So Jackie Charlton would take Ireland to a first ever World Cup, and their second successive championships, having featured well in the European Championships preceding these qualifiers. They had been fourth seeds due to their lack of international stature prior to Charlton’s arrival, but still had looked just as likely to win a World Cup ticket as any of the two seeds right above them, Hungary and Northern Ireland. With their extreme focus on aggression in midfield, a tight back four and long balls to the front, they hardly won any awards for their technical ability, but they were very efficient and did very well what they set out to do. As Hungary stumbled in both matches against Malta, the Republic of Ireland had twice received gifts that they had not been counting on beforehand. And they took advantage through more or less securing their participation in Italy even before a ball had been kicked in the final match.

A total number of 21 players had featured during the eight match long qualification campaign, the lowest number among the five teams of Group 6. Moran, Houghton and Cascarino had all started every one of the eight matches, Bonner and Sheedy seven, and young left back Staunton had emerged as a player of good international stature. There had been perhaps more doubt about who should occupy the right back berth, where both Hughton and Morris had performed, and where even McGrath had been given the nod for the final game in Malta. In central defence Charlton had welcomed back veteran O’Leary after the two had finally buried the hatchet after two and a half years. Despite probably being only a third choice with every one of the central defenders available (McGrath was more or less considered only as a midfield alternative), the Arsenal stopper did manage 4+1 appearances, mainly due to McCarthy being injury plagued in the latter part of the qualification stages. Moran’s place was never in doubt. However, the now Sporting Gijón player had featured as a defensive midfielder in the defeat away to the Spanish, where Eire had been without several players due to injury.

Midfield: In Charlton’s 4-4-2, Whelan and McGrath were first choices in central midfield by the latter parts of 1988. They had both been absent for the trip to Seville, and Sheridan had won his only ’90 qualifiers appearance during the 2-0 defeat. Moran had filled in for McGrath in the defensive midfield role, but had been unable to do it anywhere near as well as his former Man Utd colleague. Another central midfield alternative had been Liam O’Brien, but he did not get a lot of playing time, only making one substitute appearance. As the campaign went on, Charlton had noticed how well Norwich’ industrious midfielder Andy Townsend had been doing in the English league, and despite not being born Irish himself, he would qualify through his heritage. Already by the end of the qualifiers he had established himself as a first pick alongside the excellent Whelan, as he was able both to act as a destroyer and being creative in one and the same role. He did add a new dimension to the Irish team. The ageing Liam Brady had by now been reduced to an extra.
The two flank men used were Houghton on the right and Sheedy on the left, both undisputed in their positions. In fact, Houghton, at the pinnacle of his career, turned in one performance after the other of the highest calibre, and was probably one of the continent’s best and most consistent players towards the end of the 80s. Sheedy was less spectacular down his flank, but would typically give a reliable showing. Tony Galvin had deputised once for Sheedy whilst the Everton winger had been out injured and unavailable for Spain away.

Attack: With target man Cascarino perfect for the kind of play that Jackie Charlton was preaching, there was only really one forward place up for grabs, and with Aldridge enjoying such prolific domestic seasons, he did seem the natural pick. However, Aldridge never really got going for the national team, possibly due to the direct nature of their play. He did seem to be more of a fit by the end of the campaign, though, and capped a good display in Malta with two goals, albeit one from the penalty spot. Frank Stapleton, the now ageing forward, had begun the two matches alongside Cascarino that Aldridge did not start, and there was eternal substitute Niall Quinn to draw on from the bench if need be. Quinn was still young and learning the trade at international level, but had proved a big handful in the English first division with Arsenal.

The Irish fans had won a lot of international praise after the way they had conducted themselves in West Germany in the summer of ’88, and they were seen in sharp contrast to the English, whose reputation was heading towards an all time low following a lot of scandals whilst on their travels. They were good-natured, the Irish fans, and stood by their team through thick and thin; about 4500 had turned up in Valletta for their final match. Now it is time to see what the Republic of Ireland can do in a World Cup.