UEFA's Golden Jubilee Ireland's Player

[Daxion]

UEFA have just announced all the players ( 1 from each association in the confederation) for the Golden Jubilee. Ireland have picked Johnny Giles,
IMO I would have put Liam "Chippy" Brady as our nomination. I think he was a far better player.


The UEFA Jubilee
52 Golden Players
ALB - Pano Panajot ITA - Dino Zoff
AND - Koldo KZK - Sergey Kvochkin
ARM - Khoren Hovhannisyan LAT - Aleskandrs Starkovs
AUT - Herbert Prohaska LIE - Rainer Hasler
AZE - Anatoli Banishevski LIT - Arminas Narbekovas
BEL - Paul Van Himst LUX - Louis Pilot
BHZ - Safet Susic MKD - Darko Pancev
BLS - Sergei Aleinikov MLT - Carmel Busuttil
BUL - Hristo Stoitchkov MOL - Pavel Cebanu
CRO - Davor Šuker NED - Johan Cruyff
CYP - Sotiris Kalafas NIR - Pat Jennings
CZE - Josef Masopust NOR - Rune Bratseth
DEN - Michael Laudrup POL - Wlodzimierz Lubanski
ENG - Bobby Moore POR - Eusébio
ESP - Alfredo Di Stéfano ROM - Gheorghe Hagi
EST - Mart Poom RUS - Lev Yashin
FAR - Abraham Lokin SCG - Dragan Dzajic
FIN - Jari Litmanen SCO - Denis Law
FRA - Just Fontaine SLO - Brane Oblak
GEO - Murtaz Khurtsilava SMR - Massimo Bonini
GER - Fritz Walter SUI - Stéphane Chapuisat
GRE - Vassilis Hatzipanagis SVK - Ján Popluhár
HUN - Ferenc Puskás SWE - Henrik Larsson
IRE - Johnny Giles TUR - Hakan Sükür
ISL - Asgeir Sigurvinsson UKR - Oleh Blokhin
ISR - Mordechai Shpigler WAL - John Charles

[tiktok]

i didn't see much of Giles as a player, but Brady was fantastic alright.

[Glacky]

What about Paul Butler or Gareth Farrelly ?

[Plastic Paddy]

I have to say that I'm surprised our friends in the North went for ol' Big Hauns. I thought they'd have gone for Bestie.

:) PP

[the scout]

what about legendary irish defender terry mancini????

[Ozymandias]

Paul McGrath....even Roy Keane....oops..didn't mean to open that can of worms again..ah well ..what the F**K

[finlma]

I think Brady would have been a better decision. I'm amazed that the north didn't choose George Best. Pat Jennings was an excellent keeper but George Best was one of the best players the world has ever seen, even Pele says that.

[gspain]

Giles was a great player in his day. I only saw him towards the end. Brady was a genius and Keane was also immense.

For me though I'd pick Paul McGrath. His performances as a modern sweeper in front of the back four and then at centre half were superb. He played in 3 major finals for us and was superb in all of them.

It is difficult to judge players from different generations. Johnny Carey and maybe even Charlie Hurley would have to come into the reckoning too. Duffer could well end all arguments too.

As for Northern Ireland well Big Pat got 119 caps and played in 2 world cups. He was one of the top goalkeepers the world has ever seen. Bestie was a genius but never really showed for NI - only got 37 caps and apart from beating Scotland on his own in 1967 didn't have many great games.

[Dodge]

They probably didn't want to give Best another reason to celebrate...

France picked just Fontaine ahead of Platini and Zidane, italy picked Zoff, and Sweden picked Henrik larrson...strange...

[Schumi]

Originally posted by Dodge
They probably didn't want to give Best another reason to celebrate... :D

I would have gone for McGrath as well although Giles was before my time and impossible to judge really.

[nifan]

Originally posted by Plastic Paddy
I have to say that I'm surprised our friends in the North went for ol' Big Hauns. I thought they'd have gone for Bestie.

:) PP

Big Pat is a legend. He is certainly one of the best and longest lasting keepers ever, and gave us 119 games - not bad.

[Lionel Ritchie]

Originally posted by gspain

For me though I'd pick Paul McGrath. His performances as a modern sweeper in front of the back four and then at centre half were superb. He played in 3 major finals for us and was superb in all of them.

As for Northern Ireland well Big Pat got 119 caps and played in 2 world cups. He was one of the top goalkeepers the world has ever seen. Bestie was a genius but never really showed for NI - only got 37 caps and apart from beating Scotland on his own in 1967 didn't have many great games.

I'd have automatically gone for Johnny Giles til I considered the above in relation to Paul McGrath.

I wouldn't have gone for Roy Keane for I'm guessing similar reasons to maybe why the north didn't go for Best. Most of those mens biggest performances were in red jerseys -relatively few in Green ones.

Was a bit (pleasantly) suprised by the number of goalies in there along with Big Pat actually -Zoff, Yashin ...Mart Poom:D :D :D

[derm]

Tough one to call. Giles was b4 my time. Brady was sublime, McGrath was immense, Keane is too controversial.

[Junior]

Originally posted by Lionel Ritchie
I wouldn't have gone for Roy Keane for I'm guessing similar reasons to maybe why the north didn't go for Best. Most of those mens biggest performances were in red jerseys -relatively few in Green ones.


Relatively few in green one???:confused: Think what you want about Keane with regards to Saipan etc... But I think it is beyond doubt that Keane rarely had a bad game for us, and carried us in many games particularly in qualifying for the last WC.

Mcgrath would get my vote, not old enough to remember much about Giles, Brady etal. Kevin Moran was also a big favourite, not in the class of Mcgrath but the man didn't know how to give less than 110%, brave, committed someone I always aspired to in the playground:)

[gspain]

In fairness Keane had many great performances in green. I wouldn't knock his commitment or performances in any of his games.

He did pick and choose but then so did Brady and Giles in their day and Paul McGrath went awol a couple of times too.

I'd gladly take him back for France & Switzerland - H&A.

Best probably never delivered his Manyoo form for NI but Giles, Brady, McGrath and Keane all were outstanding for us.

[Éanna]

McGrath was the best of the lot for me. I only saw Brady and Giles on videos, but McGrath was just unreal. If only for the game he played against Italy in 1994, he goes down as one of the best ever

[fromthenorthffs]

Paul McGrath without a doubt. A Rock, and for me Man of the Match in our finest hour.

Remember him marking the best footballer in the world at the time out of the match, whilst he needed painkillers to even walk to the pitch?

[carnstien]

Originally posted by Lionel Ritchie

I wouldn't have gone for Roy Keane for I'm guessing similar reasons to maybe why the north didn't go for Best. Most of those mens biggest performances were in red jerseys -relatively few in Green ones.

There is no way I can agree with that.

Keane dragged us to the World Cup on his own, a nation have probably never been so carried by one player. We did OK without him at the World Cup, but I am still convinced that if he was there we would have made the final.

[Lionel Ritchie]

Originally posted by carnstien

Keane dragged us to the World Cup on his own, a nation have probably never been so carried by one player.

Myth and legend. There's lot's I admire about Roy Keane but probably the only time I thought he showed he was truly a class apart in the WC02 campaign was in his very real disappointment at our having left a two goal lead slip against Holland while most others seemed shocked and delighted we'd gotten anything.

As I read over your sentence again Carnstein I'm guessing I could as easily remove the word "Keane" and insert the word "Given". Particularly when you consider we could very easily have lost to Holland in both games as well as home and away to Portugal. That takes nothing from Keanes contribution or indeed from the rest of the players.


Originally posted by carnstien
We did OK without him at the World Cup, but I am still convinced that if he was there we would have made the final.
We'll never know because he chose to absent himself. It was within his power to stay and he chose to put his own needs before his country and his team mates-who incidently I don't think did all that badly at all considering Keane was, as you rightly point out, so important to the team. To compete as well as they did with an improvised midfield was a credit to them all.

Look -I'm not Anti-Keane and I'm certainly not Pro-McCarthy either. I thought both parties handled the whole thing abysmally -though not nearly as badly as the glorious FAI with whom the buck should truly stop.

There should've been balls, there should've been kit, there should've been a proper pitch, there should've been glucose drinks, there shouldn't have been parties with journalists -for that matter there shouldn't have been parties, There shouldn't have been world cup diary deals between players and papers. There should've been a far more business-like attitude all round. All the above were within the power, the right and the friggin duty of the FAI -and they chose to do nothing until it was too late.

Aw crap...we're back to Saipan!!!
:rolleyes: :)

[lively]

McGrath would get my vote...

of the current batch, well "we all dream offffff a team of gary breens......".... need i say more...

re keane - he's a knacker (settled) but there's no doubting the mans talent on the field, he drove the team when most of the others were content just to get any sort of result and has been the most consistent midfielder in prem over last 10-12 years... after saipan i lost all respect not because he was wrong but because he walked away from the jersey....