Liam Lawrence, in only his second game for the Emerald Isle, may have opened the gates to many more caps after scoring a superb 25 yard free kick in a friendly against World Cup hosts South Africa.
Lawrence, a key member of the Potters side, also collected the man of the match award for an all action display that will no doubt have thrust him into the plans of manager Giovanni Trapatonni.
Ireland lie second in their group behind Italy and hope to secure their passage to South Africa via either automatic qualification or more likely via the play offs.