While the Ireland U21 side ultimately failed to qualify for this year's Euros, they still had a very positive campaign.
A number of quality players came to the fore over the course of the group, many of whom are now part of the senior setup. A large proportion of that squad have now moved on, either down to being overage or moving with Stephen Kenny into the senior team.
That means a new crop of players will make up the bulk of the side for the upcoming qualification campaign, with yesterday's friendly victory over Wales their first opportunity to impress.
The likes of Conor Noss, Luca Connell, and Alex Gilbert made their U21 debuts in the contest, with Ireland overturning a 1-0 halftime deficit to emerge with the victory.
Jonathan Afolabi was the one to score the equaliser, with the winner arriving thanks to a farcical own goal from the hosts.
It came about after an impressive high press from the Ireland forward line, with Wales defender Morgan Boyes attempting to play the ball back to his own keeper, only for the pass to roll into an empty net.
You can watch the goal at the 0:59 mark below. We would also recommend that you watch the assist from Borussia Monchengladbach man Noss just before that.
HIGHLIGHTS | Wales 1-2 Ireland 🇮🇪⚽️
All the goals from #IRLU21's comeback win over Wales ☘️👊
Jonathan Afolabi on target for the first time for the U21s#WEAREONE | #COYBIG | #WALIRL pic.twitter.com/qEBKDZ0cpA— FAIreland ⚽️🇮🇪 (@FAIreland) March 26, 2021
Speaking after the game, Ireland Jim Crawford said he was delighted with the performance from his team in the second half.
I thought we were great in the second half. We were really positive and players weren’t afraid to get on the ball.
We scored a decent goal to equalise and it was an unfortunate own goal for Wales but today was about seeing that the players could do it at this level and the players showed that.
What a victory does is it builds confidence and it builds morale, the lads are extremely happy with the performance and so they should be, they should be proud. It sets us nicely for the June window.
SEE ALSO: Ireland's Lost Generation: Stephen Kenny Missing Key Ingredient Of Successful Teams
