Slovakia V Republic of Ireland - Tuesday, 12th October 2010 - Euro 2012 Qualifier

[tricky_colour]

England Montenegro still 0-0

[EastTerracer]

We got away with a point after a very poor performance. Hopefully we will have Duffer and Andrews back and Shay and Robbie will be playing regularly somewhere by March. The Norway game is a chance to test out some of the options we have at full-back and midfield.

Robbie had a bad night and needs to be playing. He's missed very few penalties over the years which makes it all the more shocking that he missed tonight. He's a confidence player and needs something good to happen for him quickly.

[Predator]

I'm quite disappointed with that result tonight, but I am optimistic - the performance was a definite improvement on Friday's, with Fahey in particular standing out.
Our result and Russia's win against Macedonia sets us up for a battle for second place.

[Fixer82]

McGeady very frustrating. Final ball terrible again. Thought Gibson did ok when he came on, better than Green anyway.
Robbie not great.
Fahey was my man of the match. Simple passing and never lost the ball
Long did well also

Overall not a great performance. Should have beaten what was a poor Slovakian team

[Spudulika]

We've lost 5 points in 2 matches, we should be 4 for 4 and top of the table, now we're going for a play-off spot with a draw in Moscow, a draw at home with Slovakia and beating Armenia and Andorra at home. Macedonia will take points off us and Slovakia.

[Noelys Guitar]

Dropped two points big time. Very disappointed with the tactics second half. And it is the tactics as well as some poor finishing. Not enough urgency. Playing free kicks backwards when they could be sent into the box. It has to come from the management.

[Paddy Garcia]

We are lucky the group is so even, could be fighting for second place by now, but still in it - can forget qualifying as best second place team anyway.

[cavan_fan]

We got away with a point after a very poor performance. Hopefully we will have Duffer and Andrews back and Shay and Robbie will be playing regularly somewhere by March. The Norway game is a chance to test out some of the options we have at full-back and midfield.

Robbie had a bad night and needs to be playing. He's missed very few penalties over the years which makes it all the more shocking that he missed tonight. He's a confidence player and needs something good to happen for him quickly.

Has it come to this, that we are hoping for Keith Andrews to come back.

Disappointing result, a microcosm of 20 years of inability to win away in a competitive game against half decent opposition

[Maroon 7]

Russia will win the group with so many of their remaining games at home. Shoot out between ourselves and the Slovaks for 2nd.

Could really do with 6 points now from the two Macedonia games next March and June.

[SkStu]

great game between Belgium and Austria by the way.

[Paddy Garcia]

The CM should have no place for Whelan & Green - I don tthink I have seen a worse Irish midfield & that is saying something!

[richieos]

I think kevin kilbane was excellent tonight.

[OwenGoal]

I wouldn't be so pessimistic. What we saw tonight was a return to typical form for us -- good and bad in parts. Standard Trap fare, but that's where we're at. Group still winnable. We've lost at home but so have Russia.

[Noelys Guitar]

Italy v Serbia abandoned due to crowd trouble

[carloz]

Some may disagree, but that second half performance was every bit as bad as the first half performance against Russia. the only difference being that Slovakia had no quality whatsoever to punish us.
We can come out with the horsesh*t that a draw is not bad there. It is. They were there for the taking and now we have said goodbye to any chance we had of winning the group. You could see tonight exactly why Slovakia were so outplayed by Armenia.

[shaneker]

Knee-jerk ratings:

Given - 6 - Needs a move pronto. Made a few decent saves, and that one from the shot from distance was pretty sharp, but he looks rusty. Did his job though.
O'Shea - 5 - After 30 seconds when he was almost up to their penalty area, I thought he would be rampaging up and down, and he did for a bit. Slowed down though, and really struggled in the second half, almost every ball down our left ended up in a cross. Not entirely his fault, mind.
Killer - 6 - One of his better games, I thought. Didn't get stung for pace too badly, got forward a fair bit, was a bit predictable in his distribution (ie give it to Aiden). Few good blocks too. Still needs replacing.
Dunne - 7 - One daft moment aside, had great positioning and generally did well in the air. If Clarke/Duffy end up anything like him, we're blessed.
Sledge - 7 - Fantastic goal, strong in the air, and didn't allow himself to get frustrated or bullied. We looked pretty steady down the middle of defence tonight.
Fahey - 6 - Great for a while, he really does seem to have a bit of class about him, but didn't track back anywhere near enough in the second half. Tended to get sucked inside; if he defended better, I'd say stick him in the middle, but I think he'd be a bit overrun. Fantastic freekick for our goal.
Whelen - 5 - Mixed bag. A few good tackles, and occasionally pressed well but also seemed to stand off so much in the second half. Was balls for their goal. Decent passing from time to time.
Green - 5 - Give him a 7 for effort and harrying, and a 3 for what he does with the ball. However, he had clearly been told not to do anything with the ball, and just looked to give it to Fahey every time. It's a good way to avoid him giving the ball away, which he managed to do several times anyway.
Gibson - 4 - CRAP. Totally invisible, never moved for the ball, provided nothing in attack or defence. He was as poor tonight as Green/Whelen were on Friday, and I think he's the main reason we were overrun in midfield. Terrible attitude too, the way he was waving his arms around 5 minutes after coming on. Set-piece delivery was okay (although Fahey was much better in this regard.)
McGeady - 7 - Effort, penetration, winning free kicks, and bags of stamina. He had them worried, just a shame that Gibson never decided to come forward to provide him with an option. Final ball wasn't always great, but when you have to keep sprinting like that it's hard to get your foot around it. Probably our best player. Defended as well as he could, too, tracked back well and made a few decent tackles.
Long - 5 - Started great, and we could rave about his work rate and attitude (both top class, similar to Doyle) but he gave away a lot of free kicks. A few were harsh, but most were pretty standard and difficult to argue against. Lacks a bit of all-round skill (first touch was poor a few times, and after about 30 minutes he struggled in the air) but is a proper option at this stage. Don't think Doyle would have done much better.
Keane - 5 - He'll get caned for the peno, but that happens to everybody (has he missed one for us before? I can't think of one). The chance second half was tough, the chance first half wasn't, and he should have buried it. But he was in two great positions, looking to score. He came into midfield several times when we were under the cosh and provided an extra body - without that we would have lost the game. Not his worst game. Christ, he needs a move though.

Trap - 6 - He let us off the leash the perfect amount in the first half, and I think the players let him down a bit in the second. After a while, it became clear that a point would be a good result; if we had poured forward like some people wanted (and I was shouting as well) we could well have been caught. For our free in injury time, I was furious when the Sky commentator mentioned that Dunne hadn't gone forward, until we lost the ball and were massively vulnerable to the counter. The man isn't an idiot, and he's still in credit for me. He's lost a few points though.

Crowd - 10 - Came through loud and clear, the whole 90 minutes. Did yourselves proud.

[Fixer82]

I think kevin kilbane was excellent tonight.

I think Kilbane played well in the last 2 games to be fair

[akearins]

Keane bottled d peno, once d slovaks stalled d peno he was always gonna miss, did absolutely nothing for the side ,let Long run his ass of and never contributed to the attack.Did his usual gesture of a run looking as if he was shutting down Slovak players until he gets within 5 yards and then slows and does nothing at all.Whats that about.Absolutey anonymous for 92 minutes.
Keane scores on instinct when he has time to think, forget it
Bull**** just because he isnt playing first team football, his form he has been ****e for far too long,but no one wants to admit it, look at David Healy in NI campaign a few years back when he wasnt playing firts team football, ended up top european scorer.
Try Long and Doyle up top and give Stokes a run....

Central mid needs to be amputated enough said
Trap give players the nod in Norway game, Coleman, McCarthy,Cunningham,Stokes,Walters,Wilson,Hoolahan

[irishbaz]

It would be easy to sit here and slate this team, I am just very well perplexed by Trap- we had no depth on that bench Keogh not good enough for Wolves an average prem team, Kilbane no good enough for Hull, Whelan not good enough for Stoke but on tonights performance well, where is the likes of Stokes for Celtic and Mc Carthy (much talked about). We do not have a real depth to our talent but Robbie was awful, Kilbane awful, Green awful, whelan poor and we had no depth to sub them. I know a draw was a good result considering Fridays performance but we have not played well since the France match and alot of these lads are passed it or not up to it and thats a fact I hate to highlight.

Where are the likes of Stokes, Walters, Mc Carthy in the squad his training camp mentality shows a lack of insight into our team and his stubborness around Reid plus his lack of ability to make key subsitutions at any point in any game will be our downfall-Russia and tonight are prime examples

[Charlie Darwin]

I thought Keane looked shattered for most of the game. Don't know if he was carrying an injury, but I think two sets of 90 minutes in 4 days was a bit much for him now that he's not getting regular football at his club.

Fahey was great on the ball, especially in the first half. I thought Gibson did OK when he came on but he is still too timid when it comes to demanding the ball.

[Noelys Guitar]

The real problem is we are not improving in any shape or form now. Same mistakes at the back every game. And you always have to take into consideration the calibre of opposition. And that Slovakia team are a very poor team by any ones standards. We had a neutral ref so no excuses there. We will regret dropping these points.

[geysir]

Awful game really but can't say it lacked huff and puff.
McGeady with the pass off the game, to pick out Gibson. Fahey was my motm until he faded or maybe it's just my desperation for a touch like that in midfield.
Brady saying that the player most likely to come into the team is McCarthy. I cant wait. The alarm bells are wailing.
I think an Ireland team with Fahey and McCarthy at CM would beat an Ireland team with Andrews and Whelan at cm- hands down.

[tricky_colour]

England 0 Montenegro 0. :party:

Mind you Montenegro are fifa ranked 40, not far behind us. theiir fifa ranking should hit no 1 in 18 months time at the current rate of ascent.

[Dodge]

Fahey looks terrible, offers nothing on the wing.

You vendetta against him is pathetic. Your first comment on this game is to single out Fahey? According to the RTE panel he was one of the better players.

[Real ale Madrid]

Its amazing how people's opinions are different. I thought we played quite well for long stages tonight - created some chances and probably should have won the game. I thought Gibson improved the midfield immeasurably when he came on - showed for the ball and we started using it well for a 15-20 minute spell thereafter. I thought McGeady had his best game in an Ireland shirt - always a threat and did more of his usual tracking back, made a few tackles and even dispossessed his opposite number a few times. Thought Shane Long was a little disapointing and with McGeady picking up a bit more of the slack, I thought Kilbane looked a lot more composed. Plenty twists and turns to come yet. Thought Fahey got tired in the 2nd half, physical game for him perhaps.

[Dodge]

I don't remember McGeady making a single pass though. Definitely didn't complete a cross. beat his man plenty of times. Then either fell or squared it to their centre half

[Stuttgart88]

The real problem is we are not improving in any shape or form now. Same mistakes at the back every game. And you always have to take into consideration the calibre of opposition. And that Slovakia team are a very poor team by any ones standards. We had a neutral ref so no excuses there. We will regret dropping these points.Careless at both ends, just like last year.

That said, it was generally a good performance. I think the difference between winning and not winning was Robbie. Long outshone him all night and without club football - for anyone, even Celtic he'd be better for us - he's a shadow of himself. Same applies to Shay - he doesn't have that aura about him that being a valued number 1 provides. Two CBs played well.



Fahey & Long came of age tonight. The message is that some fresh faces can make the difference. Gibson is certainly no worse than Green so there's no justification for persisting with Green, much as I love his attitude.

[Charlie Darwin]

You vendetta against him is pathetic. Your first comment on this game is to single out Fahey? According to the RTE panel he was one of the better players.
According to just about everyone he was one of the best players on the pitch. Colbert just seems determined to have the unpopular opinion on everything.

As much as I like to defend Killer, I think he inhibits McGeady going forward. A more athletic full back would really open up space for him (a centre midfielder showing for the ball would be nice too).

[Fixer82]

Awful game really but can't say it lacked huff and puff.
McGeady with the pass off the game, to pick out Gibson. Fahey was my motm until he faded or maybe it's just my desperation for a touch like that in midfield.
Brady saying that the player most likely to come into the team is McCarthy. I cant wait. The alarm bells are wailing.
I think an Ireland team with Fahey and McCarthy at CM would beat an Ireland team with Andrews and Whelan at cm- hands down.

Pass of the game was the ball to McGeady for the penalty.
Was it Dunne or Whelan? Magnificent pass!!

[Charlie Darwin]

It was Whelan I'm fairly sure. He tried it a couple of times before the penalty.

[Dodge]

Colbert, in a previous life form, made the bold claim that he'd never win a cap and he'd be back in the LOI by now.

I'd say it still huirts that he was so wrong on that one...

[centre mid]

No it was Dunne, superb ball all right.

[FarBeag]

I think it was Dunne

[tricky_colour]

on the stream i was watching on it could have been anyone!

[Charlie Darwin]

Colbert, in a previous life form, made the bold claim that he'd never win a cap and he'd be back in the LOI by now.

I'd say it still huirts that he was so wrong on that one...
I'm sure he still stands behind that opinion.

Consensus seems to be that it was Dunne. Great pass either way.

[centre mid]

on the stream i was watching on it could have been anyone!

Give Andy Reid the credit so. Might get him into the squad for the Norway game.

[tricky_colour]

According to just about everyone he was one of the best players on the pitch. Colbert just seems determined to have the unpopular opinion on everything.

As much as I like to defend Killer, I think he inhibits McGeady going forward. A more athletic full back would really open up space for him (a centre midfielder showing for the ball would be nice too).

ON the other side of the coin Killer has been caught out trying to get forward in the past, so swings and roundabouts.

[SwanVsDalton]

Knee jerk immediate thoughts:

- Robbie needs a move in January, his confidence is gone. One of those matches where nothing went his way, but Robbie used to make his own luck. He couldn't buy a goal tonight.
- Green isn't going to happen. For forty minutes he was a disaster with the ball at his feet, if a decent at making a few tackles. Gibson was a big improvement, even if he wasn't great, simply because he seemed to lift Whelan. It was a better combination and at least Gibson attempted to take the ball on. Whelan was better than Friday but his poor marking conceded a set-piece goal for the second game in a row. Possibly could use a move too...
- Fahey and Long played well, particularly Fahey even if he faded in the second half.
- McGeady did well too though we're still crying out for him to sort out his delivery.
- Our defence was immeasurably better albeit against poorer opposition that Russia. All four played well.
- Trap desperately needs to look into some new options against Norway, we were desperately short on the bench after only 2-3 injuries. He needs to blood a couple of players, in particular McCarthy, Wilson and possibly Walters.
- It's not over yet and we're still alive. Macedonia home and away will be crucial though.
-

[geysir]

- Trap desperately needs to look into some new options against Norway, we were desperately short on the bench after only 2-3 injuries.
We even ran out of wide midfielders - I never thought that could happen again.
The bench was thin, could have done with Andy Reid's bulk sitting on it when Fahey had to come off, rather than a lighter Andy Keogh.

[Stuttgart88]

I actually rated McGeady tonight despite the lack of final ball. It's so frustrating: there's a good team trying to get out of this lot. The attitude & approach to the game was fine tonight. The players had the courage to play it on the deck. A couple of players stood out, namely Fahey and Long and others like O'Shea, Dunne, Sledge, McGeady all looked more than suited to the game. KK was alright, a decent shift. One more midfielder and a sharper forward...

The prospect of Doyle & Long excites me.

Duff, Hunt, Lawrence & Andews to become available available, McCarthy or Wilson or a dark horse against Norway to step up. Robbie & Shay to sharpen up.

The glass is still half full but two big negatives:

- Another chance of a credible away win is gone. The longer this goes on the harder it becomes to get one. If we get one, the next one becomes easier. Israel away still kills me in this regard. Even Slovakia last time out.

- 7 points out of 12. We need to be constantly ticking along at 2 points per game. In golfing parlance, we're 1 over par. We need a couple of birdies.

[shakermaker1982]

I thought we were very average. Game was there for the taking but we lack that killer instinct. I'm very disappointed. If the Trap gives Keane, Given and Kilbane etc more caps against Norway then he'll never learn. Westwood, Ward, Foley, McCarthy and Walters all need game time.

Slovakia away would have been a nice scalp. I want to see more footballers in this side. Please let McCarthy have a go in mf.

[SwanVsDalton]

We even ran out of wide midfielders - I never thought that could happen again.
The bench was thin, could have done with Andy Reid's bulk sitting on it when Fahey had to come off, rather than a lighter Andy Keogh.

Big time. Trap seems reluctant to call up replacements when injuries happen but the bench would've been enhanced with even just one extra winger/attacker on it. Only two attacking players on a bench of seven just isn't enough.

As an aside, the biggest negative for me is these games were the acid test of how far we've progressed and the answer is we haven't. Last year credible results against better opposition was more acceptable, this year we have to be kicking on, turning draws into wins and stop conceding stupid goals. But we're still at it. Good news is several players are knocking at the door and I believe Trap isn't too stubborn to ignore them against Norway - get them involved and give us more options for the big games next year. With a few key additions (McCarthy, Walters, Wilson) and the continued emerge of others (Long, Fahey) we can get a lot better and bustle our way into the reckoning next year.

[Charlie Darwin]

ON the other side of the coin Killer has been caught out trying to get forward in the past, so swings and roundabouts.
Yeah, but I think if Cunningham or somebody had more experience he'd be able to offer more going forward and have the recovery pace to make up for it. Big if obviously.


We even ran out of wide midfielders - I never thought that could happen again.
The bench was thin, could have done with Andy Reid's bulk sitting on it when Fahey had to come off, rather than a lighter Andy Keogh.
Yeah, I thought the same thing when Duff and Treacy dropped out. For those of us who still see Fahey as a central player, that only left Lawrence (not an orthodox winger) and McGeady as dedicated wide players.

I still don't think we're using McGeady properly on the break. There was one occasion in the second half when (I think) Whelan spotted McGeady had the run on the left back and played a ball long and into space for him to run onto. McGeady almost kept it in play, but it seemed like the right ball was to play it more or less to feet and let him outpace the defender with the ball. It might have been the right ball for someone like Hunt, but McGeady is so fast with the ball at feet that it would have been better to suck the defender in early.

[IsMiseSean]

Keane - 6 - He'll get caned for the peno, but that happens to everybody (has he missed one for us before? I can't think of one). The chance second half was tough, the chance first half wasn't, and he should have buried it. He came into midfield several times when we were under the cosh and provided an extra body - without that we would have lost the game. Not his worst game. Christ, he needs a move though.

A 6???
He was terrible... He offered nothing tonight, absolutely no effort of the ball, zero work rate, i cant believe he wasn't taken off. By far our worst player tonight.
If he doesn't move in January then Trap should give serious thought to dropping him. I know he is our record goalscorer, but no one on our team should be untouchable.
I felt sorry for Long working like a dog all on his own up front....

[SwanVsDalton]

If he doesn't move in January then Trap should give serious thought to dropping him. I know he is our record goalscorer, but no one on our team should be untouchable.

Trap's post match comments: http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2010/1012/trapattoni_keane.html

He's seems aware Robbie's rusty and apparently indicates a willingness to look at 'other options' if he doesn't play.

[elroy]

Was travelling to the US, gutted i missed the game. Any one got links to highlights?

By the sounds of it, was a very good first half and not so great second, with the exception of Robbies chance late on. Russia's win in Macedonia is massive for them and more than likely now means if they avoid defeat in Slovakia, they will top the group. Our double header against Macedonia is going to be massive, we need to be getting six points there. At least the coming months, give us the opportunity to bring in new lads and address the problem areas, i.e. left back, centre mid in particular. More and more options are becoming available so be positive lads, at the end of the day we're only 2 points off. It is still ALL in our hands, difficult to top but second is very achieveable.

[shaneker]

A 6???
He was terrible... He offered nothing tonight, absolutely no effort of the ball, zero work rate, i cant believe he wasn't taken off. By far our worst player tonight.
If he doesn't move in January then Trap should give serious thought to dropping him. I know he is our record goalscorer, but no one on our team should be untouchable.
I felt sorry for Long working like a dog all on his own up front....

You're probably right - I'll revise it to a 5. I did say they were knee-jerk!

That said, I think he's getting too much stick. He did move off the ball, and he did get into goalscoring positions, he just failed to take the chances. I think you could tell that he wasn't used to playing with Long, he looks much more comfortable with Doyle, but that's only natural.

Also...

Robbie Keane
Two goals or not, what a god awful dispay from this man, I can't remember the last time he played well in a competetive international.

We need to find an instinctive striker from some where. give the lad at Sunderland a chance..


That's a quote from the Keane thread. From 2004. Let's not be under any illusions - Keane is by miles the best striker we have and is, although it's not the ideal situation, untouchable in competitive games.

[DeNiro]

I'd love to see Doyle and Long together up front against Norway. They'd be a handful for anybody. Have they ever played together upfront for us? It's not something I remember, could have happened on that American tour in 2007.

The Norway game is important in a formative sense for us. As Stuttgart said there is a good team trying to get out of us, but it still needs a few more pieces to be a complete jigsaw. Definitely CM and LB are problems, but can anyone really see Trappatoni bring a new player in and letting them feel their way around international football while serious points are up for grabs? I doubt he will change the habits of a lifetime.

Team for Norway
1. Given (needs game time)
2. Foley (hanging around the fringes 4 years now)
3. O'Shea
4. St Ledger
5. Dunne
6. Andrews/Whelan
7. McCarthy
8. Fahey
9 Doyle
10. Long
11. Duff

Subs. Keane, Hunt, Coleman, Westwood (needs a game soon), Tracey

I'd leave Keane on the bench. He's not indispensable despite what many say. It would be no harm for him to realise that.
I wouldn't drag McGeady back from Moscow for it either.

[shaneker]

I'd leave Keane on the bench. He's not indispensable despite what many say. It would be no harm for him to realise that.
.

Caps Goals
9 FW Kevin Doyle 18 September 1983 (age 27) 39 9
10 FW Robbie Keane (C) 8 July 1980 (age 30) 104 45
14 FW Shane Long 22 January 1987 (age 23) 14 4
17 FW Andy Keogh 16 May 1986 (age 24) 14 1

Yes, he is. Totally. However, I agree he shouldn't be played in November, and I agree with everything else you said.

[IsMiseSean]

Trap's post match comments: http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2010/1012/trapattoni_keane.html

He's seems aware Robbie's rusty and apparently indicates a willingness to look at 'other options' if he doesn't play.

Thanks for that, haven't had time to see any post match interviews yet.



You're probably right - I'll revise it to a 5. I did say they were knee-jerk!

That said, I think he's getting too much stick. He did move off the ball, and he did get into goalscoring positions, he just failed to take the chances. I think you could tell that he wasn't used to playing with Long, he looks much more comfortable with Doyle, but that's only natural.

Maybe Im just still really p****d off with the 3 misses and being a bit harsh.
There is no question he is our best available forward but if he's still not playing come march and say if Long is knocking a few in for Reading then Trap should have a difficult decision to make but being Trap I doubt we'll see change.