Northern Ireland’s hopes of making the World Cup via their group fell apart in Slovakia, with Dan Ballard dismissed in stoppage time as his side succumbed to a late goal that left Michael O’Neill furious at the officiating.
Ballard, who had been pivotal – and lucky to stay on the pitch – for Sunderland in their draw with Arsenal last weekend, carried that same edge into this game but paid for it this time.
Already booked, the defender collected a second yellow for a push on Stanislav Lobotka, a moment that compounded a night in which his every involvement seemed to draw the ire of the Slovak crowd.
By then, Northern Ireland had already been floored. Slovakia struck in the first of eight added minutes, debutant Tomas Bobcek burying Laszlo Benes’ corner only three minutes after coming on. The goal stood despite immediate appeals, and two previous goals being ruled out, with Ballard lying on the turf after being touched lightly as the delivery came across the box.
O’Neill did not hide his feelings after the game. “We are disappointed as we gave a lot in the game,” he said. “The ‘third goal’ should have been disallowed; it is clearly a foul on Ballard.” It wasn’t.
“That is what VAR is there for,” O’Neill continued. “The first is offside, the lines are drawn and shown. Then the second is a handball, another clear decision, and the third one is a decision that the referee has to make. The yellow card for Daniel is a joke, if you look at it back, it is a joke.”
Despite the disappointment, Croatia’s win over the Faroe Islands the same evening secured Northern Ireland a place in next year’s play-offs, reward for topping their Nations League group. “We still have a chance to qualify,” O’Neil said. “We are in the play-off now. We came here wanting to finish second, that was the main thing, but we have to congratulate Slovakia, they go to Germany with a chance of winning the group.”
Brad Lyons, drafted in after injuries to other players, admitted their performance never quite reached the required level. “There was not much between the teams, it was probably a really scrappy game and we know we can play a lot better,” he said.
“To lose it in the manner we did is really frustrating. I thought it was a foul at the time. I haven’t watched it back, but it looked like the guy has charged into Dan Ballard. Anywhere else on the pitch, it is probably a foul.
“It is not good enough defending from us.”