Cyprus Away - 05/06/22

After a long day of travelling to get to Larnaca the night before, it was matchday in Cyprus and for the first time ever I was going to watch Northern Ireland play away from home. We had a quick breakfast in the hotel and then set off to an English bar by the beach in Larnaca called “The Meeting Pub” where all the fans were meeting. It was an unusual feeling as we set off to the bar and were walking in 30-degree heat which made us wonder how the players would cope playing 90 minutes in it later in the day. When we finally arrived at the bar it was absolutely rammed with Northern Ireland fans and with 5 hours to kick off we started drinking. 


By the time we were getting on the supporter's bus at 4 pm, most people were steaming including myself, and morale was high with the sun beaming down. After a disappointing World Cup qualifier and a 1-0 loss to Greece three days before, we were all hoping that Northern Ireland could get a good win under their belt and a bit of momentum for the rest of the games in a very winnable Nations League group. However, the pre-match drinks and the sunshine were probably the best bit about the day. I had to endure one of the worst 90 minutes of football I have ever watched with the match ending 0-0 and Northern Ireland barely having a goal-scoring chance. The only positive from the 90 minutes was Shea Charles making his first start and absolutely running the midfield at 18 years old. We were hopeful there would be more youth like him coming through and that he would be a long-term replacement for Steven Davis. After full time we had a quiet few pints as we were up early the next morning to get the bus to Ayia Napa to spend the rest of the week partying.

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