Seven thousand, two hundred and seventy. It was Jock Stein who said that professional football without a crowd is park football "without the meaning", and when the Irish Football Association sits down this week to consider the future they should remember those words and the key figure at Windsor Park on Saturday - the attendance. It was far from meaningless.
For a European Championship qualifier against decent opposition, the numbers added up to a non-event. Lawrie McMenemy was appointed 19 months ago to arrest the decline and the Irish have won one of six competitive matches since. They have scored three goals in nine hours.
Off the pitch, McMenemy has been conspicuous by his constant lowering of expectations - the aftermath again featured the phrase "severe limitations" - and there is the ongoing problem of attracting people to Windsor, home to some of the most sectarian bigots in a country with no limitations in that department. The populace of one of the poorer cities in western Europe is then asked to fork out Stg£14 to watch Iain Dowie. The IFA needs to look at itself.
Yet as the squad flew to Germany yesterday it seemed that the biggest shock of all is about to hit Northern Ireland. There will be no change.
The IFA chairman Jim Boyce is to make a statement after Wednesday's game in Dortmund and judging by his attitude the unthinkable is going to happen - again. He is set to announce that McMenemy will be offered another contract when this one expires in 10 weeks. The manager must know this.
There is no other way to interpret his stance after Galatasary's Arif Erdem had lanced the Irish with the second-fastest international hat-trick of all time. The quickest, by England's Willie Hall in 1938, was also against the Irish.
"Management is about getting the best out of what's available," said McMenemy "and I think we've done that." He then mentioned "progress" and when asked about the next World Cup qualifying campaign, replied: "I'd like to have a look at it. I think we know where we're going."
Erdem had collected his opener in first-half injury time, 45 seconds after the interval he added a second and a couple of minutes later his third. On each occasion there was no challenge. Erdem also hit a post as did Hakan Sukur.
That completed an Irish humiliation. "The highlight was that we observed the minute's silence properly," a fan said later. The tribute to the victims of the Turkish earthquake was indeed sincere. Silence is a serious subject at Windsor Park.
Northern Ireland: Taylor, Horlock, Williams, Hunter, A Hughes, Kennedy, Lennon, Lomas, McCarthy (Gillespie 63), M Hughes, Dowie (Quinn 77). Subs Not Used: Wright, Nolan, Morrow, Rowland, Robinson. Booked: Williams, Lomas.
Turkey: Rustu, Alpay, Ogun, Beserler, Abdullah (Unsal 75), Tugay, Tayfur, Sergen (Karan 90), Tayfun, Arif (Buruk 79), Hakan. Subs Not Used: Engin, Akbas, Fatih, Akman. Booked: Abdullah. Goals: Arif 45, 46, 49.
Referee: A Sars (France).
