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Published 13:12 6 Sept 2016 BST
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The number of points that can be won in a match depends on the following factors:Having wound up in Pot 7 for World Cup 2014 qualifying, the Welsh FA decided to dive deep into the numbers and they realised that the low reward for friendlies could actually harm the good work they were doing in competitive matches. So they stopped playing friendlies. Following one pre-World Cup friendly against Louis van Gaal's Netherlands in June 2014 they went 17 months without playing a non-competitive game and in July 2015 entered the Fifa Top 10.These factors are brought together in the following formula to ascertain the total number of points (P): P = M x I x T x C
- Was the match won or drawn? (M)
- How important was the match (ranging from a friendly match to a FIFA World Cup match)? (I)How strong was the opposing team in terms of ranking position and the confederation to which they belong? (T and C)
In the same period Ireland played seven friendlies, against Turkey, Italy, Costa Rica, Portugal, Oman, the United States and England - beating Oman and the US, drawing with Italy, Costa Rica and England and losing to Turkey and Portugal.
While a successful Euro 2016 qualifying campaign eventually saw Ireland's ranking climb from 64 to 31 between 2014 and 2015, Wales went from 34th in 2014 to the top 10 in time to earn a top seeding for World Cup qualifying.
Romania enjoyed a similar result by eschewing friendly matches and performing strongly in their Euro 2016 campaign.
Friendlies are vital for giving game time to new players, trialling new tactics and formations, plus of course making money for the FAI, but the upward mobility of Romania and Wales shows that friendlies are not a win-win situation.
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