Cyprus game

[jay1]

Does anybody really believe we can beat cyprus over there? Italy just about scraped by. Personally I don't believe we will be in the World cup Finals. The team just simply isn't good enough.:)

[Reality Bites]

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[bwagner]

they will be missing konstantinu and another big player for them

[CJTheGull]

Look you can be as negitive as you want - I am not saying the team has been perfect under Trappatoni - in fact I left Croke Park fuming after both the Georgia and Bulgaria games - but the fact remains that we are steadily picking up points as we go along. Trappatoni seems to have distilled an inner resolve into the players. They are far from perfect but anyway glass half full and all that.

As for the play-off's who knows - we could get lucky and get someone like Scotland or be unlucky and get someone like Russia or Croatia.

[elroy]

Does anybody really believe we can beat cyprus over there? Italy just about scraped by. Personally I don't believe we will be in the World cup Finals. The team just simply isn't good enough.:)

This is the sort of game where I think Trap's tactics will see us win, not by much but I think we will win.

Cyprus in their last game were 2-0 up (including a dodge peno) and eventually only ended up with at draw and that game was at home, to Montenegro. Realistically if we have aspirations of qualifying/getting a play off spot, three points are needed here.

They are missing Okkas (capt) and constantinou, who im sure we all remember from our previous encounters. So on the assumption that we have all or at least most of our important players available, we should win. If we do win, it should more or less guarantee us second spot and allow us to push on and maybe get first.

[pineapple stu]

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I'll try an S, please.

[Serb]

Cyprus were the strongest they have ever been in the last qualifying campaign. Aside from our own 5-2 humiliation, they did get a convincing 3-1 win over Wales and a 1-1 draw with Germany all at home. I don't think they are as good now, especially without Konstantinou or Okkas (they have 50 goals between them for Cyprus).

The game will still be tight, mostly because Ireland never put teams away, but I'd be confident of 3 points none the less.

[Closed Account 2]

We should beat them, I was at the 5-2 a few years ago and we just collapsed. We realistically should have won that especially after going 1-0 up. Even when we got it back to 2-2 we should have won it. They are no push-overs but I think Georgia and Montenegro are better than them, and the 5-2 was a freak result facilitated by a combination of Dunne's red card and a happless managers tactical naivety.

[Stuttgart88]

I think the improvement in the team's shape will make us much tighter. We're a good team without the ball these days.

Cyprus lost 1-0 at home to Canada(?) recently so obviously blow hot and cold. Italy were blessed to win there.

I'm confident we'll come away with a narrow, nervy win, though I think we need our better players available.

[dr_peepee]

I think the improvement in the team's shape will make us much tighter. We're a good team without the ball these days.

Definately agreed on that..

[back of the net]

Does anybody really believe we can beat cyprus over there? Italy just about scraped by. Personally I don't believe we will be in the World cup Finals. The team just simply isn't good enough.:)

will we beat them ,im very confident we will be in the world cup finals next summer

[elroy]

As an aside, there has been alot of talk in the papers in recent weeks about Trap receiving approaches for clubs for when his contract with the FAI expires. He has said that he wants to continue beyond this contract and I for one (even if we dont qualify) would want to sign him up for another term.

There has been a significant improvement in tactics, shape, purpose, squad, organisation (i could go on) in this team since he has taken over. The first game where I believe we saw a marked change was away to Norway and we havent really looked back since then.

Yes some may not like his tactics and others suggest he has been a lucky manager, perhaps that is true but there is alot more to our success than just luck. From the shambles we were under Stan, we really are a team on the up and I for one would want Trap and co around for at least another term to continue the good work.

I fear the donation received to fund his wages last time out may not be available/forthcoming this time and the FAI cant afford his current level of wages unless we make the WC.

[Supreme feet]

I think some of us are still freaked out by that 5-2 defeat three years ago. To put perspective on it, we've played them seven times in the last ten years, won 5, drawn 1 and lost 1. Scored 16, conceded 6 (5 in one game!). The only times we've failed to beat them - or even conceded goals against them - was under Staunton. That defeat in Nicosia was a freak result; probably the most sensational in Cyprus' footballing history, and by far the lowest ebb in ours. Even with a very inexperienced midfield, we beat them more comfortably than the 1-0 scoreline suggested in Croker last October; and we've improved steadily since then.

Midfield is all-important. If we line up with Steven Reid alongside Andrews or Whelan, we'll be fine. I'd say Hunt will start instead of McGeady, as it's an away game, and he could be important in instilling the aggression that's been missing in recent Ireland-Cyprus games. Added to that, we're in a must-win situation, and Cyprus have little or nothing to play for. Unless I see something to be negative about (ie. injuries, a terrible performance against Australia), I'll be looking forward to Nicosia with optimism. Lets not forget that Cyprus are missing Konstantinou.

[youngirish]

I'd be surprised if we got better than a draw in Cyprus with or without Konstantinou and Okkas. It's not unfeasible that we could scrape a narrow win but I'd say Cyprus are just as likely (if not more so) to beat us at home. We looked dodgy against them in Dublin and were fortunate to get the 3 points in the end. You'd think the way some people on this board are going on that we comfortably beat them in that fixture.

[Irish_Praha]

I'd be surprised if we got better than a draw in Cyprus with or without Konstantinou and Okkas. It's not unfeasible that we could scrape a narrow win but I'd say Cyprus are just as likely (if not more so) to beat us at home. We looked dodgy against them in Dublin and were fortunate to get the 3 points in the end. You'd think the way some people on this board are going on that we comfortably them in that fixture.

Going 1-0 up so early in a game and then just playing to stop the other team getting an eqaliser for the rest of the game is never comfortable. However, I think we were the better team on the day and just about deserved to win.

This time around I think it will be more of the same if we score first but would expect us to create a few more chances than last time. Our CM will have improved since then and the players they are missing will hurt them. From the Italy game we know if things are not going to plan that Tapp will eventually change things around. We didn't see that in the last Cyprus game because things were going to plan; i.e. Ireland defended their lead.

[MeathDrog]

A win in Cyprus and the playoff place is in the bag.

[Stuttgart88]

Going 1-0 up so early in a game and then just playing to stop the other team getting an eqaliser for the rest of the game is never comfortable. However, I think we were the better team on the day and just about deserved to win.

This time around I think it will be more of the same if we score first but would expect us to create a few more chances than last time. Our CM will have improved since then and the players they are missing will hurt them. From the Italy game we know if things are not going to plan that Tapp will eventually change things around. We didn't see that in the last Cyprus game because things were going to plan; i.e. Ireland defended their lead.Agreed. We conceded a gilt-edged chance shortly after scoring and conceded too much possession at the end (Given & Dunne doing well to keep them out with good blocks). In between we ourselves created and missed decent chances. Doyle & McGeady spring to mind. They could have scored 2, we could have scored 3 or more. Definitely not comfortable, but it was only really nervy in the last few minutes.

[theworm2345]

Does anybody really believe we can beat cyprus over there? Italy just about scraped by. Personally I don't believe we will be in the World cup Finals. The team just simply isn't good enough.:)
If we can't then I think it'll be a rough rest of qualification (and World Cup if things go well). They're not the same team as 5 years ago but they are definitely beatable, even at home.

[geysir]

You'd think the way some people on this board are going on
Why don't you put that line in your sig, save you repeating it every second post :)

[Brendan 82]

why don't you put that line in your sig, save you repeating it every second post :)

lol:d:d:d:d:d:d

[aidz1]

Many on here making this trip??
doesnt seem to be much talk on it on the fans forum section

[Claret Murph]

Many on here making this trip??
doesnt seem to be much talk on it on the fans forum section

As you well know aidz1 most of the talk is over on YBIG . It seems that around 2,500 are going to travel .:(

[NeilMcD]

Does anybody really believe we can beat cyprus over there? Italy just about scraped by. Personally I don't believe we will be in the World cup Finals. The team just simply isn't good enough.:)

The fact you have a smile after your post says it all. Put away the wooden spoon.

[bluewater]

Many on here making this trip??
doesnt seem to be much talk on it on the fans forum section

It's going to my first Ireland away game so I'm hoping we can and will win over there. There's a group of nine of us going.

[Claret Murph]

It's going to my first Ireland away game so I'm hoping we can and will win over there. There's a group of nine of us going.

Please don't tell me that the Scientist is one of your crew . After Sofia I think he would be in detox by now :D

[briancool21]

Hate to say but i could see a repeat of the montenegro away game here 0-0. If we attacked all in this group we could have so easily won it

[Razors left peg]

Hate to say but i could see a repeat of the montenegro away game here 0-0. If we attacked all in this group we could have so easily won it

and we will still probably win it if we beat Italy in Croke Park... we've come a long way since the Staunton era and are improving all the time under Trap.

[tetsujin1979]

Hate to say but i could see a repeat of the montenegro away game here 0-0. If we attacked all in this group we could have so easily won it
we could just as easily have lost to Bulgaria if we had gone all out attack against them

[Stuttgart88]

If we attacked all in this group we could have so easily won itI think Trap has added a huge degree of streetwiseness to our game. We're not good enough to compete in some areas so he at least has made us hard to beat. Better that than full of attacking intent and easy to beat.

It's work in progress and we'll be a better team at the end of this season than at the start of it.

[Ordinary Fan]

Cyprus finished Kerr, a fortunate 1-0 win, and killed Stan before he really started. If Trap gets Kerr's result everyone will be happy.

Funny old world?

[eirebhoy]

I haven't looked at the playoff thing in a while but we'd probably have to win 2 of our last 3 games to avoid being the worst 2nd placed team, right?

[irishfan86]

I haven't looked at the playoff thing in a while but we'd probably have to win 2 of our last 3 games to avoid being the worst 2nd placed team, right?

Here's a link to the table:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification#Ranking_of_secon d-placed_teams

[eirebhoy]

Ah you've made me go and look. :)


Group 1 (likely winners Denmark) - Portugal or Sweden likely to come 2nd, depending on who gets the most points from the last 4.
Maximum total for either: 21
Probably 2nd placed total: 19

Group 2 - Greece and Switzerland should both be in the 20's definitely.

Group 3 - Slovakia should finish on at least 19. Poland's max is 22. Czech's max is 20.
Likely that the 2nd placed team in this group will finish on 17, 18 or 19 so one to watch.

Group 4 - We can write this one off.

Group 5 (winners Spain) - Bosnia likely to finish 2nd.
Maximam total: 24
Likely total: 19

Group 6 (winners England) - Ukraine likely to finish 2nd.
Maximum total: 23
Likely total: 19

Group 7 - France and Serbia likely to finish in the 20's.

Group 9 (winners Netherlands) - Scotland should finish 2nd.
Max total (+6): 21
Likely total: 18


We have to be aiming for 2 wins which should hopefully do us. Group 3 and 9 the ones to really watch atm after ourselves.

[DeLorean]

I think we'll be safe out in relation to the runners-up table. Cyprus will be an easier match than is expected. 2-0 no worries.

[geysir]

Eirebhoy, you have to discount results against the likely 6th team in the 6 team groups.

It looks like, if we do what we have to do in order to finish 2nd, we will be alright.

[eirebhoy]

Eirebhoy, you have to discount results against the likely 6th team in the 6 team groups.

Yeh I've just given Scotland 6. Same thing as the 2nd placed teams are all beating the bottom teams twice.

[bluewater]

Please don't tell me that the Scientist is one of your crew . After Sofia I think he would be in detox by now :D

No he's not one of the nine but can't gaurantee that he's not going :D

[Den Perry]

I think some of us are still freaked out by that 5-2 defeat three years ago. To put perspective on it, we've played them seven times in the last ten years, won 5, drawn 1 and lost 1. Scored 16, conceded 6 (5 in one game!). The only times we've failed to beat them - or even conceded goals against them - was under Staunton. That defeat in Nicosia was a freak result; probably the most sensational in Cyprus' footballing history, and by far the lowest ebb in ours. Even with a very inexperienced midfield, we beat them more comfortably than the 1-0 scoreline suggested in Croker last October; and we've improved steadily since then.

Midfield is all-important. If we line up with Steven Reid alongside Andrews or Whelan, we'll be fine. I'd say Hunt will start instead of McGeady, as it's an away game, and he could be important in instilling the aggression that's been missing in recent Ireland-Cyprus games. Added to that, we're in a must-win situation, and Cyprus have little or nothing to play for. Unless I see something to be negative about (ie. injuries, a terrible performance against Australia), I'll be looking forward to Nicosia with optimism. Lets not forget that Cyprus are missing Konstantinou.


The crux of the 5-2 defeat is that we had a chimp in charge of us that night

[Stuttgart88]

Cyprus finished Kerr, a fortunate 1-0 win, and killed Stan before he really started. If Trap gets Kerr's result everyone will be happy.

Funny old world?

Not really. If we'd shown any spirit and beaten Switzerland in the next game the Cyprus performance would have been forgotten.

Cyprus by itself didn't finish Kerr.

[lionelhutz]

Not really. If we'd shown any spirit and beaten Switzerland in the next game the Cyprus performance would have been forgotten.

Cyprus by itself didn't finish Kerr.

Agreed. The lifeless performance against Switzerland finished Kerr. I remember thinking after that game that Switzerland will probably regret not beating us that night as they could have finished top if they did. That's how bad we played.

[geysir]

If they had any regrets they soon forgot about them.

[jay1]

There is no such thing as Lucky or unLucky Draws. The Fact is you have to believe your the best and if your team does believe that they can beat anybody!

The Irish team cannot go around thinking like that, it is not professional, you have to believe when your playing any team that this team is nothing, that your the best and nobody is going to beat you not Brazil or Germany or Italy. NOBODY.

Roy Keane even said something to this effect years ago on Dunphys TV show on TV3. Remember that Interview. He said we have to believe and Go out there and Beat these Guys referring to the 2-2 away Draw with Portugal we had in the 2002 world cup qualifying campaign. He believed we should have beaten Portugal and not be happy with a draw.

If you look at the mentality of the Germans, they go out there and wipe the floor with their opposition. They keep their opposition up in their own half for the entire game and thats what we have to do.

Football isn't about luck it's about believing you can beat anybody and playing your hardest for the 90 minutes.

[Irish_Praha]

There is no such thing as Lucky or unLucky Draws. The Fact is you have to believe your the best and if your team does believe that they can beat anybody!

The Irish team cannot go around thinking like that, it is not professional, you have to believe when your playing any team that this team is nothing, that your the best and nobody is going to beat you not Brazil or Germany or Italy. NOBODY.

Roy Keane even said something to this effect years ago on Dunphys TV show on TV3. Remember that Interview. He said we have to believe and Go out there and Beat these Guys referring to the 2-2 away Draw with Portugal we had in the 2002 world cup qualifying campaign. He believed we should have beaten Portugal and not be happy with a draw.

If you look at the mentality of the Germans, they go out there and wipe the floor with their opposition. They keep their opposition up in their own half for the entire game and thats what we have to do.

Football isn't about luck it's about believing you can beat anybody and playing your hardest for the 90 minutes.

I agree there are often wins against the odds where there underdog wins. A positive team should be thinking they can win all the time.
If you are a team like the Faores or San Marino it is probably very difficult to do this but any middle ranking team team that wins or draws the majority of it's games should believe with the correct attitutde that they can win against anybody. However, depending on the circumstances, they should also be allowed to celebrate a draw against a team that was expected to wipe the floor with them.
I think the draw Keano was complaining about was the 2-2 away against Holland where Ireland gave away a two goal lead. That was a disappointing way to get a draw but at the start of the game most Irish fans would have bit your hand off if you offered them that result.

[ramondo]

We're a good team without the ball these days.



Ha!:D

[tricky_colour]

We're a good team without the ball these days.

Well, we have certainly had plenty of practise, if only we could get hold of the darn thing. :D:p

[Paddy Garcia]

We're a good team without the ball these days.


Well that's one thing we can thank McShane for.:D