FAI...June 2024 Friendlies v Hungary and Portugal

[ballinaman]

The pitch side interviewer on RTE called the game extraordinary. I couldn't he used such a term to describe what I'd watched of the game.

Saw that.... Strange choice of word from Tony O'D.


All over the shop in midfield, Gibson/Hendrick out numbered every time with Naismith and Maloney dropping back.
Keogh had a stormer. Ward a liability yet again, as lads have pointed out McClean was covering him the whole game.

In all fairness, we've been fairly muck since O'Neil has taken over. Probably the best performance we've had was the 0-0 with Italy in Craven Cottage and you could account some of that to the Italians being afraid of the lives after the lad breaking his leg, just before the world cup.

Chatting to a few Celtic supporters after the game and the main issue that they had with O'Neill towards the end of his reign was that he never changed the system, would only change the players mid game.

If  it wasn't for the late goal in Tbilisi and Germany we'd be swimming with the fishes in this group. Going to take a massive turnaround to beat Poland and Scotland and home now. 

Is Ward seriously the worst player ever to play for Ireland?

Really not much point in getting too worked up about our results, no point in qualifying for a tournament that we'd stink the place out of a-la Poland in '12. We've a dreadfully poor squad and have been very poor for a decade at least now.

See,I'm not so sure about how bad our squad is, look at NI sure FFS.Scotland are no better man for man than us to my mind and look how they are playing. Look at the goal Maloney scored for them in Warsaw never mind Friday. We don't even create chances like those, hoofing it up the pitch.

The difference between the way Coleman plays for Everton and Ireland is ridiculous.

I hoped that when people said it would be Trap with a Derry accent it wouldn't be true but definitely looking that way. How we set up to play at home will tell a lot

[mouview]

For sure, there seems to be a post-World Cup hangover round Europe (Poland, Israel, Faroes beating Germany, Bosnia, Greece) with standards leveling off a bit. But there's bad and bad in it; we haven't had the culture of playing proper creative, passing football since the heyday of Eoin Hand's time and (with the blip of 2002) we haven't been a feature at international level since the end of the Charlton era. This footballing culture is missing to varying extents amongst all the 'home' nations.

[Jell 0 Biafra]

There was a heyday of the Eoin Hand era?

[seafoid]

Mr Pot launches a lacerating attack on Mr Kettle over the media circus surrounding the Irish team. Reporting by Phil Space

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/irish/2014/1117/660297-dunphy-roy-keane-show-must-end-now/

[seafoid]

There was a heyday of the Eoin Hand era?

Lost out on Goal Difference for 1982 World Cup 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_(UEFA)

Videos of the French matches here

http://cerceretsports.blogspot.ch/2012/01/world-cup-qualifying-1982-france_16.html

This is the Lansdowne rd match
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5ABGLKxG7Q

In 1984 8 teams qualified for the Euros
in 2016 there'll be 24 teams 
It was much harder to qualify

Ireland had better players then - I think part of the reason was the structure of the English game- mostly local players unlike today so good Irish players got more game time at the highest level.

[johnneycool]

The pitch side interviewer on RTE called the game extraordinary. I couldn't he used such a term to describe what I'd watched of the game.

Saw that.... Strange choice of word from Tony O'D.


All over the shop in midfield, Gibson/Hendrick out numbered every time with Naismith and Maloney dropping back.
Keogh had a stormer. Ward a liability yet again, as lads have pointed out McClean was covering him the whole game.

In all fairness, we've been fairly muck since O'Neil has taken over. Probably the best performance we've had was the 0-0 with Italy in Craven Cottage and you could account some of that to the Italians being afraid of the lives after the lad breaking his leg, just before the world cup.

Chatting to a few Celtic supporters after the game and the main issue that they had with O'Neill towards the end of his reign was that he never changed the system, would only change the players mid game.

If  it wasn't for the late goal in Tbilisi and Germany we'd be swimming with the fishes in this group. Going to take a massive turnaround to beat Poland and Scotland and home now. 

Is Ward seriously the worst player ever to play for Ireland?

Really not much point in getting too worked up about our results, no point in qualifying for a tournament that we'd stink the place out of a-la Poland in '12. We've a dreadfully poor squad and have been very poor for a decade at least now.

See,I'm not so sure about how bad our squad is, look at NI sure FFS.Scotland are no better man for man than us to my mind and look how they are playing. Look at the goal Maloney scored for them in Warsaw never mind Friday. We don't even create chances like those, hoofing it up the pitch.

The difference between the way Coleman plays for Everton and Ireland is ridiculous.

I hoped that when people said it would be Trap with a Derry accent it wouldn't be true but definitely looking that way. How we set up to play at home will tell a lot

The difference is that when at Everton he is encouraged to go forward as he knows McCarthy or Barry will cover for him if he gets caught out.
Martin has always been an uber cautious manager, not into attacking football, so its hardly likely that he tells Coleman to keep going forward at every opportunity and if he did, the already overrun midfield?

In saying that I think he gave thon lad too much latitude and should have got the feet into him a few times.

[mouview]

There was a heyday of the Eoin Hand era?

Lost out on Goal Difference for 1982 World Cup 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_(UEFA)

Videos of the French matches here

http://cerceretsports.blogspot.ch/2012/01/world-cup-qualifying-1982-france_16.html

This is the Lansdowne rd match
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5ABGLKxG7Q

In 1984 8 teams qualified for the Euros
in 2016 there'll be 24 teams 
It was much harder to qualify

Ireland had better players then - I think part of the reason was the structure of the English game- mostly local players unlike today so good Irish players got more game time at the highest level.

Ya, distinctly unlucky in not qualifying for the '82 tournament. This was the era of 'disallowed goals for no reason', we had a fairly good team with the likes of Brady, Whelan, Moran, O'Leary, Hughton, Stapleton etc. in their prime and gave a deserved beating to France in the home tie of that campaign. As I'm sure you'll remember, same French team unlucky to lose to West Germany in the semis. We really could have made a proper mark on that tournament.

[seafoid]

There was a heyday of the Eoin Hand era?

Lost out on Goal Difference for 1982 World Cup 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1982_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_(UEFA)

Videos of the French matches here

http://cerceretsports.blogspot.ch/2012/01/world-cup-qualifying-1982-france_16.html

This is the Lansdowne rd match
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5ABGLKxG7Q

In 1984 8 teams qualified for the Euros
in 2016 there'll be 24 teams 
It was much harder to qualify

Ireland had better players then - I think part of the reason was the structure of the English game- mostly local players unlike today so good Irish players got more game time at the highest level.

Ya, distinctly unlucky in not qualifying for the '82 tournament. This was the era of 'disallowed goals for no reason', we had a fairly good team with the likes of Brady, Whelan, Moran, O'Leary, Hughton, Stapleton etc. in their prime and gave a deserved beating to France in the home tie of that campaign. As I'm sure you'll remember, same French team unlucky to lose to West Germany in the semis. We really could have made a proper mark on that tournament.

That was a great team. Now it's mostly journeymen and even hard to qualify for the first 24.

[Jell 0 Biafra]

I'd forgotten Hand was in charge for the 82 tournament.  That was a fine team alright. I guess my memory of Hand was clouded by the end of his time in charge (the 86 qualifying in particular). 

[Applesisapples]

A little bit of realism required. Soccer is the third (at best) sport in Ireland, behind GAA and Rugby. That makes it difficult in my opinion to produce great players. Add into the mix the set up now in the PL, where non English players will find it difficult to break into teams filled with foreign stars. Rugby offers an easier route to professional sport for talent, it's popularity is spreading thanks to Sky Sports, and it is a more natural fit with gaelic football. Even top GAA players can make the odd shilling with the right agent. To cap it all we insist in entry an A and B team into all international competitions...going to be lean times.

[stew]

Gaelic Football
Hurling
Rugby
Futbol

[macdanger2]

Bollix, soccer is more widely played than rugby by most measures

[yellowcard]

I'd be amazed if rugby is more popular than soccer, is there evidence that this is the case?

[nrico2006]

Nearly everybody would play 'soccer', far more than would play Rugby anyway. 

[Billys Boots]

The Irish Sports Council's latest report (2013) puts Football (Association) as the most popular team sport in the country at 5.9% participation - Gaelic Football is at 2.5%, Rugby at 1.4% and Hurling/Camogie at 1.7%.