Bosun Lawal scored his first goal at the Under-21 international level, leveling the game for Jim Crawford's Ireland side with a sublime finish against Ukraine in Blumau, Austria.
Andrew Moran also scored for Ireland just before halftime. Lawal's goal ensured that the unbeaten streak of the new Under-21 grouping continued after their win against Iceland in March.
Ireland's Head Coach, Jim Crawford, handed first starts at this level to James Abankwah, Armstrong Oko-Flex, and Conor Carty. The match was played in solidarity with Ukraine as the conflict in their homeland continues.
Ukraine, a level above Ireland, is preparing for the 2023 European Under-21 Championship finals.
Ireland threatened early on, but it was Ukraine who took the lead from a penalty. Ireland equalized just before halftime with a clever finish from Moran.
In the second half, Lawal scored the decisive goal, running through the Ukrainian defense and applying a deft finish.
Ireland's performance was praised by Crawford, who highlighted their character and the outstanding individual efforts of Moran and Lawal.
Speaking after the game Ireland Under-21 Head Coach Jim Crawford said: "I think if you look at the context, Ukraine, who are starting their European Championships next week were at full strength. We analysed their game against Italy and they had a strong team out and it was a similar team today.
"They also had two senior international who were part of their group today, For me, as a group of players, I thought they were outstanding.
"We showed character to come back twice, I thought Andy Moran was a thorn in their side then Bosun delivering an unbelievable individual goal."
Republic of Ireland: Tiernan Brooks; James Abankwah, Bosun Lawal, Anselmo Garcia MacNulty, Sean Roughan (James Furlong, 84’), Killian Phillips (Ed McJannet, 62 ‘), Joe Hodge, Armstrong Oko-Flex (Dara Costelloe 62’), Andy Moran, Ollie O’Neill (Darragh Burns, 79’), Conor Carty (Dylan Duffy, 62’)
Ireland Under-21s international friendly fixtures (All times are Irish Standard Time)
Monday, June 19 | Ireland U21 v Kuwait U22, KO 4pm, Parktherme Arena, Bad Radkersburg, Austria
The match ended in a well-deserved draw for Ireland
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