Conor Hourihane's perfect free-kick secures Ireland much-needed win against Georgia

Ireland 1 Georgia 0

First came the tennis balls, hurled on to the pitch, then came the football curled into the net. A display of quiet contempt followed by a roar of celebration. There have not been many stranger moments in Irish football, but it could prove to be a pivotal one in their hopes for rejuvenation.

The disillusionment at the way the game is being run by the Football Association of Ireland has been festering, the tennis ball incursion a peaceful but powerful protest, yet nothing beats the sound of a football hitting the back of the net and the euphoria it unleashes.

The disgruntlement remains, but for a moment it was replaced by the joy of seeing their team take the lead thanks to Aston Villa midfielder Conor Hourihane’s perfect free-kick.

Ireland needed this and so did their new manager Mick McCarthy, who has begun his second spell as manager with back-to-back wins. He could not have done more, even if tougher opponents await.

“It’s been great, top of the group after two games, it’s a good place to be,” said McCarthy. “There was a lot that pleased me tonight, a lot of good individual performances but also as a team. We stopped them doing what they wanted to do, so tactically it worked.”

Changing the manager in international football can be like hiding a damp patch with a coat of paint - it is only a matter of time before the mould comes through again. It remains to be seen if McCarthy is merely masking flaws or removing them, but this was much better.

Having struggled to beat the part-timers of Gibraltar in his first game, Ireland played with far more authority against a Georgia side who would be dangerous if they had a decent striker.

Ireland began well, setting the tempo, Robbie Brady dragging a shot wide before Hourihane forced a fingertip save. Seconds later, the excellent McGoldrick saw an effort dip wide.

Georgia always look a better side than their results and had a header cleared off the line, Glenn Whelan doing his job, before Ireland took the lead.

The tennis ball distraction worked in their favour, even if McCarthy did not look overly impressed as he waited for the free-kick, won by McGoldrick’s trickery, to be taken.

With the last of the tennis balls being cleared by the stewards at one end, Hourihane stroked a beautiful free-kick home at the other to give Ireland the lead, at home, for the first time since November 2017.

“It was balls,” said McCarthy with a smile. “I was worried it would affect our concentration, but he wasn’t stopping that free kick. I’d rather they didn’t do it, but it didn’t disrupt anything, I thought the atmosphere was terrific.”

Georgia, though, almost equalised in first-half stoppage time, Valerian Gvilla forcing an excellent save from Darren Randolph and continued to threaten. They very ruined the night late on too, when Jaba Kankava’s wonderful effort clipped the post.

Ireland are not going to worry many teams in Europe, but they have beaten two of the weakest efficiently enough for a subtle mood shift.