Andy Waterworth praised his Northern Ireland’s Men’s Under-17s as a ‘great group of players’ as they beat Türkiye in a strong performance at the Blanchflower Stadium in East Belfast today.
Competition
UEFA U17 Friendly match
Scoreline
Northern Ireland U17 2 – Türkiye 1
Scorers
Northern Ireland: Thompson (twice)
Türkiye: Kocak
Venue
Blanchflower Stadium, Belfast
Date
10 August 2024
Team News
Northern Ireland U17 coaches Andy Waterworth and Kris Lindsay went into today’s knowing that their opposition would provide an excellent challenge due to their quality.
How it happened
The first 10 minutes saw few clearcut chances created by either side with Türkiye ultimately going close after 14 minutes. 20 minutes in, however, and the home side had a flurry of shots from Scott Hamilton and Darragh McCann saved off the line. At that point Northern Ireland were in the ascendancy, bossing play and unlucky not to be one up at the break with Christopher Atherton the architect of much of the home side’s chances and Kallum Thompson grazing the bar with a free kick.
Half-time: Northern Ireland U17 0-0 Türkiye U17
Northern Ireland’s dominance continued after the break with a clear-cut penalty shout for Scott Hamilton being waved away by the referee. Shortly after, Christopher Atherton was replaced by Glenn McCourt who had an immediate impact in the game, whipping crosses in and being industrious on the right-hand side. Paul McGovern also replaced Scott Hamilton up front.
Northern Ireland’s dominance paid off with a corner from Kallum Thompson being fumbled by the Türkiye keeper to put the home side one up halfway through the second half. Leon Barr came on for Noah McDonnell to freshen things up. Shortly after Türkiye levelled after a mistake on the edge of the home penalty box. But Northern Ireland hit back, Kallum Thompson again the scorer this time from the penalty spot. After his brace, Thomspon, described by Waterworth as ‘devasting’ at the final whistle, was replaced by Evan Boulter and Northern Ireland saw the game out to win in a fully deserved victory.
Full time: Northern Ireland U17 2-1 Türkiye U17
