:00:27. > :00:32.Welcome to Windsor Park, where tonight, Northern Ireland have a
:00:32. > :00:35.final friendly before the start of the World Cup campaign next month.
:00:35. > :00:40.The number of the opposition are ahead of that opening qualifier
:00:40. > :00:44.against Russia in just over three weeks' time. This evening's match
:00:44. > :00:47.also affords Northern Ireland fans, players and officials an
:00:47. > :00:57.opportunity to salute the passing of former captain Alan McDonald,
:00:57. > :01:10.
:01:10. > :01:14.who died suddenly in June. No one I have spent a career being a bag
:01:14. > :01:21.of nerves. I have seen top-class players going into the toilet and
:01:21. > :01:31.being sick before matches. And MacDonald puts on a pair of boots
:01:31. > :01:57.
:01:57. > :02:07.Anyone who says that is a fix can come and see me, and I will tell
:02:07. > :02:08.
:02:08. > :02:12.them that was not a fix. We bloody Tonight, Alan McDonald's son Joshua
:02:12. > :02:17.and brother Roy led the Northern Ireland and Finland teams out. Alan
:02:17. > :02:20.was a fine servant and Northern Ireland. Capped 50 times, he was
:02:21. > :02:25.also a member of the squad which played at the world finals in
:02:25. > :02:28.Mexico. Alan was a big footballing centre-half, and when he was made
:02:29. > :02:34.captain for his country, is said it was the proudest moment of his
:02:34. > :02:44.career. And there was a minute's applause as a fitting mark of
:02:44. > :02:57.
:02:57. > :03:02.Well, joining me, a man who knew Alan well, a former international
:03:02. > :03:06.team-mate Michael Hughes. Lovely tribute tonight to a big hero of
:03:06. > :03:13.Northern Ireland football. Fantastic tribute, well deserved.
:03:13. > :03:17.Big Allen, a total gentleman of the game. Always kept us young lads in
:03:17. > :03:25.check when we first came into the squad. He was the one we would all
:03:25. > :03:27.look up to. We just respect to the man. Immense character. The new
:03:27. > :03:32.Northern Ireland manager will be looking for some of Alan McDonald's
:03:32. > :03:39.fighting spirit this evening. What will he want from the friendly
:03:39. > :03:43.tonight? I think he will just be looking for a win, to get some
:03:43. > :03:48.confidence. He will also be looking for a performance, but the result
:03:48. > :03:53.will take precedence over the performance. Michael wants to try
:03:53. > :03:58.and keep the ball and play football on the ground. I think we can look
:03:58. > :04:04.forward to the guys keeping it down and playing through midfield. We
:04:04. > :04:09.have got big Kyle Lafferty back. He is a big player for us, because he
:04:09. > :04:19.gives us a presence up front. If we need to go along to him, we have
:04:19. > :04:19.
:04:19. > :05:22.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:05:22. > :05:32.that option. Time to join our match Russia.
:05:32. > :05:38.
:05:38. > :05:45.The Dutch referee is ready, and we blue, Northern Ireland are looking
:05:45. > :05:52.splendid in their new Adidas kit. And what a difference a year makes.
:05:52. > :06:00.Last August, Northern Ireland were hammering the Faeroe Islands. Kyle
:06:00. > :06:03.Lafferty was up offside. Northern Ireland hammered the Faeroe Islands
:06:03. > :06:07.4-0 here in the European Championships. Since then, they
:06:07. > :06:13.have played six, lost 6, a stat which Michael O'Neill will be
:06:13. > :06:18.hoping to end this evening. He will also be hoping to erase the memory
:06:19. > :06:26.of that mauling in Amsterdam in June by the Netherlands. Never play
:06:26. > :06:36.an international in June with a defeated team. That was not a bad
:06:36. > :06:41.
:06:41. > :06:46.missed the last three internationals because of injury.
:06:46. > :06:51.He just moved to Sion in Switzerland. But he was keen to
:06:51. > :07:01.come back and play in this game, Michael O'Neill was telling me. It
:07:01. > :07:01.
:07:01. > :07:06.is good to see the big target man back in action. As you know as well
:07:06. > :07:12.as I do, the weather has been awful today. I wonder what it has been
:07:12. > :07:17.like in Switzerland. The pitch is looking well, though, for Northern
:07:17. > :07:27.Ireland's first international of the new season. First international
:07:27. > :07:33.
:07:33. > :07:37.for the new boss. There was that 6- 0 demolition job in Amsterdam.
:07:37. > :07:43.Finland are 72nd in the world rankings. Northern Ireland have
:07:43. > :07:47.sadly slipped out of the top 100. They are 101. But you don't want
:07:47. > :07:52.internationals against Easy PC sides. Finland aren't one of the
:07:52. > :07:54.giants, but it will be a good, competitive game, just what
:07:54. > :08:04.Northern Ireland need before their opening qualifier next month
:08:04. > :08:26.
:08:26. > :08:31.Carroll did well. Hard to believe he played the second half against
:08:31. > :08:41.Holland. That was his first for six years. And his last start, would
:08:41. > :08:55.
:08:55. > :09:05.you believe, was September 2006. and then went into exile. That was
:09:05. > :09:05.
:09:05. > :11:00.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:11:00. > :11:10.United many moons ago as a boy. of composure. Carroll to the rescue.
:11:10. > :11:37.
:11:37. > :11:42.pitch. We have had so much rain problems during three seasons, so
:11:42. > :11:49.his fitness may not be up to speed. Dean Shiels has already scored for
:11:49. > :11:57.Rangers this season. Nice move for him, or is it? Down at the bottom
:11:57. > :12:05.tear if Scottish football. Some will wonder. That was a good ball.
:12:05. > :12:13.Not a bad second touch! Devastating finish. And the first international
:12:13. > :12:23.goal for the 21-year-old Newcastle youngster. What a start for the
:12:23. > :12:30.manager. Seven minutes gone, and what a goal that was. Good ball.
:12:30. > :12:37.Could run by Dean Shiels. It took a deflection. But look at that for a
:12:37. > :12:43.touch. Bingo! He really hammered it home. Great left foot, and there is
:12:43. > :12:50.the proof. Shiels did well in the build-up. He did even better with
:12:50. > :13:00.the finish. What a lift for the young man. And for the green and
:13:00. > :13:22.
:13:22. > :13:32.Cathcart with the tackle on Teemu Pukki. It had to be timed just
:13:32. > :14:05.
:14:05. > :14:09.missing three internationals, and he is back with his 9th
:14:09. > :14:16.international goal. I was there the night in Helsinki six years ago
:14:16. > :14:21.tomorrow, when Northern Ireland beat Finland. And he got one of the
:14:21. > :14:31.goals, his first international goal that night. She has again looking
:14:31. > :14:54.
:14:54. > :15:04.sharp, looking dangerous. Great international as a Southampton
:15:04. > :15:30.
:15:30. > :15:40.sharp to the ball. They haven't let the men in blue play. They look
:15:40. > :16:06.
:16:06. > :16:11.the far post. Tim Sparv, his first international goal. That is a great
:16:11. > :16:21.finish. He had to turn and he had to get power in it and he did!
:16:21. > :16:42.
:16:42. > :16:50.Carroll had no chance. That is a remember him, Dundee United with
:16:50. > :17:00.Michael O'Neill, Aberdeen, Bolton, bustling centre forward. He could
:17:00. > :17:20.
:17:20. > :17:25.have paid for it. Teemu Pukki - he could hard I will have missed it.
:17:25. > :17:30.He is smiling and so he should be. He looks distraught, so too does
:17:30. > :17:40.that man there, and with good reason. All of a sudden from 2-0,
:17:40. > :17:42.
:17:42. > :17:46.it's 2-2. Brunt didn't see the man at all. That is cruel. It's a lack
:17:46. > :17:53.of concentration as well, to be fair. It is one of the things that
:17:53. > :18:03.Michael O'Neill was trying to stamp out. You can't do that. Or you pay.
:18:03. > :18:03.
:18:03. > :18:54.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:18:54. > :19:04.Let's see what happened here. He cut inside, he tried to bend it.
:19:04. > :19:06.
:19:06. > :19:13.Did the keeper get a touch? It must have been off McAuley. The referee
:19:13. > :19:19.brings the first half to an end. Ferguson after seven minutes made
:19:19. > :19:26.it 1-0 to Northern Ireland. 2-0 Lafferty after 19 minutes. And then
:19:26. > :19:30.the Finns hit back - Sparv 21 minutes, 2-1, and three minutes
:19:30. > :19:37.later, that man there, Pukki, a dreadful mistake from Chris Brunt,
:19:38. > :19:42.he made it 2-2. So it is a very interesting friendly and a good
:19:42. > :19:52.build-up towards the World Cup campaign. Half-time - Northern
:19:52. > :20:07.
:20:07. > :20:17.his ninth cap. He will be 28 next Wednesday. There's young Jamie, 26-
:20:17. > :20:37.
:20:37. > :20:47.year-old from Derby County. He is store for us? There's never been a
:20:47. > :21:15.
:21:15. > :21:21.draw - played six, both sides have That was very dangerous. Across the
:21:21. > :21:30.face of the goal. Not a man to put it in. Once again, Dean Shiels.
:21:30. > :21:40.He's having a nice game, Dean Shiels. Well done McGivern. Good
:21:40. > :21:40.
:21:40. > :22:36.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:22:36. > :22:40.movement from Dean Shiels and no made them pay. He is only on the
:22:40. > :22:45.pitch as a substitute. A bit of indecision there. It fell for him
:22:45. > :22:55.and he cracked it first time. Luckily, for Northern Ireland, high
:22:55. > :22:55.
:22:55. > :23:48.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:23:49. > :23:58.the centre forward. The finish the right! The keeper had no
:23:59. > :24:20.
:24:20. > :24:30.- it is, but the keeper has made a mess of it. Support's arriving.
:24:30. > :24:30.
:24:30. > :25:13.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:25:13. > :25:23.Lafferty has it. Davis has made a goals. He is the current Finnish
:25:23. > :25:23.
:25:23. > :25:33.Player of the Year and you can see why. He is out to take the corner.
:25:33. > :25:33.
:25:33. > :26:18.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:26:18. > :26:27.across to Sparv. Well cut out by international goal. It was a clear
:26:27. > :26:37.header. It was a good ball in by Uronen. He will know that was a
:26:37. > :26:46.
:26:46. > :26:53.be interesting to see this. They are looking for a handball. If the
:26:53. > :27:03.arm is out, it might have been a penalty. They think it was. Oh yes,
:27:03. > :27:28.
:27:28. > :27:37.the arm is out. I think they have a Well, Davis, he couldn't keep it
:27:37. > :27:47.down. A pensive look from the manager. That should have been a
:27:47. > :28:08.
:28:08. > :28:14.line by McAuley. Good defending by the big man. Northern Ireland, well
:28:14. > :28:24.and truly caught. Slick movement. Almost a very good finish by Riski,
:28:24. > :28:27.
:28:27. > :28:32.it was. A good run by the number 11, but better defending. Here they
:28:32. > :28:42.come again. That will be a free- kick. On another night that should
:28:42. > :28:54.
:28:54. > :29:04.certainly hacked him down. Kolehmainen was going through and
:29:04. > :29:35.
:29:35. > :29:40.man who plays in Italy, Heternaj, has scored his second international
:29:41. > :29:50.goal. He will remember this one. No chance for Lee Camp. That is a
:29:51. > :29:51.
:29:51. > :30:53.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 63 seconds
:30:53. > :31:03.dagger through the heart of spot. It was actually Paterson. He
:31:03. > :31:28.
:31:28. > :31:33.Paterson, 25-year-old from Burnley. We remember Daniel Sjolund from his
:31:34. > :31:43.three years at Liverpool. Lee Hodson is coming off. Oliver
:31:44. > :31:54.
:31:55. > :31:59.Norwood is going on, a young man 3-3. He takes it! One of the
:31:59. > :32:05.biggest cheers of the night. First international goal for Paterson,
:32:05. > :32:13.and he finished it with some aplomb. Keeper went at the wrong way.
:32:13. > :32:17.Windsor Park lifted. We are all square again. We could be heading
:32:17. > :32:27.for the first draw ever between the two countries. That young lady
:32:27. > :32:48.
:32:48. > :32:57.Well, there has been plenty to talk about as the two great team-mates
:32:57. > :33:02.of yesteryear and Dundee United shake hands. Mixu Paatelainen and
:33:02. > :33:08.Michael O'Neill. There is Paterson, cool as you like, happy to salvage
:33:08. > :33:18.a draw between the two countries. We now look forward to Russia next
:33:18. > :33:21.
:33:21. > :33:27.Michael, how do begin to assess that? Plenty of action. There was a
:33:27. > :33:32.lot to take in. We started well. Scored two very good goals to get
:33:32. > :33:36.ahead. I am obviously disappointed to lose two goals the way we did,
:33:36. > :33:41.particularly the second goal, which was a basic error. But in the
:33:41. > :33:45.second half, I thought Finland were good in possession for long periods
:33:45. > :33:50.of the game, and we were careless at times. But to be fair, when we
:33:50. > :33:55.did possess the ball, we created opportunities. We deserved to
:33:55. > :33:59.opportunity to get the equaliser and it was a good penalty. Talk us
:33:59. > :34:04.through the goal? At that stage, everything was going great. Yes,
:34:04. > :34:08.the two goals we got were by passing the ball and working hard.
:34:08. > :34:17.Once we stopped that, they got their three goals. But it was good
:34:17. > :34:22.to get a goal. I missed a few games through injury last season. Overall,
:34:23. > :34:27.I am pleased. There are things I am disappointed with, but I am pleased
:34:27. > :34:30.that the young players did well. Of done, friendlies can be drab
:34:31. > :34:38.affairs, but tonight, thoroughly entertaining. Fabulous game of
:34:38. > :34:42.football. Thoroughly enjoyable. Three good goals for us, and three
:34:42. > :34:47.not so good goals for them. Lots of good play by both teams. I am sure
:34:47. > :34:52.the fans will have gone home happy. The first goals from Michael
:34:52. > :35:01.O'Neill's campaign. I am sure he will be thrilled with the first two.
:35:01. > :35:11.Absolute crackers. Fantastic, strength from Ferguson in the top
:35:11. > :35:15.
:35:15. > :35:20.corner. And big Lafferty's done well, too. At that point, we were
:35:20. > :35:29.cruising. We were well on top. We were dominating. We had had a good
:35:29. > :35:35.half-hour of possession in the game, and we look great. Michael will be
:35:35. > :35:42.very happy with that aspect of the game. On the other side, the goals
:35:42. > :35:52.but we conceded were not so good. They never are. Their right back
:35:52. > :36:00.caused us problems all night. Their goals probably could have been
:36:00. > :36:04.avoided. But on the night, our lads played really well. We probably
:36:04. > :36:11.deserved slightly more than we got. But conceding three goals on the
:36:11. > :36:21.night will again be a worry. Yes. It is always a worry to concede
:36:21. > :36:22.
:36:22. > :36:30.goals at any level, especially at international level. We have not
:36:30. > :36:36.been the greatest scorers of goals. But having said that, what you
:36:36. > :36:39.sacrifice going forward is sometimes defensive solidarity.
:36:39. > :36:44.When you play an attractive brand of football but we all want to come
:36:44. > :36:50.and watch, you do leave yourself open at the back. What about them
:36:50. > :36:55.and's third goal tonight? There was no stopping that. It was a wonder
:36:55. > :36:59.goal, to say the least. Right in the top corner. The goalkeeper
:36:59. > :37:09.could not do anything to avoid that. He just drilled that into the top
:37:09. > :37:12.
:37:12. > :37:17.corner. Is one of the big positives tonight the front pairing of Kyle
:37:17. > :37:27.Lafferty and Dean Shiels? It looked very lively. It did. Dean Shiels
:37:27. > :37:27.
:37:27. > :37:32.was fantastic. He came almost back into the midfield to pick balls up.
:37:32. > :37:38.He was very hard for their defenders to pick up. Any time the
:37:38. > :37:44.ball was played long to be Kyle, he would pick it up. They looked like
:37:44. > :37:53.a real threat. It looks like a partnership that could be worked on
:37:53. > :37:57.overtime. Not quite as entertaining in Belgrade this evening. But we
:37:57. > :38:00.certainly got value for money here at Windsor Park. Now we look