Shaun Maloney’s stunning strike earned Scotland a battling 1-0 victory against the Republic of Ireland at Celtic Park.
In truth, there was more gusto than guile on show throughout a frantic encounter but Maloney’s decisive finish was enough to secure Scotland’s second win of the campaign.
Steven Fletcher and Chris Martin wasted good chances to establish a more commanding lead for the Scots while Aiden McGeady posed Ireland’s greatest threat.
The visitors nearly snatched a dramatic equaliser deep in stoppage time when Grant Hanley inadvertently deflected Robbie Brady’s free-kick against his own crossbar.
However, Scotland held on to a crucial victory in the context of their qualification group to move level on points with Ireland and Germany in Group D.
Gordon Strachan’s side could have been reduced to ten men inside the opening 15 minutes after Hanley’s reckless foul on Shane Long.
But, with their eleven men intact, Scotland started to dictate possession, with Steven Naismith and Maloney orchestrating play inside the Irish half.
The fiery atmosphere from the stands began to transmit onto the pitch with late tackles from McGeady and Jeff Hendrick prompting bookings from the referee.
Charlie Mulgrew came close to the opening goal on 33 minutes, although his thumping header flashed wide after Maloney’s searching delivery.
If Hanley was lucky to avoid a red card earlier in the match then so too was Long five minutes from half-time, after the striker crudely raked his studs down the calf of the Blackburn defender.
Fletcher then wasted a wonderful opportunity to double his international tally for Scotland, but he was unable to connect with another probing cross from the influential Maloney.
Ireland made a more composed start after the break and came close when Jonathan Walters headed over the bar from McGeady’s inviting cross.
Pantomime villain McGeady forced a brilliant, one-handed save from David Marshall after the former Celtic winger attempted an audacious volley from just inside the area.
Scotland responded down the right, but substitute Martin was unable to direct his glancing header goal-bound after Steven Whittaker’s cross.
And Martin then missed a guilt-edged chance, directing Naismith’s low pass wide despite having more than half of the goal at his mercy.
The home side were almost in front from an unlikely source when Walters headed against his own crossbar.
But Scotland took full advantage of the resulting corner as Maloney produced a sublime finish to cap off a delightful move from the hosts.
Ikechi Anya and Maloney combined well from a short corner before Scott Brown’s creative flick was matched by a superb strike from the Wigan forward, who guided the ball past David Forde from 18 yards.
Ireland pushed forward in the dying stages of the match and almost escaped with a point when Hanley headed against his own crossbar after Brady’s deep free-kick.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s winning start to Group F came to an end after a 2-0 defeat against Romania. Defender Paul Papp proved to be the match-winner with two clinical finishes in the second half.
The defeat means Michael O'Neill’s side slip to second in the group but remain five points clear of fourth placed Finland.
World Cup champions Germany eased aside minnows Gibraltar with a comfortable 4-0 win with two goals from Thomas Muller, one from Mario Gotze and an own goal from Yogan Santos.
Poland moved to the top of Group D with an emphatic 4-0 victory away to Georgia while Hungary recorded a 1-0 win against Finland in Group F.
Finally, Greece suffered a humiliating 1-0 defeat against the Faroe Islands in Group F. Greece, the top seeds in the group, sit bottom of the table with just one point from four games.
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