Northern Ireland v Malta: Clockwatch

Phil Gray's goal kick-starts Northern Ireland's World Cup campaign

World Cup Qualifier
Northern Ireland 1-0 Malta

Full-time

8 min: Kevin Horlock cross from the left flank is headed too high by Colin Murdock over the bar.

12min: Keeper Ernest Barry fails to cut out Horlock corner, ball falls to David Healy whose shot is blacked at close range.

14 min: Damien Johnson slips ball through to Kevin Horlock but the Man City man shot wide.

15 min: Horlock, who has still to score for Northern Ireland, has another chance however his shot comes off keeper Barry's legs for a corner.

17 min: Horlock gets in behind the Maltese again but only manages to play the ball across the face of the goal and wide of the target.

22 min: Malta miss best chance of the game when a cross from David Carrabott falls to George Mallia in front of goal but his shot hits the post.

26 min: Ian Nolan's poor backheader lets Mallia in again but the Maltese forward fails to find the target.

36min: Barry drops the ball again from a corner, debut boy Stuart Elliott hooks the ball goalwards but Luke Dimech heads off the line.

40 min: Skipper Steve Lomas volleys wide from 20 yards.

44 min: Jim Magilton plays the ball in to Elliott who sees his left foot shot from 10 yards drift inches wide of the far post.

Half-time: Northern Ireland 0-0 Malta

54 min: Johnson whips in a low cross from the right but it ends up in the side netting.

61 min: Burnley striker Phil Gray makes his international come-back replacing Elliott.

67 min: Healy off-target with 25 yard free-kick.

70 min: Gray makes the breakthrough for Northern Ireland. Magilton crosses into the box, Horlock pulls the ball back and Gray scores from close range. Northern Ireland 1-0 Malta.

74 min: Keeper Roy Carroll dives to his right to make an excellent save from Dimech's left foot shot.

84 min: Gerry Taggart's header looked to have put Northern Ireland 2-0 up, but a goal line clearance denies Sammy McIlroy's side.

88 min: Horlock, still looking for a first goal in his 23 internationals, sees his lob come off the top of the Malta crossbar.

Full time: Northern Ireland 1-0 Malta

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Northern Ireland: 1-Roy Carroll; 2-Ian Nolan, 3-Aaron Hughes, 4-Gerry Taggert, 5-Colin Murdoch, 6-Steve Lomas, 7-Damien Johnson, 8-Jim Magilton, 9-David Healy, 10-Kevin Horlock, 11-Stuart Elliott

Malta:1-Ernest Barry; 2-Daniel Theuma, 3-Jeffrey Chetcuti, 4-Brian Said, 5-Darren Debono, 6-Luke Dimech, 7-Carmel Busuttil, 8-David Carrabott, 9-Ejebriel Sylla, 10-David Camilleri, 11-George Mallia

Referee: Taras Bezubiak (Russia)