Ireland’s U21 captain Jayson Molumby satisfied following victory over

Ireland’s U21 football team overcame the challenge of Luxembourg Sunday, to kick start their Euro championships qualifiers in impressive fashion.

Following a cautious opening from both sides at Tallaght Stadium, Ireland scored twice in four minutes through Adam Idah and Neil Farrugia to take full control of proceedings. Norwich City teen Idah then notched his second 68 minutes in to see out a comfortable victory for Stephen Kenny’s charges.

Dublin was well represented on the night, especially from local based lads including Darragh Leahy and Dan Mandroiu (Both Bohemians) and Jamie Lennon (St. Patrick’s Athletic) who all played on the night.

Pivotal to the victory was Brighton and hove Albion midfielder Jayson Molumby. The Waterford man, aided by West Ham youngster Conor Coventry, bossed the midfield and was central to most of Ireland’s good play. Following the victory Molumby said securing maximum points from their first outing was vital.

“Three points were massive for us. It’s always difficult with a newly put together squad and a new manager coming together to gel and play as good as we did, but it’s a sheer sign of the work we’ve put in and how we’ve taken to the way Stephen wants us to play,”

Molumby heaped praise on Stephen Kenny, who endured a successful start to his international managerial career, insisted the boss wasn’t entirely satisfied at half time, despite leading two nil. Speaking about what was they were told at half time, the skipper said:

“You might struggle to believe it, but he wasn’t all that impressed with us at half time.

“Stephen has great expectations of us and is always wanting and demanding more from us. He was key in our second half performance, how we dominated the game. That all came from his drive and determination shown in the dressing room at the break.”

Besides captaining his nation to victory, this was a huge game for Molumby on a personal front, as he just got back on the field following a lengthy injury. Molumby fell victim to a nasty knee injury in November of 2017, which left him sidelined for 15 months.

Following intense recovery sessions and hard work by the Brighton backroom team, the teenager found himself back playing football as recent as February, so insists it was a significant night for him.

“It was a mad feeling getting back out there. After 15 months of watching on, I wasn’t even expecting to be in the international scene.

“Then to be given the armband was crazy, a real proud moment. I was over the moon,”

Molumby put his return to the game down to “hard work and belief” from both him and the staff at Brighton, and said the squad will look to “kick on” for the remainder of the qualifiers.