Lenihan puts down a marker as exile ends

Darragh Lenihan ended his long wait in the international wilderness when he lined out for the Republic of Ireland in last night's 1-1 draw with Ukraine in the Polish city of Lodz.

Lenihan partnered Dara O'Shea and Nathan Collins in heart the Irish defence and had a fine game. It was the Dunboyne man's first appearance with the Boys in Green since 2018.

Collins marked another high-quality performance with a world-class goal that will be long remembered for the way he weaved his way through the middle and neatly finished with the outside of his foot. However, Ukraine equalised in the second-half.

Lenihan had a good game overall, making a number of forceful clearances from defence. He also had a half -chance for a goal but shot too high. To add to a busy evening Lenihan was also booked. He can be content with his performance.

It was a good evening's work as far as Lenihan was concerned and put him in strong contention for more caps.

The Ukraine game was his third cap after he won his first his first two against the USA and Northern Ireland in 2018.

No doubt he was very glad to be back in the fold after so long in exile.

Afterwards speaking to RTE Lenihan praised the attitude of the players. "That's the thing with this group, the never-say-die attitude, and that's probably an Irish attitude, never-say-die we keep going right to the end," he said.

Lenihan's own never-say-die attitude has helped him revive his own international career.