England 9 Ireland 10 (after overtime) European Men's Boxlacrosse Championship, Radotín, 29 June 2026
Ireland's senior men did something no Irish side had managed in more than twenty years. They beat England. Matt Duncan's overtime goal, fed by Conor Foley, won it 10-9 in a result that will be remembered long after the tournament ends.
For the first half it looked comfortable. Foley and Kale Grehan struck early to put Ireland 2-0 up, and after England drew level at 2-2, Ireland pulled clear. Assistant captain Patrick Corbett completed his hat-trick at 28:02, and by the time Quinn scored at 32:04 Ireland led 9-3. Corbett finished with three goals and an assist. Foley added two goals and three assists. Duncan matched him with two goals and three assists.
Then England came for it. Their coach called a timeout 6:22 into the third quarter, and the response was immediate. A power-play goal at 36:58 sparked the comeback, the first of five unanswered England goals that cut the gap to 9-8. Jack Bucknell tied it at 59:56 with four seconds left in regulation. A commanding lead had almost become a painful loss. Devlin Shanahan made 30 saves under heavy late pressure to protect the result and take the game into overtime.
Ireland would hold their nerve and in overtime Duncan ended the game off of pass from Foley at 60:31 to win it.
The men were not the only Irish side to beat England that night. In the game immediately after, Ireland's women's box lacrosse team went through the same ordeal and came out the same way. They also won 10-9 in overtime, and they also did it the hard way, trailing 7-6 in the third quarter before hauling themselves back level. Hillary Grehan scored four goals, including the overtime winner at 61:00, and Gillian Smith added two goals and three assists. Goaltender Kiera Roberts made 37 saves at 80 percent to keep Ireland in it against an England side that outshot them 85 to 69.
Two Irish teams, two overtime wins over England, one evening.
The win closed out the round-robin phase for the men. Ireland finished second in the Red group with two wins from three, behind Finland and ahead of England and the Netherlands. That standing set up a quarter-final and keep Ireland on course for the medal rounds.
The over twenty-year wait is over. Ireland has beaten England, and they had done it the hard way.