Darren Randolph (Republic of Ireland)
When regular Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Shay Given twisted his knee shortly before half-time against world number two nation Germany in their penultimate UEFA Euro 2016 qualifier, substitute shot stopper Darren Randolph could not have produced a more sensational super sub display to help Martin O’Neill’s side keep their automatic qualification chances alive. The West Ham United ‘keeper’s long ball up field in the 70th minute kindly dropped for forward Shane Long to latch onto and brilliantly score the only goal of the game against Joachim Low’s Germans to seal an unforgettable 1-0 victory inside the Aviva Stadium on Thursday night. Despite eventually missing out on a top-two finish in Group D following Sunday’s 2-1 defeat in Poland, Randolph may still play a huge part in Ireland’s Euro 2016 fate when their play-off opponents are drawn on Sunday 18 October.