They had to tell Martin O’Neill that the game wasn’t over. They had to tell Antonio Conte the game wasn’t over. But when the game finally was over, you couldn’t mistake the scenes of joy.

Roy Keane, of all men, was holding back the tears embracing Martin O’Neill after the final whistle. Even Gianluigi Buffon was pictured kissing both of the Irish management team.

But when the dust settles on an Irish whirlwind, and the grain settles on the unfathomable volume of Guinness that a nation sipped as one last night, one word stands out above all else: redemption.

After dominating the game, creating the best openings, the opportunities, even dominating the ball for large swathes of the game, Ireland lost their momentum midway through the second half.

A team who had given everything was out on their feet by the end of the game. James McClean barely had the energy to crunch into a trademark tackle and opted to stand off instead. The final ten minutes in Stade Pierre-Mauroy were played out on a heavy pitch and under a closed roof, leading to some fairly inhospitable conditions, barely conducive to light exercise let alone international football.

Yet Ireland still mustered the energy to create a goalscoring opening. In fact, they created two.

Wes Hoolahan missed a golden chance – an unmissable chance. And then just seconds later he whipped a sumptuous ball between two Italian defenders and right onto Robbie Brady’s head. Moments after missing the unmissable, Hoolahan created the unmissable.

And Ireland held on against Italy – something they couldn’t do in 2009 after scoring a late goal to take a valuable lead.

Unlike in 2009, Brady’s goal was the last play, at least the last meaningful one. There was to be no cruel twist. Unlike in 2009, Ireland didn’t lose their heads and concede a heartbreaking 90th minute equaliser to Alberto Gilardino. But just like in 2009, this result means that Ireland will now face France.

At Croke Park nearly seven years ago, Ireland faced Italy, the reigning World Champions, in the final game of the qualifying phase. An Irish victory would have seen Giovanni Trappatoni’s men qualify for the World Cup in South Africa. Ireland twice took the lead, and were twice pinned back. The second time, cruelly, from a last minute counter-attack – the finish dribbling past Shay Given.

That draw consigned Ireland to the play-offs. Play-offs that were supposed to be unseeded became seeded, and Ireland’s low world ranking saw them drawn to face France. The hand of Thierry Henry, ultimately, ended Ireland’s World Cup dreams right at the end of extra time.

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This time, exorcising the ghosts of 2009 means having the opportunity to meet France in France once again. A chance to exorcise those demons, too.

Fittingly, 30 years to the day of Diego Maradona’s hand of God goal against England, Ireland were afforded the chance to avenge their own ‘Hand of Gaul’ atrocity.

Before Euro 2016 started, Ireland’s most obvious path to the knockout stages was to win their most-winnable game, Sweden. Martin O’Neill’s men went from a side who couldn’t win their most winnable, to a team that won their least winnable.

They went from a side who looked abject against Belgium to a team that bossed Italy and thoroughly deserved to win the game. And they’ve gone from a team who embarrassed a nation four years ago in Poland to a team who have qualified for the knockout stages of the European Championships for the first time in their nation’s history.

There is redemption, too, for Roy Keane at a major international tournament.

It doesn’t matter what Ireland do from here. They have achieved everything they set out to, and any more will be a bonus. But whatever more there is will be significant. A meeting with France and everything that goes with it. A quarter final against England? Ireland’s position in this tournament now is such that whatever happens, history will be made, icons will be created.

It’s been 14 years since a Republic of Ireland side has been able to do that. Victory over Italy wasn’t simply about qualification, it was the redemption of a nation through sport.

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