Republic of Ireland vs. Georgia: Score and Reaction for Euro 2016 Qualifier

Ireland moved one step closer to qualifying for the Euro 2016 play-off round with a 1-0 win over Georgia at the Aviva Stadium on Monday.

Jonathan Walters scored the only goal of the match midway through the second half, and after Scotland lost 2-3 to Germany, Ireland now lead the battle for third place in Group D by four points.

The Boys in Green produced a horrid performance on Monday against an equally toothless Georgia squad, but the hosts managed to grab the win, and in the end that's all that matters.

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Ireland manager Martin O'Neill decided against starting star forward Shane Long against Georgia, opting to keep the Southampton man fresh on the bench in case the team needed a late boost.

Early on, the visitors surprisingly dominated possession and forced a corner, pinning Ireland back inside their own half. Robbie Keane fired over with the first shot of the match, but Georgia looked more threatening in the early stages and nearly took the lead.

Valeri Qazaishvili, who scored against Scotland on Friday, was played through on goal with only Shay Given to beat, but the forward failed to put real power in his effort and couldn't trouble the Stoke City stopper.

Giorgi Navalovski and Levan Mchedlidze also had solid shooting chances in the opening 10 minutes, to the dismay of the home fans. RTE Soccer noticed Ciaran Clark was quite busy:

Ireland seemed determined to feed the ball to Keane as much as possible, and it was quite easy for the Georgia defence to handle the predictable passing movements. Robbie Brady came close on one occasion, but that was about it.

Meanwhile, the visitors continued to work to find themselves in solid positions, and Tornike Okriashvili tried an audacious overhead kick that would have been a candidate for goal of the season.

As soon as possession shifted to Ireland or the ball went out to play, Georgia switched back to a very deep defensive line, to the amusement of Paddy Power:

It took 37 minutes for the first good chance to fall for Ireland, as Seamus Coleman blasted a great shot from the edge of the box, but Georgia goalkeeper Nukri Revishvili produced an even better save.

Given had the entire Aviva Stadium on edge when he clumsily failed to control a back-pass with an attacker running at him, but the veteran stopper managed to clear the ball just in time.

That would be the last real action of what was altogether a disappointing first half, as noted by Irish Sun Sport:

At half-time, O'Neill made a big decision, bringing on Long for Keane. BBC News NI Live's Ciaran McCauley thought it would be a massive 45 minutes for the Southampton man:

Ireland looked much improved early in the second half, and Coleman immediately found some space for a shot after a lovely run into the box. The Everton full-back couldn't put his effort on target, but it was a promising sign after such a dreadful first half.

Unfortunately, the early chance wasn't a preview of what was about to come. Similarly to the first half, Ireland failed to build any momentum and penetrate the Georgia defence, and once again, the fans inside the Aviva were almost being bored to death.

Paddy Power didn't hide how it felt about what it was seeing: 

Brady tried his luck with a long free-kick but slammed it into the wall, and minutes later, one of his crosses nearly found Walters.

Gradually, the hosts started to find more openings, with Jeff Hendrick and Glenn Whelan testing the Georgia goalkeeper. James McCarthy also found space for a shot after a promising run, but all in all, Ireland did far too little to break down the opposing defence.

It took a moment of brilliance from Hendrick to finally break the deadlock, working his way into the box before laying it off to Walters, who easily tapped home. While Walters scored the all-important goal, the likes of professional footballer Shane Duffy were quick to point at Hendrick for forcing the breakthrough:

Whelan managed to get himself suspended for the match against Germany by talking a little too much to the official, but that could hardly temper the festivities inside the Aviva. After Scotland lost to Germany, Ireland are four points clear in the race for fourth place in Group D.

James McClean joined Whelan on the list of suspended players, seeing yellow less than 60 seconds after being subbed on the pitch. 

Georgia have already been mathematically eliminated for Euro 2016, and the visitors didn't seem too bothered to be trailing. There was no major final offensive the hosts had to survive, and while the fans can't be happy with what they saw on Monday, they'll ultimately be pleased with the win.

Ireland now lead Scotland by four points in Group D with two matches left to play, and they seem likely to pip their Scottish rivals to third place and a spot in the play-offs. Scotland need to beat Poland at home, which won't be easy, before a meeting with football minnows Gibraltar.

Ireland's schedule looks dreadful from here on out, with matches against Germany and Poland on the horizon, so the battle for third is far from over.

Beating World Champions Germany at home seems next to impossible, but it would secure a spot in the play-offs for O'Neill's men. 

Post-Match Reaction

As reported by the official Twitter account of the European Qualifiers, O'Neill didn't seem displeased with his team's performance and instead lauded the result:

Per RTE Soccer, he commented on the mentality of his side and how it helps them win matches:

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