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Republic of Ireland earned a hard fought 1-1 draw against Bulgaria in Sofia to massively boost their chances of finishing at least second in World Cup Qualification Group 8.

Richard Dunne was the hero for the Irish as he scored the opening goal of the game and then played magnificently well at the heart of the Irish defence.

Dunne's opener came in the 24th minute but was cancelled out four minutes later when Dimitar Telkiyski pounced on a Kevin Kilbane error.

Bulgaria then dominated possession in the second-half but struggled to create chances against a well-oiled Irish defence led superbly by Dunne.

The result means that Ireland maintain a five point gap over Bulgaria in third and move to within one point of group leaders Italy. However, both the Italians and the Bulgarians do have one game in hand over Giovanni Trapattoni's side.

Ireland enjoyed a really bright start to the match with Stephen Hunt and Caleb Folan both getting early attempts on target.

Robbie Keane nearly got on the end of a Dunne flick on too but Dimitar Berbatov flashed a header just over the bar in the 19th minute to give Ireland a little warning sign.

However, it was the visitors who took the lead in the 24th minute when Hunt won a free kick down the left after some good work by Folan.

The Reading man then dusted himself off to take the free kick himself and he found the head of Dunne who was left inexplicably free inside the box to power a header home (pictured).

Ireland nearly surrendered that lead moments later when a defensive mix-up allowed Martin Petrov to fire over but the hosts were level just four minutes later as Kilbane misread the flight of a ball and let it drop behind him; Telkiyski then took full advantage to storm clear before slotting past Shay Given with ease to level the match.

After Bulgaria levelled matters Ireland's tactics were pure catenaccio as they willing surrendered the battle for possession and instead decided to put two walls of four behind the ball.

It wasn't pretty but its effectiveness cannot be disputed given the fact that Shay Given barely had a save to make.

Bulgaria just could not unlock the Irish defence, their long range shooting was poor, and the one time Berbatov did get behind the Irish defence in the second half his control let him down.

With 15 minutes to go Ireland took off captain and record goalscorer Robbie Keane for the more physical Leon Best, and another substitute, Aiden McGeady, nearly nicked an unlikely winner in stoppage time as he flashed a long range effort from distance just wide.

However, in the second-half Ireland were never really looking for that win; they were clearly happy to take a point and strong organisation at the back ensured they went home with the prize they sought.

Cyprus 2-2 Montenegro

Cyprus were held to a 2-2 draw by Montenegro in the group's other game after second half substitute Dejan Damjanovic struck twice for the visitors.

Cyprus opened the scoring with a header by Michael Konstantinou in the 13th minute and made it 2-0 from the penalty spot on the stroke of halftime through Chrysostomos Michail.

But Damjanovic, brought on as a sub for Nikola Drincic, scored after a scramble outside the Cypriots' goal in the 65th minute and equalised 12 minutes later with a well-placed shot.

Montenegro captain Mirko Vucinic should have secured all three points in the 75th minute but his penalty bounced off goalkeeper Michael Morphis.

Both teams continue to struggle near the foot of the group with Cyprus on five points and Montenegro on four.

Seán Fay & / Reuters