Troy Parrott may have been on a brief hiatus as the headline act among the Irish abroad, but within 60 seconds of stepping on to the pitch on Sunday afternoon, the Dubliner had firmly reclaimed centre stage.
Heading into Sunday’s clash away to Feyenoord, Parrott had actually endured something of a barren spell in front of goal for AZ Alkmaar. The striker had not found the net in the league since April 12th, with his wait for another Eredivisie goal beginning to become an unusual talking point given the consistency he has shown for much of the campaign.
Thankfully for Parrott, it took him barely 60 seconds to end that drought – although technically, he had already put the ball in the net once before that. Within the opening 30 seconds, the Dubliner thought he had handed AZ the dream start, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside. Moments later, however, there was no denying him. Latching on to a clever through ball, Parrott produced a magnificent dinked finish over the advancing goalkeeper to put AZ 1-0 ahead in Rotterdam.
Feyenoord eventually responded after the break as the contest finished 1-1, a result that leaves AZ sitting sixth in the Eredivisie and currently occupying a Europa League qualifying place heading into the closing stages of the season.
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For Parrott personally, it was another major milestone in what has been an outstanding campaign. The goal marked his 16th league strike of the season for AZ, while across club and country, the Ireland international has now contributed 37 goals in all competitions this term.
In the Premier League, Saturday brought one of the toughest assignments possible for Brentford as they travelled to face title-chasing Manchester City. With Brentford themselves still chasing a potential European place heading into the closing weeks of the campaign, the stakes were high at both ends of the table.
Keith Andrews’s side spent much of the afternoon pinned back inside their own half as City’s relentless pressure eventually proved too much to handle.
It was not quite the commanding display Irish supporters have become accustomed to from Nathan Collins either, with the defender enduring a difficult afternoon against Pep Guardiola’s side. Collins will perhaps feel he could have done more for City’s third goal, standing off Omar Marmoush and allowing the Egyptian enough space to fire beyond Caoimhín Kelleher.
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Despite the result, Kelleher was undoubtedly Brentford’s standout performer. The goalkeeper produced a magnificent display between the posts, making seven saves and repeatedly frustrating City with a series of world-class stops. It was the type of performance that further strengthened the growing feeling that Kelleher is developing into one of the Premier League’s top goalkeepers and is more than capable of establishing himself as a long-term No 1 at the highest level.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Jake O’Brien was the only other Irishman to feature over the weekend, playing the full 90 minutes as Everton were held to a 2-2 draw away to Crystal Palace on Sunday.
With the regular EFL season now finished, it was playoff football that took centre stage over the weekend from an Irish perspective.
In the Championship, John Egan impressed as Hull City earned a hard-fought 0-0 home draw against Millwall in the first leg of their semi-final clash. The Ireland international played the full 90 minutes and helped Hull keep an important clean sheet ahead of the second leg in London. There was no sign of Will Smallbone in the Millwall squad.
The other semi-final between Southampton and Middlesbrough also finished scoreless, leaving everything to play for next week. Finn Azaz and Ryan Manning both completed the full game for Southampton at the Riverside, while Alan Browne came off the bench and played the final 22 minutes for Middlesbrough.
League One brought disappointing news for Johnny Kenny, whose season now appears to be over after Bolton manager Steven Schumacher confirmed the striker has suffered knee ligament damage. Kenny had been one of the division’s form forwards in recent months, making the timing particularly cruel, while the injury also looks likely to rule him out of Ireland’s upcoming fixtures later this month.
Bolton still managed to secure a 1-0 victory over Bradford City, with Tyreik Wright returning from injury off the bench for Bradford. Elsewhere, Louie Barry played 76 minutes as Stockport County defeated Stevenage 1-0 in their playoff semi-final first leg.
There was also silverware for the Irish abroad over the weekend as Robbie Keane and Callum O’Dowda helped Ferencváros lift the Hungarian Cup following an extra-time victory over ZTE in the MOL Magyar Kupa final. The triumph saw Keane become the first Irish manager to win the competition, while O’Dowda played the full 120 minutes in an impressive display as Ferencváros secured the trophy after losing in last season’s final.
Meanwhile, ahead of linking up with the Ireland senior squad for the first time, Jaden Umeh continued his excellent form at youth level with Benfica. The highly-rated teenager scored twice for Benfica Under-19s in their 6-2 victory over UD Leiria on Sunday – a perfect way to head into what could now become a hugely memorable week in his young career.
Player and Stat of the Week: Caoimhín Kelleher (Brentford), 7 Saves – 1.5 Expected Goals prevented
Despite Brentford’s 3-0 defeat away to Manchester City, Caoimhín Kelleher was once again outstanding between the posts. The Ireland international made seven saves during the game – all from efforts inside the penalty area and finished with an expected goals prevented figure of 1.5, an excellent return considering he still conceded three times. Without Kelleher, the scoreline could easily have been far heavier for Keith Andrews’s side.
Goal of the Week: Reece Staunton (Grimsby Town)
Reece Staunton produced one of the goals of the weekend in the League Two playoffs, despite Grimsby Town falling to a 2-1 defeat against Salford City in the first leg of their semi-final clash. The defender fired Grimsby ahead inside the opening minute with a stunning cushioned volley from outside the box, smashing the ball into the top corner in spectacular fashion.
Despite the defeat, the tie remains firmly in the balance heading into the second leg later this week.
