Craig Bellamy admitted he had to lose his cool with Wales for the first time since taking charge, after Tuesday's 1-1 friendly draw with Northern Ireland.

An uninspiring Welsh performance in Cardiff was worsened when Jamie Donley struck on the rebound after heading an initial effort against the woodwork for the 22nd-minute opener.

Sorba Thomas levelled 32 seconds into the second half as the Wales winger converted from David Brooks' deflected effort.

But Bellamy said his side came out fighting after hearing some harsh truths during the half-time break, scoring in the opening minute of the second half for the first time since Daniel James against Finland in November 2020.

"It's the first time in 18 games that I had to have a go. I didn't like that I had to do that," Bellamy told BBC Match of the Day Wales.

"We were passive in the first half, passing side to side, that was not us. We needed to make a change, nothing on the lads that came off, but we needed that movement.

"We still needed more, but we'll take that after that first half. We caused our own problems."

Bellamy suggested Wales were trudging around after their World Cup play-off elimination, having lost to Bosnia-Herzegovina in the semi-finals on penalties last time out in the Welsh capital.

"We cannot waste a game; it can be a reminder to them that if they want to feel sorry for themselves, they can play like this," Bellamy added.

"We can't keep dwelling on last week, it's as simple as that. In life, you have to let go, and if they don't, I've not done my job properly.

"I'll take a good week and a bit off. This was hard to take and hurts a lot. The supporters were amazing. They turned up tonight, so thank you. It was really appreciated."

Both sides had chances to win it, with Neco Williams forcing Pierce Charles into a decent save, while Karl Darlow somehow clawed away Eoin Toal's header, which had seemed destined to hit the back of the net.

Wales have won just one of their last 11 friendly matches (D6 L4), but Harry Wilson does not see that as a major issue, given their record in competitive action is more positive.

"We approached it like we do every game. Some people said that this was a dead-rubber match, but it wasn't for us," Wilson told S4C.

"We always try and play with that pace and tempo that the manager wants, and we did that in the second half.

"There's no getting away from the disappointment of not reaching a World Cup. We now look forward. We'll play these next Nations League games and show what we can do."