The Republic of Ireland snatched a late win against Hungary in a game that lacked any real intensity at the Aviva Stadium.
The first half saw Hungary control the game without creating too much. Against the run of play, Ireland went one up, courtesy of Celtic striker Adam Idah. That lead did not last long though as the Hungarians equalised just five minutes later through centre back Adam Lang, whose goal came just before the break.
The second half was extremely low on quality as Hungary struggled to create any meaningful chances and the Boys in Green found it difficult to get out of their own 18-yard box. The second period was played out like two incredibly tired teams not wanting to exert themselves.
But, with mere seconds to go, Troy Parrott won the ball on the halfway line and ran the ball up to the penalty spot, where he executed a less-than-clean finish to give John O’Shea his first win in charge of his country.
Interim boss, O’Shea, made six changes from the last time his side played back in March. The former Manchester United defender gave Finn Azaz his full debut and opted to have Idah leading the line.
The in-form Sammie Szmodics would be starting against the side he was once eligible to play for, to give Ireland a new-look front line.
Meanwhile, Hungary made a whole host of changes from their last outing, making no fewer than eight changes from the side that beat Kosovo a few months ago as they looked to give several players a run out before the European Championships.
The Republic of Ireland were looking for their first home win in just under a year, while their opponents were trying to maintain an unbeaten run which went all the way back to September 2022.
Before kick-off, there was a touching round of applause for late Irish legends Charlie Hurley and Joe Kinnear.
Early on the Irish looked disorganised, as Hungary cut through their defence within the first minute, but Loic Nego could not take advantage of the half-chance that came his way.
Just 10 minutes later Nego had another opportunity, which he should have done a lot better with, but instead, he put it wide.
The first 20 minutes saw the Hungarians have the majority of the ball, and they were happy to be patient when they had it, passing the ball around the defence and the midfield.
Ireland were trying a more direct approach, consistently attempting to get the ball in the channels for their attacking players, without much success.
In the 30th minute, Hungary had the best chance of the game up to that point when they won the ball in the middle of the pitch and countered.
Bournemouth man Milos Kerkez forced a good save from Caoimhin Kelleher, but truthfully it was at a nice height for the Liverpool shot-stopper.
Just five minutes later, against the run of play, Ireland went one ahead.
Nobody tracked the run of Will Smallbone who delivered an excellent cross for Celtic striker Idah, who headed home from close-range.
The celebrations were muted from the Irish almost as an acknowledgment of the fact they had not played overly well.
It was uncharacteristically sloppy defending from the Magyars, but it did not take long for them to respond.
Less than five minutes later, Hungary won a free kick just inside the Ireland half, the cross was deflected and fell to the feet of veteran defender Adam Lang– who was lurking at the post -delivered a composed finish for just his second goal for his country.
The sides went into the break-level, but the Hungarians had been much the better side in the first 45 minutes.
Second Half
O’Shea opted to make two changes at the break as Liam Scales came on for Shane Duffy, and Jake O’Brien replaced Matt Doherty.
Marco Rossi also made two substitutions at the interval, sending on Endre Botka for Nega. The Italian-born coach also swapped keepers as Denes Dibusz came on for Peter Gulacsi.
The first forays of the second half began just as the first had ended: with Hungary keeping the ball and waiting to pounce.
Striker Roland Sallai had a good effort from outside the box saved and Kelleher was called upon again mere minutes later, as Kerkez hit a speculative effort that bounced awkwardly in front of him, but he managed to get the ball under control.
Both sides made changes as Parrott came on for Finn Azaz, who underwhelmed on his first start for his country. The Irish also brought Callum O’Dowda for Robbie Brady.  Hungary chose to make just one change as they sent on Laszlo Kleinheisler for Barnabas Varga.
Tempers flared as Dominik Szoboszlai and Parrott confronted one another, just after the latter had come on. The Hungarian captain was given a yellow card for his part in the coming together.
As we approached the final 20 minutes, it was clear the game had descended into something like a training game, with both sides seeming lethargic. So once again, both coaches made more substitutions in an attempt to inject some life into the game.
Hungary made three changes, while O’Shea made just one.
If Ireland had underwhelmed in the first half, it had gone to a whole other level in the second. They found themselves in a cycle of trying to get past Hungary’s press; failing to do so; booting it up the pitch and starting again.
Hungary themselves had not been fantastic, they looked sterile and void of any real creativity.
With 10 minutes left to go, Ireland finally ventured forward, and captain Seamus Coleman forced a corner, but it did not result in anything. But the move forward certainly showed signs of positivity.
In the dying embers of the game, Coleman once again found himself in the Hungary box, this time coming close with a sweetly struck volley that went just wide of the post and it looked as though that would be that.
But, in the 91st minute, Tottenham Hotspur’s Parrott won the ball on the halfway line and found himself in acres of space, he delivered a scruffy finish to give the Irish a win very much against the run of play, but they won’t care one bit.
This was undoubtedly a game that was not blessed with quality, but Will Smallbone certainly displayed some throughout.
His passing was a joy to watch, he brings players into the game and always seems to be accurate.
Smallbone worked tirelessly and ran himself into the ground to help get his team over the line.