LYON, France (AP) — Northern Ireland secured its first victory in a major competition in 34 years on Thursday, beating Ukraine 2-0 at the European Championship.
Building on a strong finish to the first half, center back Gareth McAuley headed in a free kick from Oliver Norwood in the 49th minute. Substitute Niall McGinn added a second deep in stoppage time when Ukraine was chasing an equalizer.
The victory, Northern Ireland’s first since beating host Spain in the 1982 World Cup, means the team has a good chance of qualifying for the knockout stages of Euro 2016.
Following its opening 1-0 loss to Poland, the team now has three points. Northern Ireland’s next Group C game is against world champion Germany on Tuesday at the Parc des Princes in Paris.
“We had a point to prove to ourselves and these (fans) are with us no matter what,” McAuley said. “We put it right and we’ve got a big game to look forward to in Paris.”
Northern Ireland was a far different team against Ukraine than the one that failed to even register a shot on goal against Poland. Coach Michael O’Neill made five changes to his team in response to that lackluster start to the tournament.
His team’s first shot between the posts came only four minutes into the match, when new addition Stuart Dallas fired into the arms of goalkeeper Andriy Pyatov.
Northern Ireland grew in confidence through the first half and was rewarded with its first goal in an international competition since the 1986 World Cup when McAuley headed in.
With rain pouring down, O’Neill’s team showed the extra aggressiveness he had requested for the match at the Stade de Lyon. A short suspension in play in the 58th minute because of hail did not alter the team’s intent.
One part hustle, one part grit, Northern Ireland made Ukraine look downright lethargic and had little trouble in marking wingers Andriy Yarmolenko and Yevhen Konoplyanka out of the match.
Northern Ireland’s players wore black armbands and its fans dedicated a round of applause to pay their respects to a supporter who died following the loss to Poland on Sunday. Darren Rodgers, who was 24, died after a fall unrelated to the hooligan violence that has marred the competition at times.
For Ukraine, it was its second straight 2-0 loss and leaves the team languishing in last place in Group C with zero points. Ukraine plays Poland in its next match on Tuesday in Marseille.
“As always, we say we have chances even when we don’t have them,” Ukraine coach Mykhailo Fomenko said. “We allowed the opposing team to play its own football, that’s why we lost.”
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