Yep. In case you weren't near a telly or twitter last night, Ireland have failed to qualify for tomorrow night's final, which is becoming a regular occurrence - despite us STILL holding the record for most wins in Eurovision history. Still, the last time we won was twenty years ago, and the warm fuzzy feeling of being the best at something in Europe is fast becoming a distant memory - especially when we can't even get through the to main event itself for the last three years running. 

Byrne undoubtedly did his best, working the stage and what appeared to be a particularly cumbersome jacket, and yet it still wasn't enough. He was fast tracked by RTE through to represent the country, given his past with Westlife and his ability to charm a screen, it was assumed he'd fly through to the finals. And yet it wasn't to be. Even with Australia now becoming a normal fixture among the contesting countries - Ireland still did't get enough votes to go through to the final. What's the bleedin' point in having half the country scattered across Aus if nobody votes (we're overlooking the time difference, obvs).

As for what the man himself had to say for failing to qualify, he released the below statement. 

“Obviously I'm disappointed - I really would have loved to represent Ireland at the final on Saturday, but sometimes things just don't work out the way you want them to. I went out there and gave it my absolute best shot. I've had such an amazing time in Stockholm and I'm so glad I had the honour of representing Ireland at Eurovision. I've had some brilliant experiences and met fantastic people so I'll take those special memories with me. I have no regrets - life is short and it was an incredible opportunity to represent my country in front of a global audience. I would recommend it to any music act to take on the challenge next year - there is no bigger platform. Over 200 million people watch the Eurovision and with America broadcasting the for the first time this year and Justin Timberlake performing during the interval act it just goes to show how popular and loved it is. I want to thank Team Ireland - Ian, Jay, Janet, Jennifer and Johann for all their hard work. It was brilliant to have such a great team with me. Thanks and love to Georgina, the kids and my family, thanks to friends, colleagues,my management team Tim and Joanne, RTE and Universal for all the support in recent months. There are too many people to thank - you know who you are and I'm very grateful for all the support you've shown me. Thanks to all the fans and everyone around the world who voted. When I get home I'm looking forward to promoting the new album Sunlight. I'm so proud that I had the opportunity to fly the flag for Ireland at Eurovision 2016.”

 Brass tacks of it is, we're a lone little Island with only one neighbour. The Bloc countries will always win out.