Ireland Under-21s lose to Finland in snowstorm but stay alive in Euro playoff tie

European Under-21 Championship qualifying playoff first leg: Finland 1 (Helén 45+8) Ireland 0Considering the challenges they faced in a game that never felt like ending, Ireland won’t grumble too much with this playoff defeat in Finland. Not when everything is still on the line going into Tuesday’s second and decisive leg at Turner’s Cross.Ultimately, that was Jim Crawford’s stated aim heading to Tampere as the under-21s chase a first European Championship finals. A first-half snowstorm led to a stoppage in play and then a near 50-minute half-time break as ground staff battled to clear the playing surface for the remainder.Finland caused Ireland plenty of problems and generated nine scoring chances to Ireland’s two but the Boys in Green dug in after conceding in first-half stoppage time and emerged relatively unscathed thereafter, sensing they still have a big hand to play in Cork.READ MOREWhen the game kicked off, there was not a flake on the playing surface and Finland confidently zipped the ball around an artificial turf that had been watered before the game. They pinned Ireland deep and were the dominant side.Had Alex Murphy not cut out Liam Möller’s early cross, Otto Ruoppi would have scored from close range and Crawford’s young side would have been in a world of pain with just three minutes gone, against a side that scored freely in qualifying.Ireland's Owen Elding made his under-21 debut against Finland. Photograph: Aleksandar Djorovic/Inpho Finland racked up 34 goals in their 10 group games, compared to Ireland’s 16-goal haul. They were also buoyed as their last victory in this stadium was a 2-1 win against heavyweights Spain – who beat the Finns to top spot – back in September.Ireland needed to find a way of taking the sting out of Finland’s approach and while they mulled it over, the snow began to fall. Gently at first, but by the 21st minute the Austrian referee had to replace the white ball with a yellow one.Nine minutes later, the officials called a temporary halt to proceedings as the lines on the pitch were not visible. Both sets of players headed for the dugouts where the Finns were handed robes to keep them warm, while the Irish – faces and legs turning a corned beef-pink with the cold – went without and just toughed it out.A lone member of the ground staff used a hand-held push-plough to chisel fresh lines and after a five-minute break, play resumed with Ireland all the better for it. The difficult conditions blunted Finland’s attack although Matias Siltanen’s free-kick bounced awkwardly in the box, goalkeeper Noah Jauny dealt with it after seeing it late.Owen Elding – capped last month for the senior team – saw a headed goal on his under-21 debut correctly ruled out for offside but it was better from Ireland, even if Finland always carried a threat.Ireland's Jamie Mullins against Finland. Photograph: Aleksandar Djorovic/Inpho Siltanen curled a shot just wide from the edge of the box and it served Ireland a warning as Finland caught the Boys in Green with the lead goal seven minutes into first-half stoppage time.Möller wasn’t closed down quickly enough by Cathal McCarthy and crossed for Onni Helen to loop a header home with the last action of the half.The groundsman ditched the big shovel and having been afforded a near 50-minute half-time break instead of the usual 15, he played a blinder on the ride-on tractor, clearing snow with gusto.Ireland needed a similarly dialled-in approach mindful they couldn’t afford to slip any further behind in the tie. But with a clear pitch restored, Finland reproduced the quick-fire football that had left Ireland on the back foot in the early stages.Goalscorer Helèn was denied by Jauny before hitting the post in the next attack. Murphy then deflected Ilari Kangasniemi’s on-target shot for a corner. At this point, the priority for Ireland was not to concede again, rather than scoring but they nearly pulled level.Trent Kone-Doherty brought positivity off the bench and Jamie Mullins headed his cross off the bar. The dropping ball fell to Elding who headed back towards goal from close range only for Siltanen and goalkeeper Jaaso Jantunen to hack off the line.With six minutes to go, Matteo Egan could not finish from eight yards when slipped through by Mullins. It was a bad miss but still, it was Crawford’s men pushing in those dying stages. After a whirlwind group campaign that ended with four wins in a row, who would bet against one more when it’s needed most, even if they trail?FINLAND: Jantunen; Ylitolva, Kangasniemi, Miettinen, Galvez; Mentu, Siltanen; Söderbäck (Mero 86), Tauriainen (Helen 21), Ruoppi; Möller (Europaeus 86).REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Jauny; Gallagher (Egan 61), Grehan, Murphy; McCarthy, Finneran, Devaney (Brown 85), McManus; Elding, Mullins; Lonergan (Kone-Doherty 61).Referee: Christian-Petru Ciochirca (Austria)