Northern Ireland earn historic Georgia win as Shea Charles strikes in 99th minute — O'Neill 'baffled' by refereeing

Shea Charles scored a dramatic 99th-minute winner in Tbilisi as Northern Ireland claimed their first-ever away victory in the Nations League, beating Georgia 1-0 on Friday night — but manager Michael O'Neill was left fuming at the officiating.

O'Neill 'baffled' by officials

The Northern Ireland boss pulled no punches in his assessment of referee Orel Grinfeeld's performance, telling BBC Sport NI he was "really disappointed in that side of things with how the game was refereed."

"In the second half we had to show a lot of resilience," O'Neill said. "Not only against the opposition, who were very good in the second half when they got Kvaratskhelia in the game a lot more, but some of the decisions that went against us.

"I was just baffled by the quality of the refereeing."

Penalty drama and late controversy

After a drab first half, the contest ignited after the restart. The first flashpoint arrived in the 65th minute when defender Daniel Ballard was adjudged to have fouled Luka Lochoshvili when challenging for a cross following a VAR review. Georgia captain Khvicha Kvaratskhelia — a Paris St-Germain winger — stepped up, only for goalkeeper Pierce Charles to save the spot-kick.

Northern Ireland believed they should have had a penalty of their own in the 88th minute when Shea Charles appeared to be caught in the area, but the appeal was waved away. O'Neill was also incensed by the failure to award a free-kick when substitute Ceadach O'Neill was brought down late on, with key defender Ballard injured in the subsequent phase of play as Georgia broke forward.

"At times it didn't go our way. I've not seen the incident back but to me it seemed incredibly harsh to give a penalty for that. The guy was nowhere near the ball to head it," O'Neill said.

"We feel aggrieved that we didn't get one at the other end. The foul on Ceadach when he came on the pitch causes Dan to get injured."

Ballard injury blow

O'Neill confirmed Sunderland defender Ballard had suffered a hamstring injury and would miss Northern Ireland's next three fixtures in the window — against Hungary, Ukraine and Georgia.

"You saw the nature of how he pulled up. It's a hamstring," he said. "We'll scan him tomorrow but he's certainly not going to be available for the next three games."

Historic result

Despite the frustrations, O'Neill lauded his players as "magnificent," insisting his team "showed every side of our character tonight." The victory stands as a landmark moment for the side, their maiden away success in Nations League competition, sealed in the most dramatic of fashions deep into stoppage time.

Ceadach O'Neill, who earned his third cap and is now tied to Northern Ireland for three years, was among those thrust into the late drama as the visitors held on for a famous win.