The 42 reports from the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki

Nations League, Group 2 League B

Finland 1

Republic of Ireland 2

A NIGHT OF glorious firsts for the Republic of Ireland under manager Heimir Hallgrímsson.

Let’s start with the big one: a first win of this Nations League campaign.

Not only that, this 2-1 win over Finland in Helsinki is the first time Ireland have fought back from conceding first to win a competitive game since beating Kazakhstan in October 2013. More than a decade on and the Ireland fans can cherish another fantastic night like this after a thrilling 88th winner from Robbie Brady following a stunning assist from substitute Festy Ebosele.

Yep, you guessed it, his first assist, coming after Liam Scales’ first goal in green cancelled out Joel Pohjanpalo’s opener in the first half when he capitalised on a disastrous Nathan Collins under hit back pass.

So not only do Ireland now have their first win on the board in Group 2 of League B, but this is the first away victory in this competition since it began six years ago.

Read David Sneyd’s full report from Helsinki on The 42 (€)