IRELAND MAY HAVE lost the game tonight, but they won the party in Gdansk.

Even in the dying moments of the humbling 4-0 defeat at the hands of a superb Spain side, a rousing rendition of the Fields of Athenry rangs around the stadium. It was enough to gladden the heart of any Irish man or woman watching on TV.

Except Roy Keane who viewed the game from the ITV studio in Warsaw.

“I think the players and even the supporters, they all have to change their mentality, it’s just nonsense from players speaking after the games about how great the supporters are,” he said afterwards.

“Listen, the supporters want to see the team doing a lot better and not giving daft goals away like that. I’m not too happy with all that nonsense. To praise the supporters for sake of it … Let’s change that attitude towards Irish supporters.

“They want to see the team winning – let’s not kid ourselves, we’re a small country, we’re up against it, but let’s not just go along for the sing-song every now and again.”

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FAI chief John Delaney has praised the contribution of the travelling Irish supporters.

‘The Irish fans have made many sacrifices to follow our squad and have been absolutely amazing,” Delaney said in a statement tonight.

“The abiding memory that we will take away from this match will be the many thousands of Irish fans singing the ‘Fields of Athenry’ right up to and beyond the final whistle. They are a credit to the game and to our country. On behalf of the FAI, the squad and management team I would like to thank them for their incredible support.”

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