THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND U17s have moved closer to qualification for the European Championships with a 3-0 win over Ukraine this afternoon.
All of the goals were scored by 15-year-old Mason Melia of St Patrick’s Athletic. Ireland closed out the game with 10 men following the sending off of Freddie Turley.
Just as in the previous qualifier with Italy, Ireland raced into a 2-0 lead, with Melia tapping home Trent Kone Doherty’s cross after only four minutes. He doubled Ireland’s lead eight minutes later. But where Colin O’Brien’s side had to settle for a 2-2 draw against the Italians on Tuesday today they closed out the game, with Melia completing his hat-trick in the second half.
The result means Ireland need only a draw against Cyprus on Monday to book their place at the tournament in Hungary.
Republic of Ireland: Healy, Harnett, Turley (C), Ashbee, O’Sullivan, McGrath, McAndrew (Moore, 73), Kehir (Babb, 77), Razi (Akachukwu, 68), Kone Doherty (Orazi, 46), Melia (Okosun, 73)
Ukraine: Bakus, Bakai (Kaidalov, 66), Korobov, Zakharchenko, Dykyi, Ischenko (Rusnak, 66), Pashko, Bilyi (Osypenko, 66), Khan (Budko, 33), Kalyn, Ponomarnenko (C)
