The Republic of Ireland Under-18s made it a winning start to Colin O’Brien’s reign with him giving 14 players their first outing at this level.

Goals from Derby County’s Cian Kelly-Caprani and Shamrock Rovers’ Dara McGuinness were enough to give the Boys in Green a win in the first of two international friendly games this week in the Hungarian capital.

Luton Town’s Ed McJannet captained the side and it was his first appearance for an Irish underage team along with Josh Clarke, Alex Murphy, Cian Coleman, Billy Brooks, and Rio McEvoy.

Ed McJannet, Luton Town. Captain of Ireland U18 pic.twitter.com/2hoCmzYK0z

— LutonTownExile (@LutonTownExile) August 17, 2021

Ireland started the livelier of the two sides with Joe O’Brien-Whitmarsh going close several times in the first half. Firstly, he hit a low drive that tested the handling of goalkeeper Martin Dala. Then on the half-hour mark, the Cork City man saw his attempted lob land on the roof of the net.

O’Brien-Whitmarsh, operating in the Number 10 position, found himself thwarted by the keeper five minutes later when he was put through on goal and saw his effort bounce off the body of the Hungarian goalkeeper.

The breakthrough came just before half-time. Kelly-Caprani capitalized on a mistake in the Hungary backline, latching onto a loose ball and rounding the goalkeeper to slot in from a tight angle to give Ireland a deserved lead.

After the break, it was 2-0. Leeds’ Coleman did superbly well to get down the right flank before delivering a dangerous cross into the six-yard box. The ball fell to McGuinness and the Rovers man poked it home to give Ireland a two-goal cushion.

McJannet almost topped off his fine performance with a goal of his own. He engineered an opportunity with an exchange of passes; however, his left-footed effort was pushed behind for a corner. It was to be the final clear-cut chance of the second half and the game finished up 2-0.

Both teams are back in action on Thursday as Ireland looked to do the double over Hungary.

FT | All over in Budapest and it’s a win for Ireland U18 @ShamrockRovers’s Dara McGuinness adds to Kelly-Caprani’s opener to give the Boys in Green the victory over Hungary

The sides play again on Thursday #COYBIG | #IRLU18 | #WeAreOne pic.twitter.com/B60AEK8xV0

— FAIreland (@FAIreland) August 17, 2021

Teams

Hungary

Dala (GK)(Mergi. 46); Kaján (Sipos 77) , Korógyi (Kovács 77), Dragoner, Yaakobishvili, Szabó (Andros Gulyás 60), Molnar, Kocsis (Kiss, 60), Gruber (Auriél Gyuris 77), Bakti, Kallai.

Republic of Ireland

Clarke (GK); Agbaje, Grehan (Fogarty 73), Heffernan, Murphy; McJannet, Coleman, O’Brien-Whitmarsh (Brooks 61), Kelly-Caprani, McGuinness, McEvoy (Pearce 61).

Referee: Imre Kovács (Hungary).

Upcoming Fixtures

International Friendly (Irish time)
Thursday, August 19 | Hungary v Republic of Ireland, BVSC Stadion, Budapest, Hungary, KO 10:00.

At the BVSC Stadium in Budapest for Republic of Ireland v Hungary U18. @FAIreland debuts for @ed_mcj _ @joeobw_10 @integralsportsm . @ed_mcj _ Captain on debut too pic.twitter.com/MQncpjeZE5

— Dan Fletcher (@Dan_Fletcher10) August 17, 2021

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In a group with Slovakia, Hungary, and Finland, the Irish are proving to be the team to beat. After defeating Finland 6-1 on the first day, they have thrashed a poor Hungary side.

Mitch Hillert showed his precise pitching with the batting of Frank Andrew’s team also got some impressive scores.

The roster has been announced for the 2021 Irish Men's National Baseball Team. Team Ireland will compete in the B-Pool Qualifying Tournament in Bratislavia, Slovakia from June 30-July 3. Congrats and good luck to all! #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/F0xGbtYYA3

— Irish American Baseball Society (@IABSociety) June 13, 2021

Ireland (16) v Hungary (3), Bratislava

Ireland started the match batting and with real tenacity. After captain Leo Farrell walked to first and stole second, a sweet swing by Fionn Gallahar-Hal let the captain run home for the first point of the game.

Next, a high Brian McAuliffe hit lets Gallahar-Hall and David Gallagher at second base run home for two more points.

Hungary calmed themselves to stop any more Irish scores but could not handle pitcher Mitch Hillert’s tricky throws.

In the second inning, Ireland showed a short masterclass in baseball. With the bases loaded a Farrell double sent Mike McGee and JP Dolan home. Tim Shea then was allowed to walk home after a pitching mistake.

McAuliffe, Gallagher, and Farrell made it home by the end of the inning to make it 9-0.

Hungary had trouble pitching, changing their pitcher halfway through the second inning. Hillert did not have the same trouble finishing the round keeping his opponents scoreless.

Ireland took a break from scoring in the third inning as Hungary improved their defense. The score remained the same going into the top of the fourth.

Ireland brought back the class of earlier batting in this round. McGee stole third before a Farrell single let him reach home base. With two strikeouts, Ireland needed some magic which David Gallagher produced. A fantastic home run, the first of the competition, but three more points on the board, with Tim Shea and Farrell also scoring.

Hungary still had no response to the Irish onslaught as the green defense held firm.

The fifth inning was quiet as both teams made changes knowing the game was already won. The score was 13-0 going into the sixth.

Ireland managed to get another man to home base after more stealing from Gallagher and McGee batting the ball far enough for him to score. The score was now at 14-0, Hungary would need points on the board soon or the game would be forced to end early.

Hillert continued to scare Hungary batters with his fastballs, adding two more strikeouts to his long tally.

Ireland made one last push at the start of the seventh inning. Hungary ended the game with their fourth pitcher, but he could not stop the Irish from getting two more points. First Dolan made an easy jog home from third base and Shea rounded off Ireland’s 16^th score.

Like the Finland game, Hungary made a last-ditch attempt to get some points. With men on the second and third base, a great bat by Carlos Rubio sends the first two Hungarians home. Rubio was their star player and he got himself home before substitute pitcher Patrick Mitchell upped his game.

Three was not enough for Hungary to keep the game going and Ireland was given the win after the seventh inning with a score of 16-3.

This was a dominant team performance with no standout players. This game leaves them with a lot of confidence going into their last game against the home country, already qualified for the final.

Ireland will face Slovakia tomorrow, the 2^nd of July with all matches being shown live on YouTube on the Slovakia Baseball page.

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France, Germany, Hungary, and Portugal will lock horns over the course of the group stage to determine who goes through.

There is a very high possibility that three from this group go through – which three it will be is a tougher question to answer.

FRANCE

France is the reigning World champion and will enter the tournament as favourites for the European crown.

The Euro 2016 runners-up are trying out a new formation currently which accommodates Karim Benzema.

Benzema made his first appearance for France after five years and seven months in exile against Wales.

The 4-3-1-2 formation can accommodate Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kanté and Adrien Rabiot in the centre of the pitch.

Ina addition to this, Antoine Griezmann can play as a number 10 behind Kylian Mbappé and Benzema.

This allows Benzema to play the way he does at Real Madrid.

The striker can hold up the ball for Mbappé and move into spaces to receive passes.

It was trialled in the tournament warm-up matches but we will not know how impactful it is for Les Bleus until the Euros.

Manager Didier Deschamps could lead France to a second major trophy in three years if his tinkering pays off, but they must get through this group before they even think of that.

GERMANY

Germany has been on the decline since their abysmal World Cup defence in Russia.

Head coach Joachim Löw is will leave his role after Germany’s Euro 2020 concludes.

The World Cup-winning coach has yet to fix the problems that have plagued Germany for several years.

Antonio Rüdiger has earned a starting spot for the Euros alongside Mats Hummels and Emre Can, who Löw plays often.

The Germans’ midfield is stacked but in a negative way – will Kimmich and Goretska play alongside each other or will Kroos take the latter’s place and Germany play with two 6s? It is hard to tell.

Thomas Müller and Ilkay Gündogan could also start, and their presence would provide the link between defence and attack that a double 6 midfield would need.

Serge Gnabry, Timo Werner and Kevin Volland are all candidates to lead the line for Die Mannschaft but it is unclear whether they will be isolated or provided adequate support to do their job.

Germany is the team that is the hardest to read going into Euro 2020 and, with home advantage for all three group games, may return to form or could go out in a blaze of glory.

They are suspect to an upset based on recent form, but they could also come out guns blazing with Thomas Müller and company back in the squad.

HUNGARY

Hungary will be looking to have another impressive European Championship after winning their group in 2016, which also included Portugal.

RB Leipzig’s Péter Gulácsi, his clubmate Willi Orban and Attila Szalai will provide Marco Rossi’s team with a solid defence.

Bristol City’s Ádám Nagy will patrol the space in front of them.

Winger Roland Sallai and captain Ádám Szalai will do what they can in the attacking third.

The side is without their best player through injury, RB Leipzig’s Dominik Szoboszlai, and will struggle in attack.

What they do have, though, is a home advantage against France and Portugal.

It is unlikely that Marco Rossi’s side qualifies for the Round of 16, but it is far from impossible.

PORTUGAL

Portugal, in contrast, has their star man and have all positions covered with top-notch depth except centre-back as only three are part of the squad.

Those three in question are Ruben Dias, Pepe, and José Fonte though, so that evens it out.

However, Pepe and Fonte were born in 1983.

Selecting a fourth centre-back would have been high on any other manager’s list.

Portugal under-21-star Diogo Leite would have been an ideal inclusion, but Portugal boss Fernando Santos opted against it.

Defensive midfielder Danilo can play there if needed.

Their midfield is packed with defensive-minded players.

Fullbacks João Cancelo and Raphaël Guerreiro will play high and wide, the former acting as a playmaker when needed.

Sergio Oliveira and Renato Sanches can add attacking ability to the midfield if needed.

João Felix will cut inside from his wide role and either move through the middle or create space for Cristiano Ronaldo or Guerreiro.

Ronaldo will look to get the ball in any position in the final third and do his thing, as he so usually does.

Diogo Jota and Andre Silva provide options for the forward line if a Ronaldo-led attack is deemed to need them.

Santos’ Portugal will play defensive against fellow favourites France but may choose to be more attacking against those with weaker defences.

Ronaldo and the rest should not have a problem, much like France, unless Germany or Hungary can change their tune.

Group F Fixtures:

Hungary v Portugal Tuesday, 15th June 17:00.

France v Germany Tuesday, 15th June 20:00.

Hungary v France Saturday 19th June 14:00.

Portugal v Germany Saturday, 19th June 17:00.

Portugal v France Wednesday, 23rd June 20:00.

Germany v Hungary Wednesday, 23rd June 20:00.

Betting Group F Winner

The post Euro 2020 Group F – Team by Team Preview, Fixtures, Betting, Group Table appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Stephen Kenny has confirmed that his Ireland side will take on both Hungary and Andorra this summer in friendly matches. The fixtures will be played in between a nine-day training camp in Spain at a yet unannounced date.

“We wanted to go to Spain for nine days in June, which we are, to work on the whole collective way we want to play and the split and integrate all the new players we have brought in,” said Stephen Kenny while answering questions at a press conference earlier today.

”We wanted to ramp that up with friendlies against Andorra and Hungary in June and take us into September but the big let down has been losing to Luxembourg.”

The friendlies will be played in preparation for Ireland’s crucial World Cup qualification games in September against Portugal, Azerbaijan and Serbia.

Ireland are set to play World Cup 2022 hosts Qatar in a friendly match tomorrow as part of a number of friendlies organised by the Asian side to prepare for their role in the tournament.

Although normally the friendly wouldn’t have much significance, a win could prove vital in lifting spirits after a disastrous international break to date.

Wing backs Enda Stevens and Matt Doherty are both unavailable for the friendly tomorrow, meaning a change in formation may be necessary to facilitate for other players.

Doherty & Stevens ruled out of Qatar friendly

Ireland squad travelled to Debrecen, Hungary last night ahead of the match on Tuesday, March 30

https://t.co/48DSYCFRTw#WEAREONE | #COYBIG pic.twitter.com/6WUrIgk8nu

— FAIreland (@FAIreland) March 29, 2021

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