THE reaction was perhaps a sign of the level of expectation that now surrounds the Republic of Ireland squad, or a damning indictment of the limitations of their Georgian counterparts.

Martin O'Neill's side had travelled to Tbilisi for the opening match of their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign last month and emerged with a 2-1 victory. It was not always pretty - and it required a late, spectacular Aiden McGeady strike to put Ireland back in front - but it was still a win away from home at a venue where others, including Scotland, have struggled in the past. The Tartan Army would have been turning cartwheels had Scotland achieved the same.

The Irish, however, were not appeased. The team was not spared in the media, either by the broadcasters or their colleagues in print, who bemoaned what they felt had been an under-par performance, with too many players out of sorts. One report described Georgia as "one of the worst teams in Europe", felt Ireland lacked conviction and that, had they been forced to settle for a draw, it would have been "significantly damaging, both in terms of their morale and qualification hopes".

The overall tone in the immediate aftermath did not escape O'Neill's attention either. "Not like you to pick a negative," was his response to questions on the performance from the reporter from RTE, the Irish television station. The three studio pundits - Eamon Dunphy, Liam Brady and Johnny Giles - were also fairly scathing in their analysis. "I don't think it was as good a performance as [O'Neill] said it was," said Giles, the former Leeds United midfielder and Republic manager.

Brady, the former Celtic manager, echoed the sentiment. "Georgia are not a very good team," he said. "And if we had left points there it would have been a huge disappointment. We got out of jail."

It painted a picture of a Georgian team far weaker than the one that in 2007 almost grabbed a draw at Hampden - Craig Beattie secured a late, late winner for the hosts - then won 2-0 at home, a result which all but ended Scotland's chances of qualifying for Euro 2008.

Ahead of the teams' next meeting at Ibrox on Saturday, Ronnie Whelan revealed he expects Scotland to collect their first points of the campaign, but warned they might find it as tough as the Irish did before they finally break the Georgians down.

"Ireland didn't play absolutely magnficently but I think it will be difficult for everyone against Georgia," the former Liverpool midfielder, who provided co-commentary for RTE on last month's match in Tbilisi, told Herald Sport. "They're not the greatest team in the world but they will cause you problems. It's difficult to break them down and you might have to be patient.

"I'd compare them to the likes of Latvia or Lithuania - that kind of level. There wasn't one player who particularly stood out against Ireland, not one you thought 'he'll cause us a lot of problems'. They are just a strong, hard-working team. Ireland needed a bit of guile, something a bit special, to win the game and McGeady provided it. Scotland might need something similar this weekend."

With Germany expected to win Group D fairly comfortably, the rest of the nations are effectively fighting it out for the second automatic qualifying spot behind them. Whelan does not think Georgia will figure in the final shake-up but believes they will still influence the prospects of others.

"I don't see them being up there with Poland, Scotland or Ireland but they'll mess up other teams by taking points off them here and there," he said. "Ireland going there and winning in their first game could prove to be hugely significant come the end. I know there was some criticism of the performance afterwards but us ex-players sometimes forget how hard it is to go these places and win!"

While Scotland head to Poland following Saturday's match, Ireland have challenges of their own to consume them. They take on Gibraltar in Dublin - a match in which they could conceivably rack up double figures - before heading to Gelsenkirchen to take on the Germans, their approach to the latter buoyed by Scotland's recent stirring performance against the group favourites.

"Hopefully the Gibraltar match serves as a confidence-booster for the Germany game next week," said Whelan. "When Scotland got at the Germans with a bit of pace that seemed to panic them a bit and you didn't expect that. That will give the Irish cause for optimism."

McGeady will again be a key figure for the Irish. The Glaswegian scored twice in the win over Georgia and will be expected to provide creativity against both Gibraltar and Germany. "Aiden has looking good since coming back from Russia," added Whelan. "He looks sharper and he's scoring goals. He's definitely got something about him. People now expect more of him."

And when Whelan is checking the scores on Saturday night? "I expect to hear that Scotland have won but I certainly don't think it will be easy. Maybe 1-0 or 2-0."