Given will win his 100th cap against Montenegro on Wednesday, in a game that means very little after Italy scored at the death to qualify for South Africa and leave the Irish facing a play-off.
Shay Given: "For them to score so near the end was a real kick in the teeth.
"I know in all likelihood they probably would have beaten Cyprus on Wednesday night, but it would have just put them under pressure and given us a real lift.
"To be honest, we all felt really low and it actually felt like we had been knocked out of the World Cup. I know we haven't, but that's how it felt.
"But time is a great healer. We will kick on on Wednesday night and hopefully seal the campaign with a win and then see who we get in the play-offs."