Liam Lawrence's brilliant first half free-kick gave the Republic of Ireland a 1-0 victory over South Africa in their friendly in Limerick.

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The Stoke City winger produced a superb display in his first international match on Irish soil, and capped the performance with a perfect curling strike into the top left corner on 37 minutes that proved to be the difference between the teams.

South Africa dominated possession for long spells of the match, but consistently failed to turn their ability on the ball into concrete chances.

Ireland's more direct approach, however, paid dividends for what was essentially a second-string side fielded by the hosts.

The match got off to a slow, cagey start with Ireland trying little more than speculative long balls while the Bafana Bafana stuck to their meticulous build-up play, probing patiently for gaps.

It was a dozen minutes before a move gave concern to either defence, with Everton midfielder Steven Pienaar coming down the right and cutting the ball back for Bernard Parker to shoot.

The shot was deflected, and Ireland broke in a fast, flowing move that ended in the opposing box as Morgan Could crudely shoulder-charged Ireland striker Caleb Folan.

The incident happened well off the ball, with the South African defender making no attempt at playing, but the referee waved away penalty appeals even though both players were so badly hurt in the clash that each had to leave the field for treatment.

Ireland struggled for shape with Folan off the pitch, and South Africa began a long spell of dominance in which they retained the ball brilliantly and forced chances for Parker and Aaron Mokoena - though if the latter had tried harder to get to the ball instead of diving for a penalty on 34 minutes the course of the match could have been changed.

Instead, three minutes later, Ireland went ahead when Folan was pointlessly fouled despite being isolated. Pienaar earned a yellow for encroaching as the kick was taken, and from the re-take Lawrence curled a truly sublime free-kick into the top left corner.

It was a strike that Lionel Messi would have been proud of, much less Stoke City player Lawrence, and sparked a period of Irish dominance at the end of the first half which flattered their earlier failure to get to grips with the visitors.

The second half was dominated by long spells of midfield ping-pong as neither side managed to get into the final third of the pitch, with Darron Gibson's 57th minute volley - which ran just wide - being the only chance of note.

The Bafana Bafana continued to enjoy long spells on the ball, but were frustrated by an impressively well-drilled Ireland defence. When Mabhuti Khenyeza got as far as the penalty spot on 76 minutes, he was immediately blocked off by four Irish defenders and had nowhere to go.

Of the sides it was always the hosts who looked the more likely to score, with Leon Best coming close several times to capping an excellent display from the bench with a goal.

But neither side managed to add to the score, and Ireland ran out convincing winners.

Giovanni Trapattoni will be happy that his second choice side will have put a bit of pressure on the first Xi for starting spots - but South Africa coach Joel Santana will be wondering where his side will find goals from during next year's finals.