Northern Ireland have surprised everybody as they sit top of their Euro 2016 qualifying group with just two games remaining.
But they haven’t always made it easy for themselves, as Chris Baird’s red card against Hungary shows.
Baird received two yellow cards in the same passage of play, after putting in two pretty silly fouls in quick succession.
2 faltas em 30 seg, 2 amarelos, 1 vermelho Chris Baird http://t.co/q3GsPdn4X6
— Futebol NOW (@futebol_now) September 7, 2015
It’s possibly the most unusual red card we’ve ever seen, but there are a few contenders…
Mikael Yourassowsky (Toronto FC) vs Portland Timbers, 2011
Mikael Yourassowsky was substituted with just six minutes reaming of his team’s 2-0 win over Portland back in 2011, but referee Silviu Petrescu apparently felt the Toronto player was taking too long to leave the field and decided to give him his second yellow card of the game.
Perhaps the strangest part of this is how close Yourassowsky was to leaving the pitch before Petresu took action.
Kieran Gibbs (Arsenal) vs Chelsea, 2014
It takes something very special to overshadow a 6-0 scoreline in a games between Arsenal and Chelsea, but referee Andre Marriner’s gaffe will live long in the memory.
With Chelsea already up 2-0, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain blocked Eden Hazard’s shot inside the box with his hand. Marriner blew for a penalty, but surprised everyone when he sent off Kieran Gibbs instead.
Josip Šimunić (Croatia) vs Australia, 2006
Possibly the most infamous World Cup screw-up from a referee was made by Englishman Graham Poll, who handed Croatian defender Josip Šimunić three yellow cards before finally sending him off.
In a way, you have to adimire Šimunić’s commitment to fouling. Where some of us might count our lucky stars after staying on the pitch with two yellow cards, Šimunić seemingly wanted to see just how many he could get.
