The Squad

[OwlsFan]

Given (Manchester City), Westwood (Coventry City); O'Shea (Manchester
Utd), Clark (Aston Villa), Coleman (Everton), Dunne (Aston Villa), St
Ledger (Preston NE), Foley (Wolves), Kilbane (Huddersfield Town), Kelly
(Fulham), O'Dea (Ipswich Town), McShane (Hull City), Wilson (Stoke
City), Gibson (Manchester Utd), Whelan (Stoke City), Green (Derby
County), Lawrence (Portsmouth), Hunt (Wolves), McGeady (Spartak Moscow),
Treacy (Preston NE), Duff (Fulham), Fahey (Birmingham City), Keane
(Tottenham Hotspur), Walters (Stoke City), Doyle (Wolves), Long
(Reading), Keogh (Wolves), Best (Newcastle Utd), Stokes (Celtic).

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Even I am getting tired with Trapp picking the same players. Killer now in Division One and still in the squad. The Andy Reid thing has gone on too long now. Definitely worth a position in the squad

Kelly of Fulham (who is not playing or making bench) in, Mc Shane of
Hull (who is not playing and sometimes makes bench) in...... Ward out.

He insists that Coleman is a defender only, despite his performances up
front at Everton. He might be right but will he give him a game at full back?

[OwlsFan]

Sorry - just realised this is in the Celtic Cup thread. Please delete.

[Brendan 82]

Why no Ward ?

[Colbert Report]

Because he's a terrible player.

[Fixer82]

Ward is a good player and definitely worth a shot.
Can't understand how McShane keeps getting into Trap's squads. He has never played well under Trap. The only good game he had was his debut. Every other time he's played he's been a nightmare.
Also, i don't think Ward is a full back. He showed that he is a striker and was filling in for Mick when he needed a full back. And he didn't do a bad job either.
Good to see Stokes finally getting into the squad. Will he get a game though??? Doubt it.

[SkStu]

Because he's a terrible player.

a terrible player doesnt make 130 appearances in 3.5 seasons in the Premiership and Championship. A terrible player doesnt make a seamless transition from left wing to left back and perform more than adequately and to a premiership standard.

Your hyperbole does you no favours.

[Colbert Report]

a terrible player doesnt make 130 appearances in 3.5 seasons in the Premiership and Championship. A terrible player doesnt make a seamless transition from left wing to left back and perform more than adequately and to a premiership standard.

Your hyperbole does you no favours.

Why hasn't he been called into the squad then? If he's so good surely a legendary manager like Giovanni Trapattoni would call him up.

[SkStu]

so you form your opinion on all Irish players based on whether Giovanni Trappatoni rates them? Bizarre.

[Colbert Report]

Answer the question. If he's such a good player, why hasn't Trapattoni, unarguably one of the most accomplished managers in football history, called him into the squad? No disrespect but I'd rate his opinion much higher in value than anyone on this website. Every time I've seen Ward play, he's looked bad. I just don't think he's a good player and from the looks of it, Trapattoni agrees with me. Ward is a capable left-back, which is our biggest weakness, and yet our manager insists on picking a 34 year old League One player instead. That says it all about Ward really.

[The Legend]

on what planet is McShane better than ward or basically any other professional football player, he's total gash and arguably cost us a tournament or two.

[irishfan86]

a terrible player doesnt make 130 appearances in 3.5 seasons in the Premiership and Championship. A terrible player doesnt make a seamless transition from left wing to left back and perform more than adequately and to a premiership standard.

Your hyperbole does you no favours.

I'd have Ward in the squad myself, at least to have a look, but I'm unconvinced of him at any position really. He's probably not better than our other strikers or wingers, and the likes of Kelly even I'd take ahead of him at left full.

Don't forget the Wolves defense is pretty leaky, it's not as if this guy is playing on a defensively capable team. He's basically in and out at left back on one of the worst defenses in the Premier League...hardly an open and shut case as many on here suggest.

[Supreme feet]

I think Trap sees Cunningham as the natural successor to Kilbane, and that for the next few months at least, Clark - who definitely has a future wth Ireland at CB or LB - can fill in for Cunningham as one of the two left-backs, with Killer showing him the ropes. If he doesn't see Ward as a long-term solution at left-back, he's not going to blood him into the squad. I do think Ward's done enough for a call-up, but it would only be a stop-gap solution. In the long run, our left back options will probably be Cunningham and Clark, and Trap knows that. The McCarthy issue is a bigger concern at present - it genuinely worries me.

I have faith in Trap as a coach, what he does on the training pitch, and the shape and discipline he instils in the set-up. I take it that he forms his opinions of players from training sessions and general attitude in the camp, which we are unfortunately not privy to. Unfortunately, because of his age and negligible health, he can't go running around Britain looking at reserve games and keeping dossiers on every player like Brian Kerr used to. That's Tardelli's job, that's what he was appointed for, to be Trap's 'legs' - and there have been a few dodgy calls now in that department. Time is running out if we want to blood McCarthy before the big games next Autumn, which is very worrying. There is still a lot of youth in the squad, but I'm pretty sure Wilson and Gibson are inferior players to McCarthy.

[drummerboy]

I find it extraordinary that Ward doesn't merit a place in a 29 man panel. He is a very versatile player, who is playing week in, week out in the Premiership while players who can't command a place in struggling Championship teams are being consistently selected ahead of him. To compound matters, the player who is earmarked to fill KK position is out with a long term injury. Ward must be doing something extraordinarly bad to warrant such treatment.

[Razors left peg]

Why hasn't he been called into the squad then? If he's so good surely a legendary manager like Giovanni Trapattoni would call him up.

just like he has called up Andy Reid or James McCarthy to the squad? Ward is no superstar, but in a position we are very weak in he deserves a call up ahead of the current left back who is now playing center midfield in league one

[osarusan]

Ward is a capable left-back, which is our biggest weakness, and yet our manager insists on picking a 34 year old League One player instead. That says it all about Ward really.I think it says more about the manager than Ward.

[Stuttgart88]

I find it extraordinary that Ward doesn't merit a place in a 29 man panel. He is a very versatile player, who is playing week in, week out in the Premiership Is his versatility an asset or a liability though? I don't think he's as good up front as any of the forwards picked for this squad. I think he's OK at left back but only that. Clark is probably better, and probably even KK too. He seems like a great lad, very honest and very committed, but if you're not one thing or the other it's hard to make an emphatic case for inclusion.

For what it's worth I think he should be included. Why can't a 29 man squad be a 30 man squad?

[paul_oshea]

cos its not rugby Stutts

[Wolfie]

Trapp has no long term plans for the Irish Team. Full stop.

He'll shuffle the existing pack and introduce one or two new faces when he absolutley has to.

I think Trapp has done most of the experimenting that he's willing to counsel for the rest of this campaign.

Coleman, Clarke and Treacy may get a run in the Celtic Cup - there won't many changes from the norm for the Macedonia games.

[paul_oshea]

Yep and that doors hinge is very loose wolfie, its currently quite imbalanced and leaning further and further. I don't say I can blame trap wanting one more glory(hole :D) to add to the list, before he retires, by not looking to the future, and if that occurs then we will put up, even if we don't necessarily agree we will be content - to a certain degree anyway.

However, the more and more this goes on its unlikely he will be able to keep the cart on the road to Euro 2012. The players that hs insists on picking are appearing less and less for their clubs and peaked around 18months ago. The cart could be kept on the road by bringing in those players that we have all spoke of already.

[drummerboy]

Trapp has no long term plans for the Irish Team. Full stop.

He'll shuffle the existing pack and introduce one or two new faces when he absolutley has to.

I think Trapp has done most of the experimenting that he's willing to counsel for the rest of this campaign.

Coleman, Clarke and Treacy may get a run in the Celtic Cup - there won't many changes from the norm for the Macedonia games.

I totally agree with this statement. He is not prepared to groom players for the future, he is only concerned with the next campaign. As regards Stutts opinion that KK is better than Ward, I'm afraid I'll have to disagree. KK was a better player a few years ago, but not now. He has lost what speed he had. Clark will definitely be a better player than Ward but not much difference between Ward and him at the moment.

[paul_oshea]

Does anyone remember when we were all giving out about staunton and Kerr to a less extent about building for the future and young team blah de blah.4 year plan blah de blah.4 year plans are considered long term in lots of businesses.4 years is a long time in a footballers career, especially in the context of when a payers peak is.its actually their peak lifetime.

[dublinred]

Trap is a joke would be better off with Jack Charlton , read his comments about Coleman and Bale , if he bothered to go to games he would realise that Coleman has destroyed bale a few times already both from right back and right side of midfield , Ward gets dropped because he had one poor game while Trap was watching where as donkies not getting games or playing in lower divisions get called up.

[SkStu]

Answer the question. If he's such a good player, why hasn't Trapattoni, unarguably one of the most accomplished managers in football history, called him into the squad? No disrespect but I'd rate his opinion much higher in value than anyone on this website. Every time I've seen Ward play, he's looked bad. I just don't think he's a good player and from the looks of it, Trapattoni agrees with me. Ward is a capable left-back, which is our biggest weakness, and yet our manager insists on picking a 34 year old League One player instead. That says it all about Ward really.

The answer was implied - Trappatoni doesnt pick him because he appears not to rate him. You seem to piggyback on Trap's opinion by using that as your main argument in support of his exclusion. Thats grand and all but it wont garner you much credibility on this forum. I dont think Ward is a terrible player as you have stated (yet at the end of your above post you say he is capable - weird). Ward has had a few excellent performances in the LB position. That said he has had some below par performances too. He has made some mistakes due to inexperience but what player hasnt? Mistakes dont make someone a bad player but learning from them certainly indicates a smart and diligent footballer something that it is quite clear Ward is. His attitude in Molineaux has always been lauded.

I think the fact that Trappatoni doesnt pick him says more about the managers obsession with formation over player than it does about Ward. And i also think that the fact that Trappatoni "insists on picking a 34 year old League One player instead" says a lot more about Trappatoni's attitude as a manager than it does about Wards ability as a player. Think about that.

And when you've finished thinking about it, can you please provide a link or source for your statement that James McCarthy made himself unavailable for selection for this squad? Cheers.

[gilberto_eire]

And when you've finished thinking about it, can you please provide a link or source for your statement that James McCarthy made himself unavailable for selection for this squad? Cheers.

I reckon if he was picking the team he'd go with this

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.... best thing for all the regular posters here to do is stick him on ignore or just plainly ignore him altogether.

[Colbert Report]

Look, every time I've seen Ward play he's been not very good. That's why I don't rate him. I did see him score a great goal against Liverpool around Christmas but other than that I've nothing nice to say about him. I hope I'm wrong, left-back is definitely our weakest area, I love Kilbane but he is well past it at this point.

The McCarthy thing was a wind-up, I assumed that he hadn't been picked because of the fact that he's only just returning from injury but I think now it is clear that Trap has something personal against him. Didn't he fob off showing up to a training camp at the end of last season due to "fatigue"? Maybe Trap doesn't care for him personally, who knows. I'm getting extremely worried because he needs to be capped in a competitive match here right quick.