Scoring opportunities were scarce at Windsor Park, with both defenses asserting dominance.
Patrick Kelly struck the crossbar in the first half for Northern Ireland, while Isaac Price’s effort was saved by Balazs Toth.
Following a contentious penalty decision by Dan Ballard in Georgia, Shea Charles also had a penalty appeal disallowed, mirroring the situation that preceded Kelly’s chance.
Although O’Neill hadn’t observed the issue firsthand, he quipped that the referee never seemed to give them the benefit of the call on the field, as it rarely went their way.
Dominik Szoboszlai’s influence as Liverpool midfielder was largely muted throughout the match, with Hungary, like Northern Ireland, struggling to create clear-cut chances.
The only save required of QPR goalkeeper Pierce Charles came when a sluggish clearance allowed Alex Toth to fire a shot on goal in the closing stages, after which he remained largely untroubled.
After a 5,000-mile journey from Georgia in their opening match, Northern Ireland needed to reset quickly, and O’Neill acknowledged seeing “two tired teams” by the game’s end.
I think our preparation, especially our first away game, proved more challenging.
I felt Hungary grew stronger toward the end of the match.