4 takeaways from Republic of Ireland's clash against England

No repeat of 1995 riots, but some fun chanting about FIFA

Thankfully, there was to be no repeat of the disgraceful night which saw Ireland’s most recent Landsdowne Road encounter with England 20 years ago abandoned due to rioting by a small number of hardcore England “fans”.

This time around, the tension seemed to have been replaced by something a lot more light-hearted.

Following the recent dramatic revelations of FIFA payments of around €5 million paid to the FAI, the away fans had a little fun with their chanting. At the heart of much of the controversy has been John Delaney, whose position as head of the FAI has been called into serious question over the past number of days.

Before the match kicked-off, certain sections of the crowd could be heard chanting: “He paid for your ground, he paid for your ground. Sepp Blatter, he paid for your ground!”

Of course, while the powers that be will have been happy to see the clash pass without incident in the stands, the spectators will have been disappointed to see a similar story unfold on the pitch as chances were few and far between, in all honesty.

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Both sides focused on upcoming Euro qualifiers

It was clear from the intensity and quality of football on display that neither outfit wanted to invest too much into this clash.

Despite sitting top of Group E, Roy Hodgson’s men (Jack Wilshere aside) still clearly had one eye on their remaining matches against Slovenia, San Marino, Switzerland, Estonia and Lithuania. With 15 points to their name, there was a sense of caution and sensibility to their approach against Ireland as they rarely looked like hitting top gear.

The same could very much be said of Ireland’s display, too as they lacked an incisive bite. No doubt, their position ahead of France 2016 is a lot more precarious, and with a hugely vital match-up against Scotland scheduled in the coming days, they had the air of a team who had their minds elsewhere as well.

Simply put, it’s do or die against the Scots – they have to win to keep their hopes alive, anything less and they may as well kiss goodbye to any hopes of qualification.