Northern Ireland vs Belarus. International Match.
Windsor Park.
Friday 27 May 2016 21:52, UK
Northern Ireland got their Euro 2016 preparations off to a perfect start as they beat Belarus 3-0 at Windsor Park on Friday night.
Kyle Lafferty, winning his 50th cap, opened the scoring early on, before Conor Washington added a second just before half-time.
Substitute Will Grigg then netted his first international goal in the closing stages to cap off an excellent night for Michael O'Neill's side.
They got out of the traps fast and had the lead after less than six minutes thanks to Lafferty. The striker, their top scorer in qualifying, showed his poacher's instincts as he poked it in from close range following a mix-up at the back for Belarus.
It was a great start for O'Neill's side, who were never really threatened by their lowly-ranked opponents during the first half, and they even managed to double their advantage after 44 minutes thanks to another helping hand from Belarus.
Goalkeeper Andrey Gorbunov made an absolute hash of Stuart Dallas' cross, doing nothing but palm it right into the path of Washington, and the QPR striker made it two goals in as many caps as he headed it back into an empty net.
O'Neill made a host of changes throughout the second half as he prepared to name his final squad for France later on Friday night, with substitutes Oliver Norwood and Niall McGinn particularly impressing.
Other than a couple of excellent free-kick deliveries from Norwood, though, Northern Ireland didn't really look like grabbing a third until the 88th minute, when McGinn's fine run and cross forced another dismal error from Gorbunov. The Belarus goalkeeper could only push the ball as far out as Grigg, and the Wigan striker returned it with interest as he slammed the ball home.
Next up for Northern Ireland is a clash with England's group-stage opponents Slovakia, the final game before their Euro 2016 opener against Poland on June 12.
