‘Embarrassing’ – Irish fans mock decision to hand Aston Villa’s Conor Hourihane man of the match against Gibraltar

Conor Hourihane was named man of the match.

Published on March 24, 2019

The Republic of Ireland stuttered over the line against Gibraltar on Saturday afternoon, picking up a hard-fought 1-0 win against Europe’s minnows.

In Gibraltar’s picturesque but tiny stadium, the Republic of Ireland laboured to a narrow victory thanks to Jeff Hendrick’s early second-half goal.

The Irish fans were not impressed with the team’s performance as they might have expected to thrash Gibraltar, who are generally the whipping boys in qualifiers.

After the game, the Republic of Ireland named Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane as man of the match.

(Photo By Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

But it was an instantly forgettable performance from everyone on the pitch, which was something that many Ireland fans pointed out after Hourihane was handed his accolade.

The 28-year-old produced a tidy if unspectacular display, ensuring that the ball kept moving and that Gibraltar were not able to charge through the middle of the park on a counter-attack.

While the game lacked quality and cutting edge, Hourihane went about his job and was rewarded with the man of the match award.

But some Republic of Ireland fans mocked the decision to hand out an award at all, and here are some responses.