroics in an in-house video with his club AZ Alkmaar, recalling the dream international week through nine photographs.

“This was the moment,” he smiled when the 96th-minute winner which secured Ireland’s progression came up.

“I’ve watched this back probably a thousand times now, over and over again. It’s a really special moment that I’ll have forever.

“It’s a little bit blurry right now when I try to think back to it. It’s like my mind switched off and my body just took me for the celebrations.

“I think everyone was just the same as me. When I watch the video back I can see everyone’s faces.

“There was a lot of emotion involved in the game, before this happened at the end, but for this to happen was magical.

“To see that I could bring some joy to the people that are from the same place as me was a really special feeling.”

Parrott enjoyed some of the viral reaction, recounted other moments from the double header, and discussed the belief in Heimir Hallgrímsson’s squad and their repetitive message: “We can do something special.”

The 23-year-old Dubliner watched yesterday’s play-off draw from his Amsterdam base, and is relishing the challenge ahead in March.

“In the play-offs all of the teams are going to be good, so it doesn’t really matter who we play,” he said of Czechia.

“For us, it’s about keeping that same belief and that same fighting spirit that we showed last week, and trying to complete the job.”

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