COMPARED to events in Cardiff, this was late drama of a far more sedate and less meaningful variety but still a whole lot better than the alternative.

For as a number of players and FAI officials admitted afterwards, a losing start to Giovanni Trapattoni's reign would have been a real enthusiasm dampener.

In that context, Andy Keogh's injury-time equaliser was desperately needed after a game of precious little excitement. The frenzied celebrations on the bench suggested that it meant something as well, if only satisfaction that their youthful substitutes had added a spark that was lacking prior to their introductions.

Spectacular

"The last thing you'd want is a defeat in his first game in charge," stressed Daryl Murphy, another of those replacements whose deft flick teed up the ball for Keogh to spectacularly volley his equalising goal, "Obviously we'd have liked a victory, but we'd take a draw."

For so long of this dour encounter, most of the crowd were gearing themselves up for such an outcome, but not in the manner that developed with Marko Pantelic's 75th minute strike cancelled out by Keogh's late intervention.

By the time the Wolves man blasted home, many of the supporters present had already made their way home after an underwhelming beginning to the Trapattoni regime.

The counterpoints to any feelings of doom and gloom is that end of season friendlies are often this lethargic, and that come August, the Italian should have Shay Given, Steve Finnan, Andy Reid, Aiden McGeady, Steven Reid, Lee Carsley, Kevin Kilbane and, conceivably, Andy O'Brien and Stephen Ireland at his disposal. Add in unused sub on this occasion, John O'Shea, and you have a drastically different selection to what lined out on Saturday evening.

"I think it was the type of game which nobody deserved to win," said Robbie Keane.

"It was one of those end of season games with no atmosphere on the pitch. It was hard to get momentum going because every time we tried, they went down for five minutes. In that respect, it was a little bit difficult."

And, consequently, difficult to watch. Some say that's the hallmark of a Trapattoni team but that would be a harsh assessment at this juncture, at least until a side with more creative talents like Andy Reid, McGeady and, yes, the enigmatic Ireland get their chance.

For it is clear that Trapattoni's system is reliant on having players comfortable with the ball on their feet, capable of progressing from tight areas relying on their ability to retain possession.

There was a contrast at times between Ireland seemingly trying to play their way out of tight spots when in other eras a simple punt away would have sufficed, and periods where the only discernible tactic appeared to be a lofted clearance in the direction of Kevin Doyle with the aim of another player anticipating the second ball.

Undoubtedly, the system is a work in progress. If anything, it was defensively where you saw something different about the Irish line-up, with noticeable regrouping when the Serbs gained possession with full backs Damien Delaney and Stephen Kelly squeezing in to narrow the back four while wingers Stephen Hunt and Damien Duff dropped back.

Meanwhile, Liam Miller and Glenn Whelan sat in front of the rearguard, making Ireland an intimidating proposition to play through.

Offensively, however, cohesion was lacking. Getting bodies forward was an issue, with Kevin Doyle and Robbie Keane frequently outnumbered and not given too much to work with service wise. Duff was the fulcrum of Ireland's positive attacking play and the Serbs frequently resorted to chopping down the Newcastle man anytime he looked dangerous. He lacks the spark of old, but the desire to find the right positions and get on the ball is still there.

"As we all know, Duffer should have been playing a lot more this season," said Keane. "In the games that he has been playing, we've seen the benefits of that and he's showed it again here."

Ultimately, it was the last 15 minutes that provided the real talking points. First, there was the Serbian goal which came from a Paul McShane error as the Sunderland man stepped up while Richard Dunne and Delaney held the defensive line. In doing so, he left Pantelic onside and with ample time to steer the ball past Dean Kiely.

"It was a little mistake by Paul", said Keane, while Delaney added: "We had a decent line and I thought we were kind of comfortable, I didn't expect Maccer to step up but, once he did, he kind of caught us."

Trapattoni looked glum but the three subs he sprung from the bench -- bizarrely enough in tandem with switches from his opposite number -- would put the smile back on his and Marco Tardelli's faces. Keogh, Murphy and Shane Long replaced Hunt, Keane and Doyle respectively and as the game opened up, they finally stretched the otherwise comfortable Serbs.

Murphy impressed, having been instructed to be aggressive by Trapattoni, something which Roy Keane still asks of him at Sunderland. His physicality provided an outlet, and shortly after the four minutes of injury- time had started, Ireland finally broke through.

The Waterford man's clever flick in the area from Kelly's throw in found Keogh, whose intelligence and perception has impressed the new management team. He cleverly adjusted his body to volley home, with the celebrations in the technical area from Tardelli intimating that this was straight from the training ground.

"It's what I have dreamed of since I was a young lad, and it finally came true at Croke Park which was a great feeling," said the 22-year-old of his first international goal, before downplaying the significance.

"Sure it was a friendly wasn't it? It was just about getting to know his tactics, what way he wants us to play and the lads battled on."

On the spirit aspect, there can be no argument but the jury remains out on the method. Only time can give us the verdict.

Republic of Ireland -- Kiely, Kelly, Dunne, McShane, Delaney, Duff, Miller, Whelan, Hunt (Keogh 80), Keane (Murphy 69), Doyle (Long 86).

Subs not used: Joe Murphy, O'Shea, McPhail, Scannell, Foley, Hoolahan, Westwood, Bruce, Garvan.

Serbia -- Stojkovic, Rukavina, Ivanovic, Rajkovic, Dragutinovic, Lola, Kuzmanovic, Jankovic, Babovic (Markovic 80), Ilic (Kacar 86), Lazovic (Pantelic 69). Subs not used: Kahriman, Kolarov, Vidic, Zigic, Despotovic.

REF -- L Evans (Wakles)..

- Daniel McDonnell