Ireland Stuns Canada in World Cup Send-off with Ogbene's Equalizer
The fireworks were ready, the flags were out, and Montreal had turned up to salute a World Cup-bound team. The Republic of Ireland refused to play their part.
Chiedozie Ogbene’s sharp finish, lashed home after Troy Parrott’s saved penalty, earned a 1-1 draw at Saputo Stadium and punctured Canada’s planned celebration on a night that also marked a quiet but significant step for the League of Ireland.
Canada on top, Ireland hanging on
This was supposed to be Jesse Marsch’s dress rehearsal. Canada, co-hosts of the 2026 World Cup, started like a side intent on putting on a show.
Within two minutes, Tajon Buchanan had Mark Travers working, the Bournemouth goalkeeper beating away a stinging effort. Buchanan and Liam Millar then went to work on either flank, stretching a back line that never looked entirely settled.
Ireland had hinted at something brighter early on. Dawson Devoy, Bohemians’ captain and the first League of Ireland player capped since Jack Byrne in 2020, almost marked his debut with a goal on nine minutes. A neat move involving Ogbene and Parrott slipped him into the box, but from a tight angle and with Maxime Crepeau racing out, his effort skewed off target and only briefly unsettled the home defence.
From there, Canada took control. Corners piled up. Pressure mounted. Ireland retreated.
The breakthrough came midway through the first half and it was messy from an Irish perspective. Stephen Eustaquio whipped in a dangerous corner from the left, Parrott flicked it on at the near post, and the ball cannoned off Jake O’Brien and into his own net. Wrong place, wrong time for the centre-back, who could do little as the ball ricocheted past Travers.
By half-time, Ireland were clearly second best, penned in and grateful to be only one down.
Hallgrimsson rolls the dice
Heimir Hallgrimsson reacted. Jamie McGrath and Liam Scales replaced Devoy and Corrie Ndaba at the break, the manager searching for some control and composure.
Canada, though, resumed in the same dominant mood. They moved the ball crisply, pinned Ireland back again and looked the more cohesive, confident outfit. Travers and his defence had to stay switched on, with Jonathan David and Cyle Larin lurking, ready to punish any lapse.
Then came the twist.
Just before the hour, with Ireland still struggling to impose themselves, Larin misjudged a high ball in his own box. His boot caught McGrath on the head and the referee pointed to the spot. It was a clumsy, needless invitation back into the game.
Parrott stepped up, facing Crepeau and a wall of noise. His penalty was firm but not quite in the corner, and the Canadian goalkeeper guessed right, parrying the shot away.
Canada’s relief lasted only a heartbeat.
Ogbene reacted before anyone else, darting onto the rebound and drilling it into the empty net for his fifth international goal. Against the run of play, Ireland were level. The stadium, primed for a comfortable home win, suddenly fell quieter.
Young guns and LOI flavour
The equaliser changed the tone. Ireland grew from it. Passes started to stick, the press had more bite, and Canada’s earlier swagger dipped.
Yet the hosts still carried threat. With 20 minutes left, Larin almost made amends when Nathan Collins slipped, but the forward couldn’t punish the error, and Ireland escaped.
Hallgrimsson then turned to youth. Mason Melia, the Tottenham Hotspur teenager and former St Patrick’s Athletic prospect, came on for his second cap alongside Killian Phillips. Later, Joe Hodge, Kian Leavy and Shamrock Rovers winger Adam Brennan joined the fray, swelling the League of Ireland presence on the pitch and snapping a six-year wait for a cluster of domestic-based caps.
Melia nearly stole the night.
On 83 minutes, Ogbene once again made the difference down the right, standing up a teasing cross into the box. Melia found space, timed his run, and met it cleanly, but Crepeau denied him with a strong save. It would have been a dream moment for the 18-year-old; instead, it was another reminder of the fine margins at this level.
As the clock ran down, Ireland’s experimental XI, dotted with fresh faces and home-league talent, held their nerve. Canada pushed, roared on by a crowd that wanted a statement win on the road to 2026, but they found no way through.
A draw with meaning
For Canada, this was a check on their momentum, a reminder that dominance without ruthlessness can be punished. For Ireland, it was more than a stubborn away draw.
Hallgrimsson’s side absorbed long spells of pressure, found a way back through Ogbene’s instinct and then trusted a group laced with League of Ireland players to see it out. On a night built to celebrate one nation’s future, it quietly hinted that another might just be piecing one together of its own.
Next up comes the Nations League in the autumn. If Ireland can blend this grit with growing faith in their emerging core, Montreal may be remembered as more than just a party they crashed.
