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LONDON -- At least this time England and Ireland managed to complete their match. A scrappy, but peaceful, 1-1 draw on Wednesday left both teams at Wembley Stadium breathing a huge sigh of relief. This was the first time the rivals had faced each other on a football pitch since hooliganism forced the abandonment of a game between them after 28 minutes, 18 years ago. England fans, who rioted during the 1995 game in Dublin, heeded the warning of England coach Roy Hodgson by mostly refraining from anti-Irish chanting at Wembley Stadium. "Theres so much negativity around," Hodgson said. "But both sets of fans were vocal and ... behaved well. The only thing which stops this evening being a really good evening for me is that we didnt win the game." The potential for provocation was avoided during the national anthems as the music was turned up to full volume, leaving some speakers crackling and the few "No surrender" chants by England fans inaudible to most of the ground. As England and Ireland held each other to a 1-1 draw for the third consecutive match, the only troublesome moment came when flares were set off, shrouding part of the pitch in green smoke. The game was largely uneventful. Shane Long headed Ireland in front after 13 minutes and Frank Lampard levelled 10 minutes later with his 29th England goal. In the second half, Ireland goalkeeper David Forde denied Theo Walcott twice and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. "We had sufficient dominance and sufficient goal chances to win the game," Hodgson said before stressing: "I thought that we played well enough." While England heads to Brazil for a friendly against the 2014 World Cup hosts on Sunday, Ireland -- fourth in its qualifying group -- prepares for a qualifier against the Faroe Islands on June 7. Englands sloppy play reflected its struggle to qualify for the World Cup. England is second in its group, two points behind Montenegro with five games remaining. "We do have a lot of firepower not available for us," Hodgson said. "Ill just have to hope that firepower is available in September and October." More significant on Wednesday was the chance to show that tensions between the countries have thawed. "Everyone was a bit worried, but the two sets of fans were great," Ireland captain Robbie Keane said. After all the pre-match fears, the only scattered boos were heard when defender Ashley Cole -- who is not universally popular among England fans -- received a commemorative cap for having reached the 100 mark for his country. On his 102nd appearance, Cole captained England for the first time, and came close to his first international goal early in the second half. "He has been one of the best left-backs in the world for many, many years now," said Chelsea and England teammate Gary Cahill. It didnt start well as Coles fellow defenders were beaten too easily for the opener as Seamus Coleman floated a cross into the penalty area. Long darted through and rose above Glen Johnson before sending the header past goalkeeper Joe Hart. Irelands defending was slacker to allow England to equalize. Daniel Sturridge worked his way down the left flank and, as he whipped in a cross, Lampard started to ghost into the penalty area. As the ball came off Sean St. Leger and Glenn Whelan, Lampard exploited the confusion to stab the ball home from close range. There was a blow for England when Sturridge was carried off during the first half, adding to Hodgsons injury problems. "Its ligament damage, we think," Hodgson said. "It will definitely keep him out for the Rio game and we think it will keep him out for a few weeks." With Jermain Defoe on in Sturridges place, the attack lacked spark. Wayne Rooney, who has missed recent games for Manchester United, never came close to score in his first match in nearly a month. "Id be hard-pushed ... to say too much negative about the players in our team," Hodgson said. Detroit Tigers Store . Following a lopsided 5-2 loss against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night, Paul MacLean told reporters that "theres a lack of focus, theres a lack of leadership and theres a lack of preparation" with his struggling team. That came on the heels of Bryan Murray taking the unusual step of going into the locker room at the Prudential Center and addressing the players himself. Custom Detroit Tigers Jerseys . Patrice Bergeron and Daniel Paille scored 20 seconds apart a few minutes after Stamkos was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken right leg, and the Bruins beat the Lightning 3-0 on Monday afternoon. https://www.cheaptigers.com/ . PETERSBURG, Fla. Tigers Jerseys 2019 . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. Tigers Jerseys China . According to a report from the Vancouver Province, the Lions are expected to replace former DC Rich Stubler with defensive backs coach Mark Washington. The Chicago White Sox signed free agent Derek Holland to a one-year, $6 million contract Wednesday, ending his eight-year tenure with the Texas Rangers.Holland took to Instagram on Thursday to post a farewell note to the Rangers organization, their fans and the state of Texas.?The Rangers won the American League West four times since Holland joined the team in 2009, including the past two yearrs, and made the playoffs a total of five times.ddddddddddddThe 30-year-old left-hander posted a 4.95 ERA with 67 strikeouts and a 1.41 WHIP last season. He became a free agent after the Rangers opted not to exercise the 2017 option in his contract.-- Josiah Turner ' ' '