Gary Connaughton reporting from the Aviva Stadium
It was a glum draw for Ireland this evening to bring 2023 to a close, with the crowd that made their way to the Aviva Stadium this evening a hint as to how the previous 11 months had played out. With that in mind, this was perhaps a fitting end to the year.
Despite James McClean (and likely Stephen Kenny) making his final appearance for Ireland, it was not enough to attract a respectable crowd to the venue as 26,517 fans showed up to see the team take on New Zealand in a friendly.
The game was not of the highest quality, even if there was some decent Irish showings en route to a 1-1 draw.
Here's how we rated the performances on the night.
Ireland player ratings vs New Zealand
Caoimhín Kelleher - 7
Kelleher had just one save to make in the first half, brilliantly tipping away a curling effort from Sarpeet Singh from outside the box that was destined for the top corner.
He picked out some nice long range passes at times. Replaced at halftime.
Matt Doherty - 5
Given the opportunity to get forward as Ireland dominated possession, Doherty did not quite have the impact in the final third that you would have hoped for.
He could have done more to stop the New Zealand equaliser, making no attempt to close Matt Garbett down at the edge of the box.
Shane Duffy - 6
Duffy had a quiet evening at the back, with his main defensive duties coming in the form of a handful of routine headed clearances.
He had more to do in the second half, with his half hearted clearance leading to the strike that got New Zealand back on level terms.
Andrew Omobamidele - 6
Omobamidele was asked to do very little defending in the first half, with the Nottingham Forest man looking very comfortable in playing the ball out from the back.
He found the going a bit tougher after the interval as New Zealand created a few chances.
James McClean - 7
Making his 103rd and final appearance for his country, McClean attempted to get forward from left back at every opportunity and linked up nicely with Mikey Johnston at times.
He put in some nice crosses, most notably at set-pieces. Received a nice ovation after coming off with just over 20 minutes left to play.
Jayson Molumby - 7
Acting as the lone sitter in midfield, Molumby did not have much to do in terms of defending in the first 45 minutes. His passing was crisp, although he was given plenty of time on the ball by the Kiwi midfielders.
He came close to scoring with a wonderful strike from outside the box and got forward in an encouraging manner throughout.
Jason Knight - 5
Along with Jamie McGrath, Knight pushed very high up the pitch in his central midfield role in order to stretch the New Zealand defence. This sometimes did leave Ireland without an option in possession when attempting to play through the middle third, but that tactical decision was not Knight's fault.
In a game where Ireland had most of the possession, you would have hoped to see a bit more from him on the ball. Worked as hard as ever.
Jamie McGrath - 5
Playing in a 'no. 8' role, McGrath struggled to get involved in Ireland's buildup play in the early stages of the game, although his influence did grow as the first half went on.
Unfortunately, that did not really continue after the interval.
Mark Sykes - 7
Making his first start for Ireland, Mark Sykes made Ireland's opening goal by turning the ball over in the final third and playing in Adam Idah.
He was a bright spark on that right wing. He worked tirelessly and caused some real problems for the opposition defence.
Adam Idah - 7
Idah could not have been given an easier chance to open the scoring in the game, with some disastrous play by a New Zealand defender allowing Sykes to play him though on goal where the Norwich man finished cooly.
The Cork man's holdup play was strong, controlling some difficult passes and laying the ball off to to teammates.
Mikey Johnston - 8
Johnston attempted to inject a bit of energy into Ireland's play whenever he got on the ball, with his dribbling ability causing real problems for the New Zealand defence.
He delivered some wonderful balls into the box, although he was unfortunate that few of them found an Irish teammates.
Ireland's best player on the night.
Substitutes
Mark Travers - 8
Replacing Caoimhín Kelleher at halftime, there wasn't much Travers could do about the equaliser. He made a number of excellent saves in the final half hour or so to stop New Zealand from taking the lead.
Were it not for him, this could have been an even grimmer night than it was.
Josh Cullen - 5
Cullen struggled to get a foothold in the game after his introduction, with New Zealand the better of the two teams in the closing half hour or so.
Ryan Manning - 5
Manning struggled to impose himself on the game after coming on.
Evan Ferguson - 6
Got very little service after coming on.
Alan Browne - 5
Did not impact the game after replacing Matt Doherty.
Andy Moran - N/A
Not on long enough to rate.
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