A phenomenal strike from Belfast goal machine Ronan Hale gave the Republic of Ireland under 19s a memorable victory against Portugal in a 'friendly' tournament game in La Manga on Sunday afternoon.
Hale cut in from the left and faced up his man before curling a beautiful strike beyond the Portugal goalkeeper and giving Tom Mohan's side a win they will remember for years to come.
A defeat to Norway on Friday preceded the win and Ireland will seek to head home on a high with a good result against Slovakia on Tuesday.
Hale is a pretty special talent, as this great piece by Brendan Crossan of The Irish News outlines. The 18-year-old from North Belfast plies his trade at Birmingham City where he was promoted to the under-21 side after scoring 29 goals in his first full season. That included five goals in one match against Leeds United:
His brother Rory (20) is no slouch, either living in the same city as Ronan as an Aston Villa player who has come up against the likes of Santi Cazorla in games for Villa's under-21 team. A midfielder, Irish football fans will be hoping to see him threading balls through for his brother to pounce on in a green jersey for years to come.
