Northern Ireland women secured their place at Euro 2022 with a historic win over Ukraine on Tuesday night. 

Kenny Shiels' side are the first in the history of Northern Ireland women's football to reach a major international tournament, and they achieved that monumental feat with a 2-0 victory over a side who currently sit 25 places above them in FIFA's world rankings. 

Goals from Marissa Callaghan and Nadene Caldwell earned them a 4-1 aggregate win over the two legs to secure their place at Euro 2022, which will take place in England, just 17 years after the team reformed. 

It was a historic night for Northern Ireland but equally a frustrating one for Ukraine, and that showed as the game moved towards its conclusion.

Indeed, Ukraine's Natiya Pantsulaya committed one of the most blatantly cynical fouls you're likely to see on a football pitch in the 87th minute. 

As the ball was played through to Northern Ireland striker Sarah McFadden, Pantsulaya appeared to hold a decent advantage in a foot race to chase the loose ball. 

But possibly through fear of being beaten to the ball and leaving McFadden one on one with the goalkeeper, Pantsulaya deviated her running line approximately five yards to the right to clean out her opposite number in a manner that wouldn't be out of place at the Six Nations. 

What was so bizarre about the incident, though, was the fact that the ball seemed easier to reach than the opponent. 

We can only assume that frustration got the better of Pantsulaya with Ukraine staring down the barrel of defeat. 

You can take a look at this outrageous moment of old-school defending below:

Pantsulaya didn't hesitate for a second and immediately made her walk down the tunnel after cleaning out McFadden. 

The referee made one of the easiest decisions she's ever likely to make and brandished a red card as thing went from bad to worse for the visiting Ukrainians. 

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