Northern Ireland v Greece
Northern Ireland 3
Davis 35′, 58′ Magennis 49′
Greece 1
Aravidis 86′
FT 90 +4
HT 1-0
Northern Ireland have never been to a European Championship finals
8 October 2015
Last updated at
21:38
By Lyle Jackson
BBC Sport
Northern Ireland have qualified for the Euro 2016 finals by beating Greece 3-1 on a brilliant night at Windsor Park.
Two goals by skipper Steven Davis and one by stand-in striker Josh Magennis sent them through to a major tournament for the first time in 30 years.
Davis forced in a first-half goal, and then headers by Magennis and Davis ensured Northern Ireland were going to their first European finals.
Christos Aravidis got a late goal for Greece but it did not spoil the party.
With Romania drawing 1-1 at home to Finland, Northern Ireland will top Group F if they get a point in Finland on Sunday in their final qualifier.
Celebrations at reaching their first continental finals will carry on into the night in Belfast
On new ground
Captain Davis was one year old and Kilmarnock player Magennis not even born the last time Northern Ireland competed at a major finals – the 1986 World Cup when Billy Bingham was manager and the team included Pat Jennings, Mal Donaghy and Norman Whiteside.
Northern Ireland fans had endured 14 unsuccessful qualifying campaigns since then, but those repeated disappointments made Thursday night’s celebrations all the sweeter.
Southampton midfielder Davis stretched to score his first goal in 13 games for his country after Stuart Dallas had delivered the ball low from the right.
Magennis netted a looping header from an Oliver Norwood corner on 49 minutes and nine minutes later Davis made it three with a well-placed header.
Magennis – keeper turned striker
It was a first international goal for 25-year-old Magennis, who played for Northern Ireland as a goalkeeper at Under-17 level.
When his club Cardiff City told the teenager from Bangor, County Down, he would not make it as a keeper, he was offered the chance to become a striker.
Goalscorer Josh Magennis was making his first international start
It was an opportunity he grabbed and has gone on to make a career in the Scottish Premiership.
The suspension of Kyle Lafferty, who had scored seven goals in this qualifying campaign, handed Magennis his chance to shine on the international stage and he celebrated his goal at Windsor Park by running into the arms of manager Michael O’Neill on the touchline.
Man of the match – Davis at the double
It was a case of captain fantastic as Steven Davis scored in both halves.
The midfielder netted for the first time in 13 Northern Ireland games when he opened the scoring 10 minutes before half-time. He later made it 3-0 with a well-placed header to cap a memorable night.
Before Thursday, Davis had not scored an international goal since 15 October 2013 against Israel in a World Cup qualifier
Long wait ends
After the final whistle, the supporters known as the Green and White Army refused to leave the ground, singing in celebration as the realisation that so many years of hurt were over, began to sink in.
They were rewarded with an encore as their players came back out for a lap of honour.
Predictably, manager O’Neill got a special ovation as he was joined on the pitch by his two daughters and also lifted up by this players.
O’Neill’s side have won six of their nine qualifiers so far
Beating all the odds
Few would have given Northern Ireland much hope of reaching
the expanded Euro finals,
coming after a dismal qualifying campaign for the 2014 World Cup in which O’Neill’s men lost to Luxembourg and could not beat Azerbaijan.
Even going into Thursday’s match, there were doubts as Northern Ireland were without four key players in suspended Lafferty, Chris Baird and Conor McLaughlin and injured Jonny Evans.
But it all went right on the night at the partly-rebuilt Windsor Park, and O’Neill’s men are top on 20 points and have scored most goals in the group.
Now 12 December has been put in the diary as that is when the draw for next year’s finals takes place in Paris.
What the boss said:
Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill: “Tonight we were without four of our top players and yet we can come and win the game and win the game so well in such a tense occasion.
“We look forward to the draw now, it gives everyone something to look forward to. The preparations for France start now.
“We have to enjoy tonight, we have got a three-point gap now. Our objective was to qualify and we’ve done that. It is a lovely position to be in going into the last game.”
How Northern Ireland reached Euro 2016
7 September 2014 – Hungary 1-2 Northern Ireland
McGinn, Lafferty (scorers)
11 October 2014 – Northern Ireland 2-0 Faroe Islands
McAuley, Lafferty
14 October 2014 – Greece 0-2 Northern Ireland
Ward, Lafferty
14 November 2014 – Romania 2-0 Northern Ireland
29 March 2015 – Northern Ireland 2-1 Finland
Lafferty 2
13 June 2015 – Northern Ireland 0-0 Romania
4 September 2015 – Faroe Islands 1-3 Northern Ireland
McAuley 2, Lafferty
7 September 2015 – Northern Ireland 1-1 Hungary
Lafferty
8 October 2015 – Northern Ireland 3-1 Greece
Davis 2, Magennis
11 October 2015 – Finland v Northern Ireland
Lineup, Bookings (0) & Substitutions (6)
Northern Ireland
01 McGovern
17 McNair (McCullough – 85′ )
04 McAuley
20 Cathcart
11 Brunt
08 Davis
19 Ward (McGinn – 81′ )
13 Evans
16 Norwood
14 Dallas
21 Magennis (Boyce – 78′ )
Substitutes
02 Hodson
03 Ferguson
05 McCullough
06 Reeves
07 McGinn
09 Grigg
10 Mckay
12 Carroll
15 McCourt
18 McArdle
22 Boyce
23 Mannus
Greece
01 Karnezis
15 Torosidis
19 Papastathopoulos
05 Moras
20 Holebas
22 Samaris
06 Tziolis
16 Karelis (Mantalos – 65′ )
08 Kone (Pelkas – 71′ )
21 Aravidis
09 Mitroglou (Athanasiadis – 76′ )
Substitutes
02 Kitsiou
03 Stafylidis
07 Pelkas
10 Fortounis
11 Vyntra
12 Kapino
13 Vellidis
14 Tzanetopoulos
17 Tachtsidis
18 Mantalos
23 Athanasiadis
Ref: Bas Nijhuis
Match Stats
Possession
33 67
Shots
19 8
On target
3 4
Corners
10 3
Fouls
9 11
Live Text Commentary
Full time
Full Time Match ends, Northern Ireland 3, Greece 1.
90:00 +3:03 Full time
Full Time Second Half ends, Northern Ireland 3, Greece 1.
90:00 +2:15
José Holebas (Greece) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
90:00 +2:15
Foul by Steven Davis (Northern Ireland).
90:00 +0:01
Christos Aravidis (Greece) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
90:00 +0:01
Foul by Niall McGinn (Northern Ireland).
88:14
Foul by Christos Aravidis (Greece).
88:14
Niall McGinn (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the right wing.
86:59
Vangelis Moras (Greece) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
86:59
Foul by Liam Boyce (Northern Ireland).
85:55 Goal scored
Goal! Goal! Northern Ireland 3, Greece 1. Christos Aravidis (Greece) left footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Vasilis Torosidis.
84:33 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Northern Ireland. Luke McCullough replaces Patrick McNair.
81:34
Attempt missed. Stefanos Athanasiadis (Greece) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by José Holebas with a cross.
80:41 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Northern Ireland. Niall McGinn replaces Jamie Ward.
79:56
Alexandros Tziolis (Greece) wins a free kick on the right wing.
79:56
Foul by Steven Davis (Northern Ireland).
79:12
Attempt missed. Patrick McNair (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from outside the box is too high following a corner.
79:10
Attempt blocked. Steven Davis (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
78:29
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by José Holebas.
78:11
Foul by Andreas Samaris (Greece).
78:11
Liam Boyce (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
77:56 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Northern Ireland. Liam Boyce replaces Josh Magennis.
77:04
Attempt missed. Stefanos Athanasiadis (Greece) header from the left side of the six yard box misses to the left. Assisted by Petros Mantalos with a cross following a corner.
76:36
Corner, Greece. Conceded by Chris Brunt.
75:46 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Greece. Stefanos Athanasiadis replaces Kostas Mitroglou.
75:10
Attempt missed. Corry Evans (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right. Assisted by Steven Davis.
70:42 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Greece. Dimitrios Pelkas replaces Panagiotis Kone.
69:29
Foul by Vangelis Moras (Greece).
69:29
Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
69:10
Andreas Samaris (Greece) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
69:10
Foul by Corry Evans (Northern Ireland).
68:02
Offside, Northern Ireland. Corry Evans tries a through ball, but Josh Magennis is caught offside.
66:39
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Sokratis.
66:39
Attempt blocked. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Patrick McNair.
64:21 Substitution
Substitution Substitution, Greece. Petros Mantalos replaces Nikolaos Karelis.
62:38
Attempt saved. Kostas Mitroglou (Greece) left footed shot from a difficult angle on the right is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Panagiotis Kone.
59:00
Christos Aravidis (Greece) wins a free kick on the left wing.
59:00
Foul by Patrick McNair (Northern Ireland).
57:45 Goal scored
Goal! Goal! Northern Ireland 3, Greece 0. Steven Davis (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner following a corner.
57:03
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Sokratis.
56:57
Attempt blocked. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is blocked.
55:14
Offside, Greece. Panagiotis Kone tries a through ball, but Vasilis Torosidis is caught offside.
48:42 Goal scored
Goal! Goal! Northern Ireland 2, Greece 0. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box to the top right corner. Assisted by Oliver Norwood with a cross following a corner.
48:16
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Sokratis.
46:30
Attempt missed. Craig Cathcart (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Oliver Norwood with a cross following a corner.
46:01
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by José Holebas.
45:00
Second Half begins Northern Ireland 1, Greece 0.
45:00 +0:20 Half time
Half Time First Half ends, Northern Ireland 1, Greece 0.
45:00 +0:05
Kostas Mitroglou (Greece) hits the right post with a right footed shot from outside the box.
45:00 +0:02
Attempt blocked. Nikolaos Karelis (Greece) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by José Holebas with a cross.
43:56
Foul by José Holebas (Greece).
43:56
Jamie Ward (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
42:47
Attempt missed. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from a difficult angle and long range on the left is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Stuart Dallas.
42:05
Foul by Andreas Samaris (Greece).
42:05
Steven Davis (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
38:44
Attempt missed. Craig Cathcart (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Chris Brunt with a cross following a set piece situation.
38:10
Foul by Sokratis (Greece).
38:10
Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the left wing.
37:19
Andreas Samaris (Greece) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
37:19
Foul by Patrick McNair (Northern Ireland).
36:39
Attempt missed. Chris Brunt (Northern Ireland) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right following a set piece situation.
36:04
Foul by Nikolaos Karelis (Greece).
36:04
Stuart Dallas (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick on the left wing.
34:29 Goal scored
Goal! Goal! Northern Ireland 1, Greece 0. Steven Davis (Northern Ireland) left footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Stuart Dallas.
33:12
Attempt saved. Kostas Mitroglou (Greece) header from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Panagiotis Kone with a cross.
32:52
Corner, Greece. Conceded by Stuart Dallas.
32:14
Kostas Mitroglou (Greece) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
32:14
Foul by Gareth McAuley (Northern Ireland).
31:44
Attempt missed. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Chris Brunt following a set piece situation.
31:01
Foul by Nikolaos Karelis (Greece).
31:01
Oliver Norwood (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
25:21
Attempt missed. Jamie Ward (Northern Ireland) left footed shot from outside the box is just a bit too high.
24:55
Foul by Kostas Mitroglou (Greece).
24:55
Stuart Dallas (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
24:20
Attempt missed. Gareth McAuley (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Oliver Norwood with a cross following a corner.
24:10
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Vangelis Moras.
23:52
Attempt blocked. Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from the left side of the six yard box is blocked.
22:18
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by José Holebas.
22:02
Hand ball by Panagiotis Kone (Greece).
17:56
Attempt missed. Jamie Ward (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Oliver Norwood with a cross following a set piece situation.
17:04
Foul by Andreas Samaris (Greece).
17:04
Jamie Ward (Northern Ireland) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
14:52
Attempt saved. Alexandros Tziolis (Greece) header from very close range is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Sokratis with a headed pass.
14:24
Corner, Greece. Conceded by Chris Brunt.
13:45
Alexandros Tziolis (Greece) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
13:45
Foul by Josh Magennis (Northern Ireland).
6:01
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Andreas Samaris.
5:58
Attempt blocked. Stuart Dallas (Northern Ireland) header from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Oliver Norwood with a cross.
5:21
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by José Holebas.
2:44
Attempt missed. Oliver Norwood (Northern Ireland) right footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the right following a corner.
2:11
Corner, Northern Ireland. Conceded by Sokratis.
0:00
First Half begins.
0:00
Lineups are announced and players are warming up.
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