Relief for Hallgrímsson as Troy Parrott and other Ireland players survive weekend unscathed

The headline news from the weekend for Heimir Hallgrímsson is clear – every player named in Thursday’s squad for the World Cup playoff came through the weekend’s club fixtures unscathed. After so many international windows disrupted by injuries and late withdrawals, Ireland finally appear to have a clean bill of health heading into a huge night. Troy Parrott had a good outing in Prague last Thursday, scoring and having an assist as AZ Alkmaar produced an emphatic 4-0 victory away to Sparta Prague, sending the Dutch side through to the quarter-finals of the Uefa Conference League. Hopefully that is a good omen for when he returns to Prague this week. His weekend outing for AZ was quieter,...