Northern Ireland 1-0 Luxembourg result – Jamie Donley's spot-kick seals victory after VAR intervention at Windsor Park

Jamie Donley's first goal in international football proved to be the difference between the two sides as Northern Ireland defeated Luxembourg 1-0 at Windsor Park in their final match in World Cup qualifying Group A.

Donley's calmly taken 44th-minute spot-kick - awarded after VAR spotted a foul by Christopher Martins was just inside the penalty area - proved to be the only goal of the game in a match that produced some entertaining football in the first half, but became more fragmented and disjoined after the break.

Northern Ireland's win meant they finished their qualifying campaign in Group A with a respectable nine points, but it was not enough to earn a spot in the top two, with Slovakia's home defeat of Germany at the start of the campaign proving the difference in the final reckoning.

However, Northern Ireland still have a shot at World Cup qualification, and will take on one of the seeded teams in the semi-finals of the qualifying play-offs, which take place next March.

Northern Ireland boss Michael O'Neill said he was pleased to see the growth in his side over the course of their World Cup campaign as they claimed victory over Luxembourg in the final match of their qualifying group.

Despite finishing third, they have a confirmed spot in the play-offs in March, meaning their World Cup hopes are still alive. But he is keeping a lid on any excitement ahead of their next test, with the Northern Ireland boss well aware that they still face an uphill battle to make it to the finals next summer.

"We're not thinking too far ahead. We obviously have to see what the draw brings," he said.

"If you look at this campaign, I think the squad has come a long way over the six games. Nine points and the defining result really, why we're probably not finishing in second place is the fact that Slovakia beat Germany at home in the opening game, and that probably made the challenge for us a little bit more difficult.

"I think when you look at how we played in the three games that we lost, and the margins of why we lost those games, I think there's a lot of things to be positive about, but equally, things that we need to get better at as well.

"And I thought we dealt with a lot throughout the six games. If you look at players we had absent through injury, we've not had Pierce Charles for any of the six games – I think people forget that. We've also had suspensions and some players missing throughout the three international breaks. And I think the squad's coped extremely well with that."

O'Neill will now wait to see who his side are drawn against from Pot 1 in the play-offs. But, whoever they are drawn against, the Northern Ireland boss knows his side will have to show their fortitude to win a huge game away from home.

"I don't think you can really just say, 'Oh, we're good enough to qualify for a World Cup' until you do it, to be honest, so we just have to continue to work with that," he said.

"As I say, hopefully we'll be strong. We'll have to win away from home, which is never easy. And as I say, the most important thing was to come out of this campaign in a better place than we entered it, and we've certainly done that."

Jamie Donley was equal parts delighted and relieved to have scored his first international goal after his penalty gave Northern Ireland a 1-0 home win over Luxembourg at Windsor Park.

"I've had a few chances in other games that I think I could have taken, and obviously scoring [tonight] and it was offside, it made me feel, 'Am I ever going to score?' he told BBC Northern Ireland after the game.

"But I took the penalty nicely, and I'm delighted."

Donley explained how the long wait for the penalty to be confirmed by VAR actually helped calm his nerves as he prepared to take the spot-kick.

"It actually helped me to stay calm, because I didn't know what the VAR was for," he explained.

"I didn't know if it was like a red card or anything, but Conor came over to me and said, if it's a penalty, I can take it. So I tried to stay as calm as possible. And, yeah, I hit it nicely."

The forward, who played for England at youth level before committing to his birthplace of Northern Ireland, also explained how grateful he is to boss Michael O'Neill for giving him his chance, and trusting him to take the spot-kick.

"I've had a few difficult months in club football, not playing as much as I'd like to," he said.

"And he said to me before the game that there's no pressure on me, just play my football. And he obviously gave me the penalty, so I'm delighted that he gave me that in my home debut as well. So I can only thank him."

Northern Ireland playmaker Ethan Galbraith chatted to BBC Northern Ireland after the game and shared his thoughts on his team's victory.

"I think it was a tough pitch to play on at times, but I thought we did well in spells," he said.

"We probably would have wanted to keep the ball a bit better, but the main thing was getting the win and finishing off the campaign on a good note."

Galbraith also had words of praise for Donley, whose penalty gave the team a winning goal, and gave himself his first goal in international football.

"I played with him for a year at Leyton Orient [so] I had no doubt he would stick it in," he said of Donley's spot-kick.

"He's cool, calm and composed, and I thought he was excellent tonight. So for him to get his first international goal, it's great for him."

With the qualifiers now in the books, the attention turns to the play-offs.

The play-offs will be run in two rounds, with semi-finals, then finals deciding who goes to the World Cup next summer.

Northern Ireland know they'll be facing one of five potential nations in those play-offs, and it's a tough-looking lineup:

It was not pretty, but Northern Ireland finished their World Cup qualifying campaign with a home win at Windsor Park, as Jamie Donley's first-half spot-kick sealed the victory for the hosts.

Now the attention will turn to the World Cup play-offs, with Northern Ireland looking to claim a huge victory to send themselves to the United States, Canada and Mexico next summer.

It could, and probably should, be 2-0.

Kelly bursts into the penalty area and is crowded out, but finds Price in acres of space. But the winger makes a mess of his effort, which flies over the crossbar.

That might be the last genuine chance of the game.

A great pass finds Marshall charging down the left hand side. Moris comes flying out of his goal to close him down, and does just enough to force the Northern Ireland substitute wide and away from danger.

There will be FIVE MINUTES of added time at the end of this game.

Luxembourg keeper Moris comes out of his goal and the loose ball falls kindly for Price, whose weakly-hit effort at the open goal was flicked on my Magennis, but still wasn't powerful enough to beat the retreating custodian, who got back in time to spare his own blushes.

It's been a VERY scrappy second half of football at Windsor Park, with chances at a premium as both sides have struggled to create anything at all in the final third.

Throw in a host of stoppages for niggly fouls, yellow cards and a plethora of substitutions, and it's all added up to a very disjointed second half.

We're heading into the final minutes of the game, can either team find a moment of quality to add to the scoreline?

Exeter City striker Josh Magennis's introduction is a particularly interesting one from Michael O'Neill, given the fact that the 35-year-old is sitting on a yellow card from his previous appearance. Another booking today will trigger an automatic one-match ban, which would rule him out of Northern Ireland's upcoming playoff game in March.

It's a bold move by O'Neill, and puts the responsibility firmly on the veteran striker's shoulders.