There was little shame for Ireland in losing to a slick and superior Poland side at Croke Park last night and, as it was a friendly match, there was perhaps no better time to relinquish their unbeaten six-match record under Giovanni Trapattoni, the manager.

However, Ireland’s erratic display does raise uncomfortable questions about their progress since the veteran Italian took over. Maybe it was the wake-up call needed — avoiding defeat can disguise all manner of faults — and it should be acted upon before they resume their World Cup qualifying campaign at home to Georgia on February 11.

A flurry of goals near the end, with Ireland scoring twice and Poland once in a manic three-minute spell, gave the scoreline a surreal look. Until then, Poland seemed to be under little pressure, having given Ireland a masterclass in the cut and thrust of international football.

It was only when Trapattoni threw on his young guns, the wannabes in his squad, that Ireland’s hunger shone through. Stephen Hunt slotted in a penalty after Shane Long had been brought down by Tomasz Jodlowiec, only for Robert Lewandowski to restore Poland’s two-goal lead.

Keith Andrews made it 3-2 with a 20-yard drive on his debut and, but for a block of a goalbound drive from Kevin Kilbane in stoppage time, Ireland might have stolen the most unlikely of draws.

“Normally, after we lose, I am sad and I’m disappointed,” Trapattoni said. “But this evening, I am not sad. Not only because it was a friendly but because I could see the confirmation of how well my players can play. In 90 minutes, I believed that we could score and, for me, that was positive. Of course, it is better to lose a friendly than in qualification.”

With Ireland having a large Polish community, about half the stadium was awash with red-and-white flags. The Poland supporters let off a number flares during the playing of their national anthem, which filled Croke Park with acrid smoke.

That was hardly to blame, though, when Poland took the lead in the third minute after Lukasz Gargula slung over a free kick from the left flank. Mariusz Lewandowski, the Poland captain, may be a huge figure, but no one got in a worthwhile challenge as he was allowed to glance a header past Shay Given. The Poland supporters went berserk.

At least Ireland responded positively, with Damien Duff creating havoc on the wings and Caleb Folan working imaginatively with Kevin Doyle. Duff weaved a way through, only to shoot weakly wide, and perhaps Doyle should have had a penalty when he was bundled over by Dariusz Dudka.

As Poland invited Ireland to attack, Duff wasted a couple of inviting chances and, in between, Richard Dunne atoned for an error when, after gifting possession to Pawel Brozek, he chased back to tackle the Poland striker as he was about test Given.

Dunne’s mind did not appear to be on the job. He had flown home to Manchester the day before to visit his pregnant wife and returned yesterday after what was a false alarm. “It was important for him to go to his wife,” Trapattoni said. “But he had to promise he would come back.”

So much for Ireland’s first-half enterprise. It took even less time — two minutes — for Poland to score in the second half. Gargula flicked the ball on, before being flattened by Dunne, and Kristinn Jakobsson, the referee, played a good advantage to allow Roger Guerreiro to beat Given with a low cross-shot. At least the frantic finish encouraged Trapattoni. “We start again with Georgia in 2009 with great trust,” he said.

Ireland (4-4-2): S Given - P McShane (sub: A Bruce, 59min), R Dunne, J O’Shea, K Kilbane - A Keogh (sub: S Hunt, 59), D Gibson (sub: K Andrews, 73), G Whelan, D Duff (sub: S Long, 66) - K Doyle (sub: N Hunt, 60), C Folan. Substitutes not used: J Murphy, L Miller, K Foley, D Delaney, A Stokes, K Westwood.

Poland (4-4-1-1): L Fabianski - M Wasilewski, B Bosacki, D Dudka, J Wawrzyniak - J Blaszczykowski (sub: R Guerreiro, 46), L Gargula, M Lewandowski, J Krzynowek (sub: T Jodlowiec, 81) - R Boguski (sub: S Peszko, 69) - P Brozek (sub: R Lewandowski, 46). Substitutes not used: L Zaluska, T Bandrowski, G Wojtkowiak, R Majewski.

Referee: K Jacobsson (Iceland).