Euro 2015: Northern Ireland Under-21s beaten 4-1 by Serbia

Northern Ireland's disappointing Under-21 Euro 2015 qualifying campaign came to an end with a 4-1 home defeat by Serbia.

Jim Magilton's side concluded their campaign with just three points, taken against Cyprus, after a heavy defeat at Shamrock Park in Portadown.

Chris Johns, Cameron Dummigan, Jamie Harney, Aaron Burns and Michael Duffy were handed debuts at Under-21 level by Magilton but his much-changed side eventually proved no match for a team that went into the day with an outside chance of topping Group 9.

Northern Ireland kept the scores level, and saw captain James Gray spurn a decent chance on his final appearance at this level, but the deadlock was broken in the 34th minute when Aleksandar Pesic beat Southampton goalkeeper Johns.

Johns was picking the the ball out for a second time less than two minutes later as Slavoljub Srnic made up for an earlier miss to double Serbia's lead.

Derry City striker Duffy failed to take the only opportunity to hit back before half time and another quick two-goal burst after the break settled the issue.

The lively Pesic was unlucky not to score on each occasion, hitting the woodwork in the 56th and 58th minutes to tee up Srnic's second and Filip Kostic for the fourth.

But there was something to cheer for the home crowd before the end with Ryan Brobbel, on loan at Hartlepool from Middlesbrough, grabbing his first Under-21 goal with 23 minutes to go.

But Serbian hopes of winning the group were dashed as Italy cruised to a 7-1 win over Cyprus.