On the hour, Jamal Lewis spun away from his man and ran down the left, playing the ball inside to Dion Charles who shuffled it on to Shea Charles. The injury problems that have plagued them from the very start continued to the bitter end with Daniel Ballard ruled out of this one, but the young players O’Neill has had to lean on so heavily should take great encouragement from a win over the top-ranked nation in Group H. The match was effectively a dead rubber – Northern Ireland’s hopes of progressing to next summer’s finals were over by the summer while Denmark booked their ticket with a 2-1 win over Slovenia on Friday night – but this was a much-needed win for Michael O’Neill’s men after a testing few months. Second-half goals from Isaac Price and Dion Charles got Windsor Park roaring again as Northern Ireland recorded only their third win of the year, and the first against anyone other than San Marino. Northern Ireland saved their best until last as they ended a miserable Euro 2024 qualifying campaign on a high note with a 2-0 win over Group H winners Denmark.
