Ireland in dreamland

A Robbie Keane brace and goals from Keith Andrews and Jon Walters saw Republic of Ireland thrash nine-man Estonia.

Goals from Keane, Andrews and Walters put Irish well in control

A Robbie Keane brace and goals from Keith Andrews and Jon Walters saw Republic of Ireland thrash nine-man Estonia and take firm control of their Euro 2012 play-off. Andrews put the Irish ahead in the 13th minute in Tallinn when heading home an Aiden McGeady cross before Estonia where reduced to ten men when central defender Andrei Stepanov was sent off for a second bookable offence in the 35th minute. Walters and Keane notched within three second half minutes to put Ireland well on top before Estonia's night got even worse when skipper Raio Piiroja was also dismissed. Stephen Hunt won a penalty off fellow substitute Ats Purje late on and captain Keane scored the resulting spot-kick to send Giovanni Trapattoni's men into dreamland ahead of Tuesday's return leg in Dublin. The home fans were furious with Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai for what they saw as his part in their side's demise, but Ireland made hay as they banished the bitter memories of five play-off defeats in six previous attempts to take a giant stride towards Poland and Ukraine. Ireland's tale of woe has proved a source of intense frustration, and the injustice of the final chapter which cast Frenchman Thierry Henry in the role of villain two years ago left a bitter taste in the mouths of the nation. There was a belief before kick-off, however, that this could be their time after they were seeded for the draw which handed them, on paper at least, the least taxing of the four options available, and home advantage in the second leg.

Much better

On the pitch, things could not have gone much better as Estonia initially showed they were not prepared to be cannon fodder for the Irish, yet ultimately contrived to extend their hospitality far too readily. Tarmo Ruutli's men started brightly enough, but found themselves behind with just 13 minutes gone when McGeady, who proved a threat throughout, burst into space on the left before floating the perfect cross into the middle for Andrews to head home his third senior international goal. Walters, preferred to Simon Cox as Keane's strike partner for the night, might have doubled his side's lead five minutes later, but his shot on the turn after Sean St Ledger had headed down Andrews' free-kick flew high and wide. Estonia responded as dangerman Konstantin Vassiljev, whose five goals proved so valuable during their Group C campaign, looked threatening in the space between the Republic's midfield and defensive lines. His viciously-struck 22nd-minute shot had goalkeeper Shay Given concerned enough to dive full-length across his goal, and the Aston Villa man was mightily relieved to see the ball fly just wide. But as Vassiljev and Middlesbrough winger Tarmo Kink started to pin the visitors back, they left space at the back and Walters shot inches over from a tight angle after being played in by Glenn Whelan. However, Estonia were dealt a major blow seconds later when Stepanov's night came to a premature conclusion. The defender, who had been booked for an earlier challenge on McGeady, crudely up-ended Keane after being caught in possession, leaving Kassai little option but to send him off.

Reorganise

Ruutli had to reorganise at the break and opted to field a back three in the second half with Kink and Dmitri Kruglov operating as wing-backs. They might have fallen further behind within four minutes of the restart when Damien Duff fired in a skidding drive from a narrow angle, but goalkeeper Sergei Pareiko dealt with it comfortably. Kassai incurred the wrath of the home fans four minutes later when he awarded a free-kick just outside the box rather than a penalty for a foul by Whelan on midfielder Martin Vunk. Vassiljev's set-piece was deflected wide by Richard Dunne, and it was then that Ireland made their big push. They put the game, and perhaps the tie, beyond Estonia when Walters headed home Keane's cross for his first senior international goal after Pareiko could only parry McGeady's shot, and the captain gleefully tapped home after the goalkeeper had blocked Andrews' 71st-minute free-kick with his feet. Piiroja picked up a booking which would have ruled him out of the second leg anyway for a foul on Andrews, but he joined Stepanov back in the dressing room with 13 minutes remaining after being cautioned for a second time. The depth of the Estonian disaster grew two minutes from time when Keane converted a penalty after Purje had tripped fellow substitute Hunt to leave the former Soviet republic's hopes in tatters and Ireland in dreamland.

Estonia	Team Statistics	Republic of Ireland
0	Goals	4
0	1st Half Goals	1
2	Shots on Target	9
8	Shots off Target	7
4	Blocked Shots	1
4	Corners	1
15	Fouls	11
2	Offsides	2
2	Yellow Cards	0
2	Red Cards	0
75	Passing Success	73.2
14	Tackles	12
85.7	Tackles Success	66.7
52.7	Possession	47.3
47.5	Territorial Advantage	52.5
420	Total Passes	380
20	Total Crosses	17
161	Lost Balls	168
56	Recoveries	62