He said: ‘‘It is a huge help when we walk out on the pitch and see the support. On Saturday we walked out nearly two hours before kick off not knowing what kind of support was going to be waiting there for us.

‘‘Then we saw almost a quarter of the stadium full of people supporting us. That helps, of course it does.’’

Captain Steve Staunton also paid tribute to the colourful Ireland supporters ahead of the match in Kashima Stadium tomorrow night.

‘‘The support has been nothing less than what we expected because we have always had very good support.

‘‘There have been more people here than I thought there would be and it was fantastic on Saturday - and I’m glad we gave them something to cheer about.

‘‘This is what the World Cup is all about - having your fans there and giving them something to cheer about.

‘‘The Irish fans never let us down and they will not let us down on this trip either. I’ve said it many times - they are fantastic.’’

Ireland are one of the most supported teams taking part in the tournament and several thousand fans are expected to make the journey to the stadium in Ibaraki prefecture for tomorrow’s match.

Many fans have been staying in Tokyo, but training in Chiba has been well-attended every day by supporters hoping to catch a glimpse of the players and manager.