Sitting with partner Emma English by his side, the sight of thousands rising off their seats would not have gone unnoticed to John Delaney, and this was long before Ireland took the lead.

Beginning early on behind the goal, chants of ‘Stand up for Delaney out’ quickly reverberated around Lansdowne Road.

And, of course, the tennis balls appeared, following the pre-match talk that they’d be thrown as a form of protest and dissatisfaction with the FAI.

It may have taken until the 33rd minute but then streams of the yellow balls flooded onto the pitch while Conor Hourihane prepared to take the free kick which ultimately gave Mick McCarthy’s side the 1-0 victory.

Some boos from sections of the crowd duly followed.

Months back, when McCarthy got the job, this might have been viewed as a night to celebrate the second coming of the manager in his first home match.

But whenever the excitement on the pitch died down and the team weren’t being urged on, all that could be heard were chants against both the association and the new executive vice-president.

A couple of ‘Delaney Out’ posters even made it into the stadium.

And a local store near Lansdowne Road was getting in on the act. “Tennis balls for sale here,” read a sign outside the shop in Ringsend.

Amateur

Meanwhile, even natives of Delaney’s home county of Waterford didn’t think the former CEO warranted a position within Irish football any more.

Shane Desmond, from Dungarvan, questioned how a country with an amateur league could afford to pay Delaney’s CEO salary, which was significantly higher than in bigger footballing nations.

His friend Eoin Simms, who has been following the Boys in Green since 1994, said that Delaney being in charge for so long was “a typical Irish thing” of “we won’t change it if it’s not broken”.

“He should have been gone probably four or five years ago,” he added.

Adrian O’Connor, from Malahide, said that, irrespective of salaries, a major shake-up was needed within Irish football.

He said that despite Delaney being “amicable” whenever he’d met him away at tournaments, the time has come for him to go.

“I don’t really care about the money involved. There’s just a need for the Niall Quinns of the world to step in with new ideas,” he said.

The relationship between Delaney and supporters began to sour as far back as 2014, a time when banners criticising him began to be confiscated outside the stadium.

In an interview following the European Championships in 2012, Delaney told a tale of how “fans carried me head-high home” to his hotel.

The mood around Dublin 4 now was a far cry from that scene seven long years ago.

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