Flying Dutch blitz Northern Ireland

02 June 2012 21:17

An inexperienced Northern Ireland side were outclassed as Holland completed their preparations for Euro 2012 with a 6-0 romp at a sold-out Amsterdam ArenA.

The visitors were prisoners in their own half from start to finish as a full-strength Oranje raced into a 4-0 half-time lead, with Arsenal's Robin van Persie (two), Wesley Sneijder and Ibrahim Afellay all on target.

Afellay made it five in the 51st minute before defender Ron Vlaar completed the scoring. Michael O'Neill, without the vast majority of his first-choice team for the match, has now lost both of his games in charge with a combined tally of nine conceded and none scored.

The inevitable opener arrived in the 11th minute, Mark van Bommel and Sneijder linking up at a corner before the latter curled a ball to the far post. Van Persie was waiting and headed home unmarked.

Four minutes later it was 2-0, Michael Duff felling Van Bommel in an inviting position 25 yards out. Sneijder commandeered the free-kick and duly curled it past the despairing Lee Camp.

Holland claimed their third after the referee awarded a penalty for handball against Shane Ferguson, who was attempting to smother Van Persie's chip over the top. The Arsenal striker sent Camp the wrong way with a clean strike into the right-hand corner.

The Oranje were in clinical mood and bagged a fourth after 36 minutes when Sammy Clingan gifted possession to the alert Arjen Robben. He fed Van Persie, who touched the ball on to Affelay on the overlap. The Barcelona forward hit a low shot across Camp, who got a hand to it but could not push it wide of his far post.

O'Neill made three changes at the interval, with Roy Carroll coming on for his first appearance in goal for six years. Ryan McGivern and Josh Carson were also sent on in place of Daniel Lafferty and Grant McCann. Carroll had been on the field just six minutes when he was picking the ball out of the net.

Sneijder's cross-field pass picked out Robben on the right wing and he rolled the ball to Van Persie. He took one touch, laying off for Afellay whose placed effort nestled in the corner.

Substitute Rafael van der Vaart hit the post with 15 minutes to go but the sixth goal was not long coming, Vlaar nodding home Afellay's corner from six yards.

Source: PA