Rob Page says he is “absolutely” the right man to lead Wales in the Euro 2024 play-offs despite his position being under review.

Page has already started planning for the March play-offs and will attend Thursday’s draw in Switzerland when Wales will learn the identity of their semi-final opponents.

Football Association of Wales chief executive Noel Mooney cast doubts over Page’s future last month by saying a “serious review” would take place after the final qualifiers “when everything will be settled”.

Asked after Tuesday’s 1-1 draw with Turkey whether he was confident of being the manager to lead Wales towards the Euros, Page gave an emphatic one-word response: “Absolutely.”

On the next few months, he added: “It’s about planning now. I’m off to the draw and we’ll have a staff meeting next week.

“I’ll get the coaches together, probably the week after. We’ll have a review of the camp, if I can say that.

“The planning starts and then I’ll be out watching players.”

Page signed a four-year contract in September 2022 which runs until the 2026 World Cup.

Wales eventually finished third in their Euro 2024 qualifying group after a roller-coaster campaign that saw them take four points from World Cup semi-finalists Croatia but only one off Armenia, ranked 95 in the world.

Turkey and Croatia claimed the two automatic qualifying places as Wales were once more left to contest the play-offs after successfully navigating them to reach the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Wales, who are unbeaten in six games, will welcome either Finland, Iceland or Ukraine to the Cardiff City Stadium on March 21 next year.

The winners of that tie will meet Poland or Estonia, with a draw held to determine who has home advantage in the final.

Page has constantly made the point during this campaign that Wales are in transition following the retirement of talismanic captain Gareth Bale and the loss of other key players such as Joe Allen.

It is unlikely the FAW hierarchy will change manager only four months before the play-offs, but failing to qualify for Euro 2024 would hit Welsh football hard financially.

Mooney said in October: “We’ll have a serious review after the Armenia and Turkey games when everything will be settled.

“We’ll know if we’ve achieved what we’ve set out to do, which is to qualify automatically.

“In a high-team performance environment with teams that have gone to World Cups and Euros over the last few years, we have to keep going forwards.

“The FAW is not like one of these football clubs which keep changing the manager all the time, knee-jerk stuff. That’s not us.

“But I caveat that by saying we have to keep winning football matches, we can’t keep losing matches. That’s very important. We’ve reached the top table in world football, we can’t go backwards.”

Page took over in an interim capacity from Ryan Giggs exactly three years ago and led Wales at the delayed 2020 European Championship, guiding them in to the round of 16.

He won promotion to the top tier of the Nations League and was appointed on a permanent basis in June 2022 after Wales had qualified for their first World Cup for 64 years.

Qualification for Euro 2024 ended this week, but there are still three places available for next summer’s tournament.

Twelve teams, including Wales, will enter the play-offs with a chance of earning a late ticket to Germany.

Here, the PA news agency takes a look at how the play-off system will work.

Who are in the play-offs?

Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Ukraine, Iceland, Poland, Wales and Estonia.

How do they work?

Gone are the days when countries need to prevail in one two-legged tie to book their place at a tournament, with a more convoluted process now in place.

The 12 teams have earned another shot at Euro 2024 based on their performance in the Nations League and they have been split into three pathways, though that is still to be fully decided.

Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg are definitely in Path C, with Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina and two of Finland, Ukraine or Iceland in Path B.

Path A consists of Poland, Wales, Estonia and one of Finland, Ukraine or Iceland.

There are two one-legged semi-finals in each pathway, with home advantage determined by Nations League standings. The winners advance to a one-off final, where home advantage will be decided by draw.

What are the fixtures and when will they be played?

The matches will all take place in the next international window. The six semi-finals will be played on March 21, 2024, with the three finals five days later.

In Path C, Georgia will host Luxembourg and Greece take on Kazakhstan.

Path B is more complicated with Israel playing either Ukraine or Iceland, with Bosnia and Herzegovina facing Finland or Ukraine, depending on which pathway Ukraine, Finland and Iceland are drawn in.

Path A has Poland at home to Estonia and Wales hosting either Finland, Ukraine or Iceland.

Which nations have already qualified for the finals?

Albania, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland and Turkey.

James McClean has backed the Republic of Ireland’s new generation to fulfil their potential after calling time on his international career.

The 34-year-old won his 103rd and last Ireland cap in Tuesday night’s 1-1 friendly draw with New Zealand and bade an emotional farewell to team-mates and fans alike after a 11 and a half years in the green shirt during which he played at the finals of two major tournaments.

McClean may not be the only man whose time in the international set-up has drawn to a close, with manager Stephen Kenny now out of contract and not expecting an extension after a disappointing Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, although the Wrexham defender is convinced the foundations he has put in place will pay dividends.

Speaking after the game, he said: “I’m going to call it how I see it. There is so much ability here. These lads are young – that’s not making excuses for them. International football is a whole different level.

“These will get better with experience and with that experience, I’ve no doubt that down the line, these lads will bring the glory days back – and when I say glory days, I mean qualifying for major tournaments.

“They just need to believe in themselves because the ability is there, it’s just getting that consistency and doing it every single game, and I’ve no doubt that will come with experience.”

McClean knows what it takes to qualify for tournaments having represented Ireland at both Euro 2012 and ast France 2016, too.

It was at the latter that the Republic secured one of their most significant victories, a 1-0 win over Italy in Lille which set up a last-16 clash with hosts France.

McClean said: “That night in Lille when we beat Italy was… I’ve said this before, I wish you could bottle that because if you could bottle that and sell it, you’d be laughing. Absolutely phenomenal.

“It’s been absolutely amazing. From the second I stepped on the pitch against the Czech Republic in 2012, the fans here in the stadium have been absolutely phenomenal, home and away.

“That was something again that was very special. I pride myself on how your nearest and dearest, your team-mates, view you as a person and tonight that showed how they viewed me.

“I’ve struck up some great relationships with the lads over the years and it’s something that I will miss, the camaraderie around the squad and going into battle with these lads.”

McClean announced his decision to step back from international football last month and had no regrets about doing so after his final appearance.

He said: “I think this is the right time to go. Not many people get to go out on their terms. I’ve had the absolute time of my life. I’ve achieved so much. Beyond my wildest dreams. I’ve had my time.

“The lads were saying tonight, ‘why didn’t you cry? I would have cried’. But I don’t see the need to cry because like I said, I had the time of my life. I’ve had so many happy memories and it’s been an absolute honour.”

World champions Argentina’s 1-0 win over Brazil was marred by crowd trouble at the Maracana Stadium.

Kick-off was delayed by half an hour in Rio de Janeiro after rival fans and police clashed, with both sets of players trying to calm the situation down before eventually returning to the dressing room before the game could commence.

Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was filmed trying to climb the hoarding to stop a police officer wielding a baton before being pulled away by team-mates.

Once the order was restored, Nicolas Otamendi’s second-half header gave Argentina an historic World Cup qualifying victory, with Joelinton sent off for the hosts.

Lionel Messi said on Argentina’s X feed: “This group continues to achieve historic things. Although today was not the most important, it is something very nice.

“We needed this victory after the defeat against Uruguay.

“We knew it was going to be a tough game, similar to the one in the Copa America final. They pressed a lot, they went to look for us high up and it was difficult for us to have long possessions. These games are defined by details.”

It was Brazil’s first-ever home defeat in a World Cup qualifier and their third in a row after previous losses to Uruguay and Colombia, with their path to the 2026 World Cup looking decidedly shaky.

The hosts were the better side in the first half and could have taken the lead just before the break but Arsenal forward Gabriel Martinelli saw his shot cleared off the line by north London nemesis Cristian Romero.

Martinelli missed another key chance after the break, with Martinez denying him from close range.

The defending champions took a 63rd-minute lead when former Manchester City defender Otamendi headed home Giovani Lo Celso’s corner with their only effort on target of the night.

Newcastle’s Joelinton saw red in the last 10 minutes when he struck out at Rodrigo De Paul to compound a miserable night for the hosts, with the inquest to their poor form and the ugly scenes in the stadium set to rumble on.

What the papers say

The Daily Mail says Tottenham midfielder Giovani Lo Celso has emerged as a loan option for Barcelona to fill their Gavi-shaped gap. The Spanish side are reportedly unlikely to look for a permanent replacement after they received £6million in compensation from FIFA following the Spain international’s knee injury.

According to the Mirror, Portuguese midfielder Fabio Vieira could get the green light from Arsenal to join Marseille on loan.

Chelsea are keen to part with Romelu Lukaku in the summer transfer window, with Italian side Roma eager to make the 30-year-old’s loan move permanent, the Evening Standard reports.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Gleison Bremer: The Juventus and Brazil centre-back is reportedly keen to move to the Premier League, as per the Telegraph.

Dusan Vlahovic: The 23-year-old Serbian striker is looking to sign a contract extension at Juve, 90min reports, even though there is rumoured interest from Arsenal and Manchester United.

Reigning daCosta Cup champions Clarendon College remain on course to secure a coveted treble, as they came from behind to down a gritty St George’s College 3-1 in a pulsating ISSA Champions Cup quarterfinal encounter at the National Stadium on Tuesday.

Justin Hayles (12th), Keheim Dixon (84th) and Tedane Williams (90+5), got the job done for Clarendon College after Jindu Powell gave St George’s College an eighth-minute lead.

Clarendon College will square off against Hydel High in one semi-final encounter, while Kingston College and Glenmuir will lock horns in the other. Kingston College earlier edged Dinthill Technical 3-2, while Glenmuir and Hydel were 1-0 and 4-2 winners over Mona High and Garvey Maceo respectively.

Both teams started spiritedly with St George’s College getting off the first warning shot and Clarendon College responded soon after. In fact, Clarendon College should have gone ahead at that point, but Deandrae Gallimore his effort High and wide from deep inside the 18-yard box.

Given the tempo at which both teams started, it was almost clear that the small turnout inside the grandstand would not have to wait long for the go-ahead goal, and it fell to St George’s College in fine style.

 After Zabir Taylor was taken down to the left of the 18-yard box, Malique Lorraine delivered a delicate chip from the set-play and Powell rose above defenders to head home.

But Clarendon College pulled level four minutes later when Hayles finished off a rebound from Dixon's long-range effort that was blocked by Jaedon Thompson, in goal for St George’s College.

From there, both teams cancelled out each other in the middle of the park, as they failed to create any meaningful chances at that point.

It wasn't until the backend of the half that Clarendon College once again surged forward and Christopher Hull should I put them ahead, but instead hit his right-footed effort over the crossbar from just inside the 18-yard box, as the score remained 1-1 at the break.

The second half started just like the first with St George’s College again on the front foot, as they enjoyed a good passage of play, and breached Clarendon College's defence a few times but failed to capitalise.

Their first fell in the 65^th to Adrian Reid, who got on the end of Taylor's cross but his right-footer at the fat post was charged down by two defenders.

Reid was at it again 11 minutes later with his shot from a distance by parried by Roshae Burrell, in goal for Clarendon College, on that occasion.

After absorbing consistent pressure, Clarendon College regained the ascendancy when Dixon followed up and finished off a rebound when Daniel Clarke’s shot from a distance was blocked by Thompson.

And with St George’s College pushing high in their bid for the equalizer, the Chapelton-based team helped themselves to another on a well-worked counterattack orchestrated by Dixon and ended with Williams tucking away from close range, seconds before the final whistle.

Winning coach Lenworth “Teacha” Hyde was delighted with the outcome.

"It was just a match up where the better team would win on the day. It was exciting and both teams put out there all and I must lift my hats to St George’s College for a hard-fought game. I told my players to be relentless and I must lift my hats to them as well, they did well and we just hope we can continue playing this brand of football and hopefully win one of these trophies,” Hyde said.

His counterpart Neville “Bertis” Bell took heart from his team’s display, as he conceded that they were beaten by a quality opponent.

"I give thanks because I thought it was a wonderful schoolboy football game. Clarendon College is a quality team and I thought we matched them well and I am proud of these guys. I don't think anyone thought we would be here at this stage of the competition, but we are here, and we have shown that we deserve to be here. We got beaten by a good team and I can live with that,” Bell noted.

Stephen Kenny has admitted he does not expect to continue as Republic of Ireland manager when his future is decided next week.

The 52-year-old’s current contract effectively ended with Tuesday night’s 1-1 friendly draw against New Zealand in Dublin and the Football Association of Ireland’s board will meet next week to decide whether to stick or twist.

Public support for Kenny’s tenure waned as the Euro 2024 qualification campaign he had built towards came and went without the success he craved, and he acknowledges that the writing is on the wall.

He said: “Obviously the board are meeting next week. They’ve a decision to make and I respect whatever that decision is.

“Of course, it would be a dream to carry on and manage the team, of course it would, but my instinct is that’s not going to happen. That’s my own instinct and the evidence suggests that probably won’t happen, so I respect that as well.”

Kenny, who replaced Mick McCarthy as manager in April 2020, has presided over huge change but ultimately has won only six of the 29 matches for which he has been in charge.

He insists he has enjoyed the experience and is keen to carry on, but he is philosophical about the situation in which he finds himself.

He said: “From my point of view, there’s no greater honour than to manage your country, it’s a huge privilege.

“It was an emotional dressing room with the players there. Ninety per cent of the players, maybe over 95 per cent of players, their careers are on an upward trajectory and they’re only going to improve as players and as individuals.

“It’s been a privilege in that regard, the greatest honour you can have. Whatever you did in life, it would be a step down, no matter what you did, but that’s the way it is.

“We have had a lot of setbacks and I suppose that’s why I’m not getting a new contract if that’s the case. International football is ruthless, that’s the nature of it. I know that, I understood that, but that’s the way it is.”

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On a night when he needed a resounding victory to support his claims of progress, he instead got more of the same, a tepid, toothless display in which a supposedly inferior side in terms of world rankings at times out-played his and might have considered themselves unfortunate not to be leaving with a win.

Adam Idah’s third senior international goal had given Ireland a first-half lead despite defender Nando Pijnaker’s justifiable protests that he had been fouled by Mark Sykes in the build-up, but they were unable to build upon it and Matt Garbett’s 59th-minute equaliser was little more than the All Whites deserved.

If Kenny left the Aviva Stadium with regrets over results, he had none over his radical approach to his dream job.

He said: “I’ve always been a big-picture person. Rather than to build something step by step, you have to see what the picture is and what you can achieve and what can be attained and then work towards that. That’s the way I see life.

“When you do that and you set the bar high, your fall can be acute. That’s the nature of how I’ve always managed, really. It leads you to incredible highs and setbacks. That’s the nature of how I see things.”

Rob Page insists Wales can reach Euro 2024 by drawing on their successful World Cup play-off history.

Wales were consigned to the Euro play-offs in March after a controversial 1-1 draw with Turkey in Cardiff.

Neco Williams’ early strike was cancelled out by Yusuf Yazici’s second-half penalty – with Page suggesting Wales would have won with another referee – as the Dragons fell short in their bid to overtake Croatia for the second automatic qualifying place behind group winners Turkey.

Croatia secured automatic qualification with a 1-0 home victory over Armenia, leaving Wales in the play-offs with a home semi-final against either Finland, Iceland or Ukraine. Poland and Estonia will contest the other semi-final.

The identity of Wales’ opponents will be determined by a draw on Thursday – and boss Page hopes play-off history will repeat itself as Austria and Ukraine were beaten in Cardiff en route to reaching the 2022 World Cup.

“We will throw everything into the preparation for the play-offs now,” said Page, who will attend the draw at Nyon in Switzerland.

“I’m pleased it’s a home draw. What our supporters do is incredible and this place is a fortress. We never disappoint and the crowd never disappoints – Croatia, Turkey, the Austria and Ukraine games.

“The lads who were in the play-offs have had those experiences.

“They managed the emotions of the Ukraine game for obvious reasons and that will stand them in good stead for these games.

“We’ve had some big nights here and we go into the play-offs with confidence.”

Wales had three penalty appeals turned down in a nine-minute spell midway through the first half.

Harry Wilson went down in a tangle of legs with with Abdulkerim Bardakci before Brennan Johnson was floored by a sliding Samet Akaydin tackle when the defender did not make contact with the ball.

Akaydin then flattened Johnson from behind in a crowded goalmouth, but neither Slovenian referee Matej Jug nor VAR came to the conclusion it was a penalty.

To add insult to injury, Jug decided Ben Davies had pushed Kenan Yildiz over and awarded a dubious 70th-minute penalty.

Asked if Wales would have won with another referee, Page replied: “I have to be careful what I say. But I believe so, if I’m being completely honest.

“It’s a stonewall penalty, one of the most obvious penalties I’ve seen, against Brennan. The defender’s got the wrong side of him, he runs into him and takes him out.

“Then we’ve conceded the softest penalty you’ll ever concede. It’s so frustrating. The VAR check was over after 10 seconds.

“I can’t get my head around it, I can’t really understand how they’ve come to that decision.”

Wales will return to action in March on the back of an unbeaten six-game run, stitched together after back-to-back June defeats to Armenia and Turkey that ultimately cost them dear.

But Page was delighted by his side’s performance following a tepid display in drawing 1-1 away to Armenia on Saturday.

He said: “I think you saw from the first minute we were at them. I challenged JJ (Jordan James) and Ethan (Ampadu) to be a little more creative on the ball.

“I thought both of them stepped up to the plate – and then some. JJ went to another level and from the first minute there was no thought of ‘we’ve got the play-offs’.

“We weren’t taking our foot off the gas. We were going for the win.

“If we can recreate the performance we had against Croatia, home and away, and Turkey – even out there before we went down to 10 men – then we will be OK.”

Richie Wellens felt Leyton Orient let down their fans after their rearranged game with Lincoln ended in a late 1-0 defeat.

Orient had been leading 1-0 in the original League One fixture on October 3 when the match was abandoned after 82 minutes due to a medical emergency. O’s fan Derek Reynolds suffered a cardiac arrest and was treated pitchside before he was later pronounced dead.

This time around, Ethan Hamilton struck in the 89th minute to earn a first win for new Lincoln boss Michael Skubala, and the performance left Wellens downbeat.

“It was a really disappointing night for us,” he said.

“I thought first half we were OK but just passed the ball for the sake of it and never got enough crosses into the box. We should have taken the lead with Joe Piggott through a header.

“Second half we were really, really poor.

“It wasn’t the performance that gave justice to the events which took place the last time we played them.

“And for our supporters to pay twice for that is not good enough and not acceptable from our players and the staff.

“Second half we just drifted and we could have won it and probably should have won it.

“Overall it was probably one of the most disappointing games I’ve had since I’ve been at the club.

“The squad is being tested at the moment (because of injuries) but no excuses we were poor tonight and we lacked energy.”

The visitors were indebted to goalkeeper Lukas Jensen for a couple of outstanding saves from Brandon Cooper and Ruel Sotiriou in either half that protected their clean sheet.

Skubala, who was appointed last week and was overseeing his second match in charge, praised his team’s display.

“I thought the lads were brilliant to a man,” Skubala said.

“It’s not an easy place to come here, particularly after the battle we had Saturday at Stevenage and we had to dig really deep and weather a few chances so I’m really proud of them.

“We tweaked a few things at half-time to try and give us more control in the game. I felt we didn’t have enough in the first half but second half we started to threaten and cause more problems for the opposition.

“We freshened things up with our substitutions and stopped them landing the ball in the box with all the players working hard.

“Our goalkeeper made a huge save for us at 0-0 which kept us in the game and we know he’s got that big performance. His kicking was excellent too but overall, it was a great team performance and everyone put in a team shift.

“It was a great finish for the winning goal from Ethan Hamilton.

“I said to the players we have to be sacrificial at times. Be good team mates to each other. That is a key part of a team’s journey.”

England Under-21 boss Lee Carsley threw down the gauntlet to Harvey Elliott after his brilliant brace.

The Liverpool midfielder scored twice as the Young Lions breezed past Northern Ireland 3-0 at Goodison Park.

Reds team-mate Tyler Morton, on loan at Hull, opened the scoring as Carsley’s men recorded a routine Euro 2025 qualifying win.

Elliott now has five goals in Group F, with England second behind Ukraine, and Carsley wants to see more of the same.

He said: “It’s important he keep scoring and assisting because he’s going to be that kind of player.

“His stats and data for us are very, very high in terms of his attacking actions around the box, the amount of chances he creates for other players but more importantly, his work rate and the way he presses the ball.

“He has to keep scoring and assisting, it’s a big part of his game. The most important thing for a lot of the players is just staying in the race.

“Making sure you keep yourself fit, making sure your attitude is in the right place and you’re trying to make yourself selectable.

“Then, when you get the opportunity, taking it. To be a young player and to play in the Premier League week in, week out is a big ask so making sure you’re putting yourself in a position to do that is a big thing.

“He’s come into camp looking really fit, really sharp. He’s doing the right things. That’s all he can do. When he’s come on for Liverpool he’s made a really good impact and I see that continuing.”

Morton opened the scoring after 31 minutes when he drilled in from the edge of the box as Northern Ireland finally buckled after a frustrating opening for the hosts.

They had to wait until five minutes after half-time for a second when Elliott curled a fine free-kick into the bottom corner from 25 yards.

The 20-year-old added a third with 10 minutes left, latching onto Morton’s pass and chipping goalkeeper Josh Clarke.

Carsley added: “You have to be patient and you have to keep probing. In the first 20 minutes I thought we were a little bit too safe.

“Once we got the first goal I thought we saw a different level.”

Gareth Southgate says England will be away from the tournament hubbub next summer with plans in place for a quiet European Championship base camp.

Monday’s 1-1 draw in North Macedonia rubber-stamped the Euro 2020 runners-up a place among the top seeds in the December 2 draw in Hamburg.

Southgate will be in attendance for a draw that will not only provide clarity on opposition and pathways but where England will be based during their stay in Germany.

This tournament is being regionalised for sustainability purposes, with priority given to teams whose preferred base camps are closer to their match venues.

England have registered their interest in a number of options across Germany and Southgate suggests their base will be off the beaten path.

“Really somewhere where we can be a little bit on our own,” he said looking ahead to his fourth major tournament in charge.

“We need that nice contrast of relaxation and areas where we can work.

“You want to minimise travel where you can but we are really, within the FA, our staff are really good at picking those venues that I think the players will enjoy and will feel comfortable in.

“You basically want to be somewhere where everything that’s going on around you, you can zone out from really but somewhere with facilities that are good for working.”

The camp sounds similar to the quiet, laid-back surrounds of Repino – a secluded area around 30 miles from downtown St Petersburg that provided England’s base during the 2018 World Cup.

It certainly will not be anything like the base for their last major tournament in Germany, with Baden-Baden becoming a media circus during the 2006 World Cup.

“I wasn’t involved in that tournament so I don’t know how all that was but we have a great environment with our players,” Southgate said.

“We want their families to be able to go and enjoy the tournament as well. We normally welcome them in at various times.

“It changes the dynamic of the hotel, especially if the kids come in, and I think those elements are important for the players.”

The Football Association has been scouring through the Euro 2024 base camp guide and has visited a number of potential destinations as it edges closer.

England will be sweating on the draw to see if they get their venue of choice, with Southgate saying there are various things that go into it.

“There is basically a catalogue and you’ve got to get in early, if you like, on certain venues or you can try and go off the catalogue and do something different,” he said.

“We’ve had both options available to us and we are looking forward to finalising all of our plans.”

As for the potential opposition in Germany, the pots could prove cruel or kind and Southgate is ready whatever the outcome.

“There looks like being really strong teams in pot two and pot three looks like it could be very strong,” he added.

“In the Euros we had Croatia in with us, who proved to be one of the best teams in the world over the last few years and we managed to navigate that, so we’ve just got to be ready for whatever comes our way.”

Matt Garbett ruined James McClean’s farewell party as the Republic of Ireland were held to an embarrassing friendly draw by New Zealand.

Both McClean – who was making his 103rd and final senior appearance for his country – and manager Stephen Kenny, out of contract on the final whistle and with seemingly little hope of an extension, might have hoped for a rousing conclusion at the Aviva Stadium.

But a paltry crowd of 26,517 saw NAC Breda midfielder Garbett cancel out Adam Idah’s first-half opener to claim a 1-1 draw on a night when Ireland, who have slipped to 58th place in FIFA’s world rankings table, were at times out-played by a side some 45 places below them.

A review of the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, which ended fruitlessly for the Republic with Saturday’s 1-0 defeat by the Netherlands, will be considered by the Football Association of Ireland’s board next week, but evidence of the progress Kenny believes has been made was in painfully short supply once again.

Ireland, starting with a flat back four, made an uncertain start as the All Whites enjoyed early possession in their opponent’s half, but as McClean and Celtic winger Mikey Johnston got the bit between his teeth down the left, they started to make an impression.

New Zealand defender Michael Boxall had to be in the right place at the right time to deny first McClean and then – from the resulting corner – central defender Shane Duffy, with the home side pinning the visitors back.

Kenny’s men continued to dominate possession but found space at a premium as the All Whites defended their box resolutely until the 28th minute when they were finally pierced, if with an element of controversy.

Sligo defender Nando Pijnaker felt he had been caught by Mark Sykes – making a first start for his country – as he dispossessed him, but his appeals for a free-kick went unanswered as the midfielder found striker Idah, who made no mistake.

The visitors might have been back in it seven minutes later when, after the Irish defence had struggled to deal with Tim Payne’s cross, skipper Chris Wood diverted Marko Stamenic’s shot wide with his knee as it sped across goal to the relief of goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

Kelleher was called upon for the first time three minutes later when he clawed the excellent Sarspreet Singh’s curling attempt out of his top corner and he saw the same man fire into the side-netting after being released by Liberato Cacace in a strong finish to the first half by Darren Bazeley’s men.

The Liverpool goalkeeper departed at the break to be replaced by Mark Travers and the newcomer suffered a scare within four minutes when Singh picked out Garbett with a cross and saw the striker lift a shot wastefully over the top.

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Jayson Molumby fired just wide after being set up by Johnston and Duffy headed a McClean corner straight at goalkeeper Max Crocombe with Ireland responding, but they were rocked with 59 minutes gone when Singh again stretched the home defence and when the ball fell to Garbett on the edge of the box, he smashed it past the helpless Travers to level.

Singh tested Travers with a 64th-minute strike and Kenny chose that moment to make two significant changes, the first to replace Idah with Evan Ferguson and the second to hand McClean a standing ovation as he made way for Ryan Manning as his international career drew to a close.

Andy Moran was handed a senior debut as Kenny looked for inspiration, but Travers had to rescue defender Andrew Omobamidele after substitute Max Mata went for goal and substitute Ryan Manning prevented Mata from winning it at the death, while the final whistle came as a merciful release for the home fans.

France’s hopes of ending their European Championship qualifying campaign with a 100 per cent record were denied as Didier Deschamps’ men were held to a 2-2 draw by Greece in Athens.

The visitors struck the woodwork twice in injury time, with Odysseas Vlachodimos tipping a Kylian Mbappe effort on to the crossbar as the play-off bound Greeks withstood a late surge.

Randal Kolo Muani had given France a half-time lead but a swift double from Anastasios Bakasetas and Fotis Ioannidis turned the game on its head before Youssouf Fofana fired France back level.

Deschamps’ men had gone into the game bulging with confidence in the wake of their record-breaking 14-0 win over Gibraltar at the weekend.

But it was quickly clear they would not find the sturdy Greek rearguard so accommodating and Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Vlachodimos dealt easily with early efforts from Ousmane Dembele and Theo Hernandez.

Antoine Griezmann came closer after 15 minutes with an effort that the Greek keeper turned round the post, but Greece fired a warning of their own just before the half-hour mark when Konstantinos Mavropanos headed just over.

Ioannidis also saw a half-chance go begging before Muani opened the scoring three minutes before the interval when he fired home from a tight angle.

With nothing to lose, Greece started the second half with freedom, Ioannidis blazing a chance over the bar before Bakasetas let fly from the edge of the box in the 56th minute to pull his side level.

Five minutes later Greece were in front when Ioannidis latched on to a fine cross from Dimitrios Giannoulis to make it 2-1 to Gus Poyet’s side.

Deschamps responded by bringing on big guns Mbappe and Kingsley Coman straight after the goal, but it was Fofana who hauled his side level with a superb long-range effort with 16 minutes left.

Coman thought he had grabbed a winner in stoppage time but his effort was ruled not to have crossed the line, before Mbappe was denied by heroics from Vlachodimos.

Marcel Sabitzer and Christoph Baumgartner scored in either half to ensure Austria a 2-0 victory over 10-man Germany in Vienna.

The home team broke the deadlock in the first period thanks to Sabitzer’s strike at the near post before Leroy Sane was sent off after shoving the head of Philipp Mwene.

The second half was largely dominated by Austria with the extra man and they made their opponents pay when Baumgartner sealed victory at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion.

Austria enjoyed a bright start to the match and had the first shot on target of the match a quarter of an hour in when Michael Gregoritsch’s effort from inside the area tested Kevin Trapp in the Germany goal.

The home side broke the deadlock just before the half hour mark when Baumgartner picked out Sabitzer, who finished expertly at the near post.

Germany looked to respond instantly and Sane’s drilled strike looked to be going into the bottom corner but Austria keeper Alexander Schlager did well to deny the Bayern Munich winger.

Germany’s Serge Gnabry then let fly from outside the area but his audacious effort flew way over the crossbar.

Austria came close to a second three minutes before the break, Sabitzer looked to repay Baumgartner for his earlier assist and fed him but the latter’s effort missed just wide of the top right corner.

Germany faced an uphill battle to get back into the match when they were reduced to 10 men just four minutes into the second period. After Mwene was fouled by Sane, the German sprung to his feet and pushed the defender in the face and received an inevitable red card.

Austria sought to make their man advantage count and almost had a second but Stefan Posch’s low shot from outside the area went a whisker wide of the post.

The hosts continued to create chances and for a while it seemed only a matter of time before Germany would concede a second after Gregoritsch and Posch both missed half-chances within a minute of each other.

Midway through the second half, Trapp was called upon again to deny Gregoritsch’s goal-bound effort and keep the deficit to just one.

Austria’s second arrived in the 73rd minute. After setting up the first, Baumgartner raced through on goal and dinked the ball cleverly over Trapp to make Austria’s advantage more comfortable.

The closest Germany came to a consolation goal was when Jonathan Tah flicked on for Thomas Muller but the veteran’s header was magnificently saved by Schlager.