MENS HOCKEY/Ireland - 1 Wales - 1: European Championship TrophyTwo penalties in a fraught and often fractious match decided Ireland's second pool game of their European Championship Trophy in Rome yesterday evening. Played under light so poor that a Leinster Senior League match would not have gone ahead, Ireland rescued the match in the shadows just five minutes from the end after a frustrating hour.

The result leaves captain Paddy Brown's team at the top of the Pool A, as they have better goal difference than Wales, and with just Russia to play before the classification matches.

Russia lost earlier yesterday to Belarus which suggests, from an Irish point of view, that they may be the weakest team in the pool. However, that opinion does not find much favour with coach Dave Passmore.

"We have to be very careful with the Russians. When teams are down and out like they are, they can be very dangerous," he observed after the match.

Still, Ireland go into that game knowing there is plenty of room for improvement. One phase just after the break for five minutes and a rousing finish were just enough against a durable and well structured Welsh squad.

With three yellow cards, two of them to Ireland, and a sprinkling of warning green cards, the match occasionally broke into off-the-ball incidents, although the most serious one in the second half, after which Mark Irwin had to leave the pitch for treatment to a facial wound, appeared to be more accidental than cynical.

Wales gave little away, and when they earned their first opening from a Matthew Ruxton short corner seconds from the first-half hooter, they seized it. The initial angled shot stopped dead at Mark Black's feet, and the umpire had no hesitation blowing for the penalty despite Ireland's protestations that the ball was going wide. Simon Organ ended the half with the conversion and Wales 1-0 ahead.

Ireland knew then it was going to be tough work, and so it was. Justin Sherriff, David Hobbs and Andy Barbour each had shots dealt with minimum fuss by goalkeeper George Harris in the opening of the half.

With Butler and Sherriff having quiet games by their standards, Ireland lacked real penetration, and, allied with Wales' expertise in breaking down attacks, were left to feed off half-chances.

To the credit of the team, they didn't panic but slowly began to grind Wales down. As the match approached the final 10 minutes, goalmouth chances had begun to arrive more frequently but also interspersed with the odd heart-stopping Welsh counter-attack.

The frustration was finally ended in the 65th minute when a switch to Graham Shaw on Ireland's fourth corner of the game found a defender's foot on its way into the goal. Ireland shrieked for the penalty but were forced to wait while the umpires conferred, as the closest one to the action was blinded by the Welsh goalkeeper.

Butler then wrong-sided Harris for the equaliser and Ireland's place at the top of the pool.

"I thought we dominated the game. They are a tough side to play against. They are very physical, very compact. You just have to grind them down," said Passmore.

But as Brown said after the game: "I'd say they'll be happier with the draw than we are."

He's probably right.

IRELAND: W Bateman, J Black, P Brown (capt), D Smyth, K Burns, A Barbour, S Butler, M Black, J Sherriff, G Shaw, M Irwin. Rolling subs: M Raphael, M Gleghorn, D Hobbs, I Lewers.