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The Republic of Ireland’s friendly win over Qatar in Dublin was twice briefly disrupted by fans protesting against the home side’s upcoming fixtures with Israel. <\/b><\/p>\n
After Republic of Ireland captain Nathan Collins headed the game’s only goal, tennis balls featuring the Palestine flag were thrown on to the Aviva Stadium pitch around the 10-minute mark. <\/p>\n
When tennis balls again rained down on the field for the second time after 20 minutes, the players used the stoppage as a hydration break on the sidelines. <\/p>\n
After the game, RTE reported that protesters were ejected from the ground. <\/p>\n
The Republic of Ireland are set to face Israel in Group B3 of the Nations League at an expected neutral venue on 27 September before the return fixture in Dublin on 4 October.<\/p>\n
Pressure has grown in Ireland for a boycott of those games because of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East,<\/a> with the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign having held a protest at the D\u00e1il (Irish parliament) on Tuesday.<\/p>\n The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) confirmed the games will go ahead<\/a>with CEO David Courell saying the governing body had “no choice” and could face “serious consequences” if it pulled out of the games.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, Collins said that if individual players felt strongly enough to boycott the games, “we are not going to stand against them”<\/a>while manager Heimir Hallgrimsson feels it’s “unfair for the players to be in this position”.<\/p>\n Experienced defender Seamus Coleman also said the situation “should have been dealt with above us”. <\/p>\n