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05.02.2008 at 19:00 The Friends Provident St. Mary - Southampton Attendance:
England 3 - 0 Under 21
Referee: Jouni Hyytiä (FIN) European Qualifier / PROG-match

Goalscorers
Milner 59, 68, mins;
Walcott 79 mins;
None.
Opening squads
Joe Hart
Tom Huddlestone
James Milner
Mark Noble
Craig Gardner
Fabrice Muamba
Steven Taylor
Theo Walcott
David Wheater
Joseph Mattock
Aaron Lennon
Darren Randolph
Stephen O Halloran
Joe O Cearuill
Eddie Nolan
Darren O Dea
John Joe O Toole
Stephen Quinn
Owen Garvan
Anthony Stokes
Andrew Keogh
Billy Clarke
Substitutes
Joseph Lewis
Luke Moore
Cameron Jerome
Adam Johnson
Andrew Surnan
Michael Mancienne
Jamie O Hara
Jim O Brien
Ian Morris
Adam Rooney
Substitutions
None Adam Rooney -> Billy Clarke (65)
Ian Morris -> Stephen Quinn (84)
Jim O Brien -> Anthony Stokes (87)
Yellow cards
None None.
Red cards
None None.
Other statistics
0 Shots 0
0 Shots on goal 0
0 Offsides 0
0 Corner kicks 0
0 Free kicks 0
0 Penalties 0
Match report


Pictures from the match
From UEFA.COM
England closed in on a play-off place in qualifying for the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship after a 3-0 victory over the Republic of Ireland at St Marys Stadium in Southampton.

Milner impresses
Stephen O Hallorans own goal followed by a James Milner strike mid-way through the second-half put England in control before Theo Walcott rounded out the scoring with eleven minutes to play. The result puts England in a commanding position in Group 3, nine points clear of second-placed Portugal, who cannot drop another point if they are to advance at Englands expense.

Keogh miss
Milner was the catalyst of much of Englands brightest play and came close to breaking the deadlock when his stinging shot was palmed away by Joe Lewis in the Republic of Ireland goal on 32 minutes. Ipswich Town FCs Owen Garvan showed flashes of excellence for the visiting side in difficult, wet conditions on the south coast and three minutes after the restart it was Ireland that should have struck first. Andy Keogh was sent clear of the England defence but shot straight at Joe Hart after bursting into the area.

Walcott strike
England seized the initiative soon after, going ahead on 60 minutes when O Halloran deflected Milners low shot into his own goal. The Newcastle United FC midfielder added the second eight minutes later, drilling a low strike in off the post, before Walcott, on his return to his former club Southampton FC, completed the scoring with a curling effort after cutting into the area from the left. Should Portugal drop a point at home to Bulgaria next month, Englands place in the play-offs will be confirmed. For the Republic of Ireland it was a fourth defeat in five Group 3 games.




Theo Walcott all but booked Englands place in the Under-21 European Championship play-offs when he made a popular goal-scoring return to Southampton last night. The Arsenal youngster delighted a near sell-out St Marys crowd when he curled in a beauty to wrap up a comprehensive victory for Stuart Pearces side who only need a point now in their final game against Portugal to go through to the knockout stages.

Walcott, who has struggled to make his mark in the Premier League, displayed the cool finishing of an experienced striker when he beat the Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Darren Randolph on 78 minutes with a curling shot that any player would have been proud of.

It was a notable strike with which to mark his first return to the club that was forced to sell him to Arsenal two seasons ago to alleviate their own financial worries.

Walcott chose his words carefully afterwards when he said: "That goal was for the Southampton fans who were brilliant to me when I was here, but the most important thing was that we got the three points tonight and a clean sheet. I do not pay any attention to the criticism about me. The only people I listen to are my family and close friends – I do not listen to what other people say. I just get on with my football and try to play in every game."

Pearce praised Walcott for his performance as a lone striker and stated that he may have to be a little bit more patient to win his place in the Arsenal team. He said: "Theo will be judged by me and by his club by how he does over 90 minutes but he played in a difficult position up-front alone and scored a good goal, but let us not forget that he is the second youngest player in this age group. That price tag, and the World Cup, catapulted him into the limelight when he was a very young lad still learning his trade. He can learn the game under an excellent manager in Wenger at a fantastic football club."

Pearce insisted that new England national coach Fabio Capello had only asked his players to show the same "winning mentality" that he had demanded of the senior team when they line up against Switzerland in tonights friendly at Wembley.

England struggled at times in the first half even though for much of it they dominated a Republic of Ireland side that worked the ball well but had no cutting edge.

James Milner is always prepared to shoot on sight and he forced a good save out of Randolph, and after Ireland then survived two penalty scares they were relieved to be still in the game at half-time. Andrew Keogh of Wolves should have given them the lead five minutes after the break, but delayed his shot long enough to enable Joe Hart to save – and that lucky escape seemed to spur England on.

Walcott had a volley cleared off the line by Darren O Dea before England scored twice in eight minutes to finally make their superiority count.

Milner struck on the hour with a low drive that was diverted in off Stephen O Hallorans leg but Pearce insisted with a wink: "I did not see a deflection, it went straight in."

There was no doubting Milners second goal when his 20-yard shot went in off a post before Walcott capped a night to remember back on the south coast.

England Under-21 (4-2-3-1): Hart (Manchester City); Mattock (Leicester), Wheater (Middlesbrough), Taylor (Newcastle), Gardner (Aston Villa); Muamba (Birmingham), Huddlestone (Tottenham); Milner (Newcastle), Noble (West Ham), Lennon (Tottenham); Walcott (Arsenal).

Substitutes used: Jerome (Birmingham) for Huddlestone, 79; Johnson (Middlesbrough) for Walcott 86; Surman (Southampton) for Noble, 86.

Republic of Ireland Under-21 (4-5-1): Randolph (Charlton); Nolan (Blackburn), O Cearuill (Barnet), O Dea (Celtic), O Halloran (Southampton); Stokes (Sunderland), Quinn (Sheffield United), O Toole (Watford), Garvan (Ipswich), Clarke (Ipswich); A Keogh (Wolves).
Substitutes used: Rooney (Chesterfield) for Clarke, 65; Morris (Scunthorpe) for Quinn, 84; O Brien (Celtic) for Stokes, 87.

Referee: J Hyytia (Finland).
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