But Ireland’s luck has definitely run out going into tonight’s match against Wales, with a rash of injuries — and one suspension — meaning at least five from that impressive win in Vienna are unavailable. I fully understand why Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane have been putting a brave face on the situation all week but, for me, there is no getting away from the reality that the absence of key men has rendered Ireland vulnerable and seriously damaged our chances of winning the game.

Our two best players of recent times, Robbie Brady and Wes Hoolahan, are unavailable, and the relatively new central defensive partnership of Shane Duffy and Ciaran Clark has been nipped in the bud. We’re also going to miss Daryl Murphy — especially with his threat in the air — as a viable option upfront.

In short, I think our chances of getting a result this evening are seriously compromised.

At the heart of the Irish rearguard, John O’Shea and Richard Keogh are going to have their hands full dealing with Gareth Bale who, as everyone knows, is highly dangerous playing across the front line for Wales.

With that in mind, I’d imagine that Martin O’Neill will be mightily relieved if James McCarthy does turn out to be available, since I’d expect the Everton man, along with Glenn Whelan, to be asked to provide a protective shield for the central defensive partnership.

Regular readers of this column will know that I’ve often expressed doubts about McCarthy’s displays for Ireland, although I would be the first to acknowledge that he did play well in the game in Vienna. However, I wouldn’t be concerned if, in the event of McCarthy not making it tonight, David Meyler has to step in. I’ve always been impressed with him when he’s come on for Ireland: He has a good temperament, he’s composed on the ball and passes it in a positive fashion. Defensively, he’s good too, he gets stuck in and knows how to tackle.

That’s important because a key for Ireland will be to prevent Wales getting the ball to Bale’s feet. The Irish defenders won’t want to get too tight on Bale because he can spin in behind and, if there’s a good ball played over the top, they’ll be out of it. For that reason, they’ll give themselves a yard of two of leeway but that only makes it even more important that he doesn’t get the supply to his feet which would allow him to turn and run at the defence. None of us needs reminding of how effective he has been doing that for Real Madrid and Wales in recent years.

The overall effect of the injury problems for Ireland is that I think we will see something closer to an away performance from the home team tonight. When Martin O’Neill weighs up his options he will see that the side’s attacking threat has been seriously diminished in the absence of our single most creative player, Wes Hoolahan, and without the general quality and free-kick and corner-kick expertise of Robbie Brady. Whelan, McCarthy and Meyler are not the kind of footballers you would expect to illuminate the night with defence-splitting passes.

Could Aiden McGeady come in to supply the creative spark? In the past, he has only intermittently delivered the kind of performance that people would love to see from him tonight but, certainly, it has been encouraging to see him playing well, albeit in the Championship, and looking happy and confident — and even getting among the goals — for Preston. If Martin does decide to play McGeady — either from the start or off the bench — he could be an important key to unlocking a decent Welsh defence.

James McClean is another important player for us and we will again look to his pace and power to help make things happen for Ireland. It’s been a very difficult week for the Derryman and I understand that tonight he will wear the Number 5 jersey in honour of his friend and former team-mate Ryan McBride. Because of his background and the stance he has taken on a number of related issues, McClean has had a lot to contend with during his playing career in England but, throughout it all, he has shown that he can handle difficult and emotionally challenging situations. For that reason, I would expect him to be firing on all cylinders tonight.

At the apex of the Irish attack, Shane Long has always been a bit hit or miss but, on a good night, he can be a real hit. I think our best chance to claim the three points could be down to him — if he’s on song - and McClean.

As for the opposition, with so much focus on Gareth Bale, it would be easy — but wrong — to convey the impression that tonight’s visitors are a one-man team. As I’ve witnessed for myself, Aaron Ramsey is a very dangerous player in that deep-lying attacking role. Joe Allen in the middle of the park is a very capable player. Hal Robson-Kanu can put himself about.

Be in no doubt that Wales are a dangerous team — and will be particularly so tonight because, finding themselves in a bad position as the group stands, they will look at this depleted Irish team and think this game represents a big opportunity for them to make up lost ground and get back in the qualification race. And, as we know from the summer, the Welsh won’t have any problem whatsoever with the big match atmosphere at the Aviva. It’s all very well talking up Ireland’s spirit and willingness to put in the hard yards but, man for man, Wales will have the better team on the park.

And, so, taking everything into account — the Irish absentees, the Welsh threat and our position going into the game at the top of the table — I’d have no qualms about saying that, if a draw was on offer before kick-off tonight, I wouldn’t think twice about snatching it.