I Wore A Heart Rate Monitor For Last Night’s Dramatic Win Over Italy – And The Graph Says It All

Heart rate monitors aren't only for athletes, y'know.

From restful relaxation to utter exertion, and from moments of nothingness to the ones we'll never forget, the tempo of our ticker is the ultimate physical manifestation of life's ups and downs.

That's why I wear a Fitbit 24/7, and glance over the peaks and troughs at the end of each day to think what might have prompted them – and it's why I own an even more accurate chest-strap monitor to have a more detailed overview on my training regime.

But, perhaps more interestingly, it's also why I stuck on my chest-strap heart-rate monitor last night before heading to watch Ireland's must-win encounter against Italy last night.

And the graph tells an entire story of its own...

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From my normal resting heart rate of 55 beats per minute (bpm), it peaked at 169bpm last night – moments after Brady stuck the ball in the back of the net.

Suffice to say, the McClean penalty shout, Hoolahan's miss and the goal all make clear appearances – but it's what happens after the goal, in those tense moments before the ref blew his whistle, that will forever tell the story of last night.