Irish nurse sore heads after Euro qualifying party

Irish fans and players alike partied like there was no tomorrow after the historic play-off victory over Estonia.

The country may not have seen the likes of the knees-up to toast the success of Giovanni Trapattoni’s Green Army.

After the 1-1 draw at the Aviva Stadium thirsty fans and players hit the town for a massive celebration.

Supporters stuck two fingers up to the recession as pints flowed and people across the country drank to the nation’s success.

Ireland’s heroes descended on Dublin celebrity hangout Krystle and partied well into the small hours.

Robbie Keane popped corks in the exclusive suite of the club as he dowsed fans in champagne in wild celebrations which set the team back a cool £17,000.

The entire club was decked out in green, white and gold as the slogan Go On You Boys In Green was splashed across screens.

Robbie’s glamorous wife Claudine was there as Moscow hero Richard Dunne enjoyed the celebrations with delirious fans.

Darren O’Dea, Keith Fahey and Stephen Ward were also having the time of their lives and Wolves teammates Kevin Doyle and Stephen Hunt also turned up.

One onlooker said: “The lads were having a great time of it. It was one of the best nights I have had out in Dublin. The place was absolutely hopping. The match did not matter really after the performance in Estonia. Everyone was just having a great time. They absolutely deserved a night out.”

Most of the work was done in Tallinn last Friday and there was a carnival atmosphere at the packed Lansdowne Road.

A Stephen Ward goal settled the nerves and the jubilant players got a standing ovation as they lapped up the atmosphere after the match.

And with Ireland’s first qualification to a European Championships in 23 years secured Dublin rocked to Christy Moore’s legendary song Joxer Goes To Stuttgart.

A live band in the Berkeley Court strummed out the tunes all night long as fans drank the hotel dry. Old classics such as Put ’Em Under Pressure and Give It A Lash rang out lustily.Heroes such as Ronnie Whelan and Ray Houghton from past campaigns also joined the party.

The Euro ’88 players said they were absolutely delighted for the Green Army and it had been too long since we last got there.

Ronnie added: “We had the time of our lives back in 1988 and hopefully the team will do us proud.”

After forking out €2,000 for fans to enjoy the night life in Tallinn, FAI head John Delaney once again mixed freely with supporters.

Night spot Copper Face Jacks was also crammed as the Green Army had the party we have been waiting for since the World Cup in Japan and South Korea in 2002.

The country is due for a massive boost this summer as fans plan their trips to Poland or Ukraine.

We will get at least three games in the group stages and fans will be hoping that the draw on December 2 might give us a dream draw like the English.

Goalkeeper Shay Given said the team will try and do us proud come the summer and added: “There are some fantastic teams there, but we are sure that some of those teams won’t want to play Ireland either.

“I think someone said we were 50-1, so I think we are worth a fiver of anyone’s money. On our day, we can play against the best teams.”