Northern Ireland v Hungary (29/03/2022)

PRESIDENT’S WELCOME

There are no easy games at international level, and that proved to be the case again when we faced Luxembourg on Friday. It is particularly pleasing to have secured an away win even in a friendly.

Inspired by Ferenc Puskas, Hungary won the 1952 Olympics and then went and beat England 6-3 in front of 105,000 fans at Wembley in ‘ The Match of the Century’. A year later Hungary beat England 7-1 in Budapest , with Puskas scoring twice. It remains England’s heaviest defeat . For my part , I have fondest memories of our 2-1 away win against Hungary on 7 September 2014 in which goals from Niall McGinn and Kyle Lafferty sealed the deal late in the game in Budapest and kickstarted a memorable campaign which took us to the Euros in France in 2016. Four of our six previous meetings with the Mag yars have been decided by a one goal margin. Hungary are FIFA ranked 13 places ahead of Northern Ireland in 41st place, and on the back of a 1-0 home defeat to Serbia the Mag yars will be anxious to make amends. It should be a good game and I hope that the younger additions to our squad learn from the experience. Finally, my thanks goes to those of you who have chosen to cheer on the senior women’s team at home against England on 12 April . An unprecedented 14,000-plus fans will attend and eclipse the highest attendance figure for a senior women’s international in Northern Ireland with ease. There will be a family atmosphere, with many girls and boys at the game, and I hope the support will spur Kenny Shiels’ team on to even greater heights CONRAD KIRKWOOD PRESIDENT IRISH FOOTBALL ASSOCIAT ION

It was equally rewarding that 208 of the Green and White Army made the journey from our wee country to theirs to lend their support at the Stade de Luxembourg as we secured a 3-1 victory. The opener for Josh Magennis brought him level on nine goals with George Best , Gareth McAuley, Martin O’Neill and Norman Whiteside. The goal from Steven Davis puts him joint third with Colin Clarke in the all-time top scorers list . These are all inspirational figures in Northern Ireland football . Tonight I am pleased to draw further inspiration from the Northern Ireland Cerebral Palsy team who are attending the game as my guests. I am sure you will join me in wishing boss Alan Crooks, captain Jordan Walker and the side every success in the IFCPF World Cup in Salou in April /May. I should also like to welcome the players, officials and supporters of Hungary to the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park. In common with Northern Ireland, Hungary will be using the friendly in Belfast as preparation for competing in the UEFA Nations League this summer and autumn. Whilst we draw on history from World Cups and most recently Euro 2016, Hungary have an impressive history on the international stage with three Olympic gold medals and two World Cup final appearances. Indeed Hungary were seen as pioneers in the 1950s when their ‘Golden Team’ revolutionised the way the sport was played. Between 1950 and 1956 Hungary played 69 games, winning 58 of them and suffering only one defeat . That team is credited with initially introducing ‘ Total Football’ and placing significance on tactics, training and fitness, as they operated in a 3-2-3-2 formation.

IRISHFA.COM

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