Austria v Rep of Ireland - Ernst Happel Stadium, Vienna - Sat, 12th Nov 2016 - WCQ

[Kingdom]

A great result, and ultimately a deserved result. Finally we've gone and won a game in a country where we could have won. I'm thinking back to recent games against Bulgaria, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Sweden, Israel et al, and didn't push on when a win was there for the taking. As much as I disagree with O'Neill at times, he's put something into the group that has arguably been missing since the 02 campaign. The players obviously are pulling for each other, and you would have to say that we are where we deserve to be after phase 1 of the group.

A crap stream for the game last night probably helped, purely because the quality - from both sides it must be said - wasn't there. There were at most 5 decent passages of football, we took our chance, they didn't. In fact, Austria looked almost Ireland-esque in their chasing of the game, with very panicked football.
You would have to say that they are probably out of the running now, although to be very fair to them, they had a stinker of a fixtures draw.

It's very difficult to know what approach to take in 2017. taking each game on it's merits Bill, avoiding defeat against our rivals is probably the more pragmatic approach to take from here on in. 20 points will see us into the runners up spot. Wales did not look at all convincing last night, and haven't been so far - they are where they deserve to be too. Wales probably have to come to Dublin looking for the win which should help us.


Robbie Brady's yellow was bloody stupid, and puts even more pressure on Stephen Ward to be fit for March. A settled back 5 is key, even if I think there are better alternatives available, a settled defence means so much at this level. Clark and Duffy were excellent last night, while Coleman won the three points with an incredible tackle on Arnautovic, where he would have scored, one of three times he only got free during the game - he was marshalled excellently.

You would have to concede that Hoolahan and McClean should be considered first-choice starters now. The fact that both are next two games are stand-alone competitive fixtures will help Hoolahan. You can see that most good progressive football we play involves him. It is going to be crucial to mould a successor for the medium term future.


Finally, I hope for the Iceland game in March, and whatever other friendlies take place in June, that O'Neill gives serious game time to the following:
Cunningham, O'Kane, Hayes, Horgan, Egan, Rooney, O'Dowda.
I would love to see us in a situation where the squad gets filled out with reliable replacements or genuine alternatives. I have the opinion that what happened with Meyler yesterday is not unusual - an enforced change mid-game has no real impact on the team, whereas if we were to start with him, I wouldn't be as confident.
Make the offer to Scott Hogan. A final offer, then draw a line under it.
2017 has so much potential.

[geysir]

This was the last time we beat Austria, some snatches of play from the pint sized wizard of the wing Joey Havarty at nr 11.
Pitch invasions after the equaliser, crowds sitting on the floodlight pylons, the sideline invisible. If we manage a similar result at home I doubt the celebrations will be as demented.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ShVGIk1Gec

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Meyler is obviously not as fashionable as other alternatives and so will have to do a lot more to get close to the same kind of praise, but I can't recall many occasions when he has let us down.

Away to Germany he did a job for us, home to Germany he did a similar job to last night, one of the best players on the park in Craven Cottage when we put forth a great performance against Italy, same in the friendly win against U.S.A.

I'm a big fan of his. I think he's a jack of all trades.

Only black mark I can think of is when he looked poor against Belarus, but so did everyone that day.

[tricky_colour]

I don't know what was going on when Meyler won the ball, he never touched the guy as far as I can see, seems it was just a dive to try an get a free kick?

[geysir]

I don't know what was going on when Meyler won the ball, he never touched the guy as far as I can see, seems it was just a dive to try an get a free kick?
Even in that you tube clip from the game in 1963, you can see an austrian player clearly take a dive in the box at the end, feigning a blow to the head.

They were feigning being fouled throughout the game yesterday, the 'Meyler incident' was just one of the more obvious.

[Stuttgart88]

Some good posts on this page, not least comma chameleon!

The team still has weaknesses but one great strength these days - and in fairness under Trap too - is that we nearly always have a goal in us.

It's quite rare for us to be in such a good position. I'm sure O'Neil told them this game can be won, not something I'm confident many of our previous managers (or media) would have said. Away wins against rivals (a) puts us ahead (b) puts the onus on them to catch up and (c) buys insurance. After 8 holes we're 2 under par, our rivals are level or worse.

Another positive is that Georgia away is beginning to look a bit less dangerous too. I don't know whether this is more in line with Paul's or Geysir's opinion but I was worried about that trip last month, much less so now.

Has anyone got a view on how many points will now be needed to win the group, and get second? I haven't got the table handy but I'm thinking 21/22, and 18/19 maybe.

[Kingdom]

Some good posts on this page, not least comma chameleon!

The team still has weaknesses but one great strength these days - and in fairness under Trap too - is that we nearly always have a goal in us.

It's quite rare for us to be in such a good position. I'm sure O'Neil told them this game can be won, not something I'm confident many of our previous managers (or media) would have said. Away wins against rivals (a) puts us ahead (b) puts the onus on them to catch up and (c) buys insurance. After 8 holes we're 2 under par, our rivals are level or worse.

Another positive is that Georgia away is beginning to look a bit less dangerous too. I don't know whether this is more in line with Paul's or Geysir's opinion but I was worried about that trip last month, much less so now.

Has anyone got a view on how many points will now be needed to win the group, and get second? I haven't got the table handy but I'm thinking 21/22, and 18/19 maybe.

If we score 20 points (drawing all remaining fixtures with our rivals and beating the lower seeds) we will finish at least second. I suspect that if we were to draw with our rivals, it will force Wales hand in Serbia, and I suspect Serbia could finish with 22.

I'm pretty sure I made this point earlier. I have no doubt Serbia will kick on now. Serbian confidence is never low, but they surely would not have been arrogant coming into this group given their recent travails, and compared to their neighbours who have been very impressive in recent campaigns. However the manner in which we allowed them back into the game in Belgrade, and their result with Austria, combined with the optimism of their World youth cup win, will surely focus them to look to qualify from a group that is eminently qualifiable from. The old line of never give a sucker a break comes to mind. they are going to be very hard to stop I think now. This is where having a derby away in the final qualifier is a kick in the teeth. Wales might be out of contention to qualify going into the last round, but they'll still want to get beat us.

For bedivilment, I have the following table going into the last round of games:

Ire 19
Ser 19
Wal 16
Aus 12
Geo 5
Mol 1

[geysir]

Austria woefully letting that game slip from their grasp leaves us in a great position in the group and in theory ahead of the rest in regards to holding onto top spot. I think Serbia have also woken up fully to the real possibility of qualifying direct from this group.
We're still not able to sustain an effective counter attack game, we over indulge in relentless hoofing from clearances, free kicks and kick outs.
If it was a case of us playing like that (v Austria) in order to beat a shower of scrappers like Scotland, then fair enough, but this is the type of game which will be used to try and beat Wales twice, Serbia and Georgia away. We defend well, have good well prepared set pieces and can be at most dangerous when we do use the ball in from wide.
Austria getting 3 points in Georgia doesn't matter that much now, still a fair part of the group's outcome will be about what happens with Serbia, Wales and us in Georgia.

[tricky_colour]

who is getting carried away? having said that we are top by 2 pts with two away games against our main rivals played. very good start to the campaign

Well me for one, or at least I was, but things can change, some time when you are doing well away from home you struggle at home.

Yes it is a god start, but it is just the start and that lead could disappear next match!!

[tricky_colour]

Even in that you tube clip from the game in 1963, you can see an austrian player clearly take a dive in the box at the end, feigning a blow to the head.

They were feigning being fouled throughout the game yesterday, the 'Meyler incident' was just one of the more obvious.

Of course the irony is it was their attempts at cheating that lead to their own undoing, so they got their just deserts!

[samhaydenjr]

If we score 20 points (drawing all remaining fixtures with our rivals and beating the lower seeds) we will finish at least second. I suspect that if we were to draw with our rivals, it will force Wales hand in Serbia, and I suspect Serbia could finish with 22.

I'm pretty sure I made this point earlier. I have no doubt Serbia will kick on now. Serbian confidence is never low, but they surely would not have been arrogant coming into this group given their recent travails, and compared to their neighbours who have been very impressive in recent campaigns. However the manner in which we allowed them back into the game in Belgrade, and their result with Austria, combined with the optimism of their World youth cup win, will surely focus them to look to qualify from a group that is eminently qualifiable from. The old line of never give a sucker a break comes to mind. they are going to be very hard to stop I think now. This is where having a derby away in the final qualifier is a kick in the teeth. Wales might be out of contention to qualify going into the last round, but they'll still want to get beat us.

For bedivilment, I have the following table going into the last round of games:

Ire 19
Ser 19
Wal 16
Aus 12
Geo 5
Mol 1

I don't think Georgia are finished putting dents in other teams' plans just yet - let's just hope it's not us. Even Moldova might nick a point at home if one of the other three is in any way complacent.

[Bottle of Tonic]

If we score 20 points (drawing all remaining fixtures with our rivals and beating the lower seeds) we will finish at least second. I suspect that if we were to draw with our rivals, it will force Wales hand in Serbia, and I suspect Serbia could finish with 22.

I'm pretty sure I made this point earlier. I have no doubt Serbia will kick on now. Serbian confidence is never low, but they surely would not have been arrogant coming into this group given their recent travails, and compared to their neighbours who have been very impressive in recent campaigns. However the manner in which we allowed them back into the game in Belgrade, and their result with Austria, combined with the optimism of their World youth cup win, will surely focus them to look to qualify from a group that is eminently qualifiable from. The old line of never give a sucker a break comes to mind. they are going to be very hard to stop I think now. This is where having a derby away in the final qualifier is a kick in the teeth. Wales might be out of contention to qualify going into the last round, but they'll still want to get beat us.

For bedivilment, I have the following table going into the last round of games:

Ire 19
Ser 19
Wal 16
Aus 12
Geo 5
Mol 1

I think a win for Wales last night might have been the better result. Serbia are the real danger. They could easily scalp us in Dublin and we need to try and keep them at arms length. I also expect them to power on through the group now. A home win v Wales in the next game is massive now.

[OwlsFan]

We should not get too carried away with this result, Austria's recent form has been pretty poor, one win in the last 6 if you include this game.
1 point from their last 4 home games.

It is being reported that Janko has signed an advertising deal with Specsavers.

If you don't mind, I'll get carried away with the result (as opposed to the performance). By my count (open to correction), I have witnessed Ireland fail to win away since Scotland in 1987 against a group challenger on about 30 consecutive occasions. It's a list as long as my arm and includes Spain, Hungary, Denmark, Romania, Portugal, Italy, Israel, Croatia, Yugoslavia, Serbia, Russia, England, Poland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Holland, Wales, Scotland, Turkey etc etc Of course they almost blew it again (I was at the game and I suspect George H was already counting his chickens in the 94th minute) but this time the fates smiled kindly on us and we actually won. It's a huge result for the group and for the monkey who can get off our back and climb on to someone else's.

The players I was impressed with was Randolph who despite my doubts performed well, the back four (not sure why Duffy fell back to the line in the last 30 seconds rather than marking his man), Hendrick and of course McLean.

For once we did not have to leave the ground to the smiles and condescending looks of the locals, who for a change with downcast eyes avoided our smug expressions and scurried off with their little flags in to the cold and biting wind. Their team reminded me of ours when we played them after our poor Euros in 2012 - it was role reversal.

Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. Imagine how old you might be if you have to wait as long for the next one. I'll be 91 !!

[paul_oshea]

Another example of how our world doesn't crumble without Glenn Whelan too. Not meaning to pick on him but we're a better team without him. Meyler was excellent, Arter had a really good second half.

I've been trying to remind myself of what i wanted to say on here, and against whom. I should have known it would be CD who needed to be righted again, but so tired from the short trip and travelling I couldn't remember! Anyway thats busted another myth from said poster. We looked much better without him there, the team improved. No doubt it will be twisted. There was only one time when I thought Meyler got it wrong was when he went out to the wing, and left a huge space in behind, Whelan would never do that, he wouldn't have the speed to get out there that quickly for a start. Having slighted Meyler slightly it was exactly the same move that setup the goal, so you cant realy have your cake and eat it.

I'm not going to be negative at all. I don't agree with Geysir we have had much worse games. We played well, but halfway through the second half one of the Dublin lads just goes these guys are completely impotent up top, no striker their not going to score, I told him behave himself but he was spot on. However I don't agree with CD that they didnt look like scoring, if anyone else got on the end of those chances instead of wanko then we would have been punished. They easily did enough to level.

Hoolahan has been both immensely frustrating and satisfying to watch. If he had messis strenght I think he would be a top top player, but he gets budged off the ball way too easily and caught in (dis)possession, people(stuts etc) pointed to the Italy game in Craven Cottage as an example where he didn't get dispossessed and was like a little terrier, but one swallow doesn't make a summer. He still has a great eye for a ball and its a real shame Trappatoni didn't let himself and robbie do damage together like reid and keane did for about a year or so. O'Neill seems to be happy enough and to trust him enough to let these things go against what he brings to the game and how he affects our overall performance.

I doubt trap has much interest in watching but it really sticks the boot in, we are playing decent football and getting results to back that up. Bosnia, Germany, Austria and Italy regardless of how the game/outcome/form affected them we still beat them.

There was no better result than Serbia and Wales drawing, simply because Serbia need to come to us and would have been happy with a draw if they had won at Wales, now more than likely that will not be enough for them, unless we capitulate in the next 2 games.

I think the catalyst, or perhaps just the difference between this and any other(aside from Austrian poor finishing) game where we went ahead was, for 10 minutes after scoring we kept the ball much better, we pushed slightly higher up the field and never gave them time on the ball. This means O'Neill has been working on this and has tried to implement a strategy to directly affect this malaise. We took the sting out of what would have been relentless Austrian pressure and after those 10 minutes they were less confident and more panicky. I really hope thats the start of things to come.

We now look like a strong squad. We look like we have ready made replacements to step in at any time. I'm still concerned about a few key areas, no less Wards defending against decent opposition but at least we know whoever comes in is generally going to be just as able as the man he replaces.

I'm not worried about the Serbia result away now, I thought that would be the thing that got me but with this win we have really opened a gap. Assuming we don't lose to wales or if we do win the other fixture then I see us getting second, if we beat wales and dont lose then I see us topping the group. I really hope Austria can kick start their campaign again in the new year, but I think they need to get rid of Koller, the players seem to be out of ideas he has been around 5 or so years and I've always believed 2 campaigns is enough for a manager at international level, unless he can bring in a new bunch of players every campaign. He is becoming stale, and they need some new motivation, they really lack confidence. Defensively they are very poor. I think with Long at home, and McClean on the wing we can really trouble them with pace at home. IF we are setup smart then I think we will beat them.

[Charlie Darwin]

Oh joy, I'm the inspiration for another posh post.

[paul_oshea]

Just thinking - did McGoldrick touch the ball after he came on?

The camera angle being so far out made it hard to spot individual players at times, but I can't remember a single contribution he made.

Did the same in the pre-Euros game against Belarus as I recall. Not sold on him at all unfortunately.

I really didnt get that. HImself and randolph are a bit too cool. In Randolphs case, the coolness brings an assurdness out in our defence and gives them confidence. In McGoldricks case when we are 1 0 up and trying to hold onto the lead and the ball, swaggering around all cool, like on a Milan runway isn't what you want from a player. He just laboured and jogged around. Really bizare subsitution, other than some sort of reward. O'Neill should have definitely stuck on Doyle - who must feel hard done by.

[paul_oshea]

Nah, it's hiding. It's a comma chameleon...

Great post strange one, probably my favourite post on here ever!! Miss your contribution around here also :/

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

I really didnt get that. HImself and randolph are a bit too cool. In Randolphs case, the coolness brings an assurdness out in our defence and gives them confidence. In McGoldricks case when we are 1 0 up and trying to hold onto the lead and the ball, swaggering around all cool, like on a Milan runway isn't what you want from a player. He just laboured and jogged around. Really bizare subsitution, other than some sort of reward. O'Neill should have definitely stuck on Doyle - who must feel hard done by.

"Nonchalant" I believe is the word I used to describe him once upon a time.

[paul_oshea]

I could pull out a classic CD quote or paraphrase "I call it being black" or something to that affect. Btw get the irony before you accuse me of any racial undertones. I think he is just one of those lazy type players who exudes plenty of inner believe and confidence, which leads to a certian selfishness, especially when we are the sum of our parts, a team and not a group of individuals.

I watched the game last night again when I got home, and I remember thinking at the time that Wes cannot physically make that pass, but the defender turned and ran allowing Wes to curl the ball around him, had he not done that Wes wouldn't have been able to play such a perfectly weighted and positioned pass.

The James McClean queen chant is a bit worrying, I don't know what category it falls into but I hope its not that well sang in Cardiff.

Also I think I saw/heard some father with his son telling him to stamp on the Austrian flag, I thought it was the other way around but the person with me said he told him to stamp on it. I hope he wasn't because there were also Austrians around. Either way the kid did stamp on it :(

[geysir]

Oh joy, I'm the inspiration for another posh post.
I should take the opportunity here to mention that I do recall Charlie accurately predicting (contrary to more sage opinions) that Austria were going to be cráp in this campaign and so it has transpired.
Of all the teams we have played, never has one folded so easy after we had taken the lead and they didn't cop on until too late that they didn't have to work too hard to create a few real chances, which were spectacularly fluffed with aplomb.

[paul_oshea]

It wasn't about copping on. We played well and pressed much better for 10 minutes after the goal. We normally wouldn't do that. Then we had taken the sting out of things. They were always going to have a purple patch but aside from a few clear cut chances we defended well and generally higher up the pitch.

[Charlie Darwin]

I could pull out a classic CD quote or paraphrase "I call it being black" or something to that affect. Btw get the irony before you accuse me of any racial undertones. I think he is just one of those lazy type players who exudes plenty of inner believe and confidence, which leads to a certian selfishness, especially when we are the sum of our parts, a team and not a group of individuals.

I watched the game last night again when I got home, and I remember thinking at the time that Wes cannot physically make that pass, but the defender turned and ran allowing Wes to curl the ball around him, had he not done that Wes wouldn't have been able to play such a perfectly weighted and positioned pass.

The James McClean queen chant is a bit worrying, I don't know what category it falls into but I hope its not that well sang in Cardiff.

Also I think I saw/heard some father with his son telling him to stamp on the Austrian flag, I thought it was the other way around but the person with me said he told him to stamp on it. I hope he wasn't because there were also Austrians around. Either way the kid did stamp on it :(
I have no idea how you got to this point.

[geysir]

It wasn't about copping on. We played well and pressed much better for 10 minutes after the goal. We normally wouldn't do that. Then we had taken the sting out of things. They were always going to have a purple patch but aside from a few clear cut chances we defended well and generally higher up the pitch.
Usually even an average team will convert one of those few clear cut chances and Janko fluffed his lines, that's strong evidence of a team gone bad. All decent teams we have played managed to push us back with ease until they scored one or two themselves. Austria were visibly shaken and cowed by our goal and our attitude afterwards. All Austrian pundits etc point to something gone rotten in the team and point to fragile confidence levels.
The result was brilliant and maybe we have turned a corner on how to manage a game better after going ahead, but that's a case to be proven in the next 6 games against better opposition.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

On Second Captains, Ken Early said Hoolahan and McClean's play for goal reminded him of Ozil/Ronaldo at Madrid.

[paul_oshea]

Usually even an average team will convert one of those few clear cut chances and Janko fluffed his lines, that's strong evidence of a team gone bad. All decent teams we have played managed to push us back with ease until they scored one or two themselves. Austria were visibly shaken and cowed by our goal and our attitude afterwards. All Austrian pundits etc point to something gone rotten in the team and point to fragile confidence levels.
The result was brilliant and maybe we have turned a corner on how to manage a game better after going ahead, but that's a case to be proven in the next 6 games against better opposition.

Yep, the jury is still out with regard to holding a lead, but we have proven so against 3 teams now of higher calibre. To the point about the clear cut chances, Janko was just red rotten useless, just because one player is lacking doesn't mean the whole team are, but I do agree that the team itself were lacking confidence. If arnie found himself in 2 of those positions I think he would have done better - granted he fluffed the shot that Coleman made the block on.

O'Hara made a good observation in his column today:
"Across came Arter to put out the fire before it could ignite with a challenge which didn't even merit a mention in TV commentary, but without it could have been part of the highlights of why Austria were dangerous on the counter-attack.

Of course, Glenn Whelan has performed a similar fire-fighting task admirably, but the difference appears to be that while Whelan - and McCarthy - usually let a player come into their area, Arter actively closes down to regain possession.

It may be one of the reasons why, this time, Ireland didn't just sit back after going in front."

I definitely saw a difference when we went ahead that I have never seen before, again only time will tell though, regardless of the calibre of opposition or the oppositions confidence levels.

[paul_oshea]

On Second Captains, Ken Early said Hoolahan and McClean's play for goal reminded him of Ozil/Ronaldo at Madrid.

Ya i really thought Hoolahan was world class with that pass, but I never heard anyone mention just how good it was, he knew where it was going before he turned, he had that little look. I can only imagine that a player he could have been with messis strength. I think Hoolahan had he played at the highest level from the start of his career would have been a top player playing at a top club. You could put down to him getting caught in possession not being used to so little time in the day in day out games he plays, where he has gained his experience. He would always have that extra yard or half a second. Not at international level. If he had been playing PL from early 20s he would have now erradicated that from his game.

But maybe had he played at that level from early 20s we still wouldn't be seeing the best of him at 34.

[Stuttgart88]

Wow, Paul really remembers everything one ever says on here. I though Wes was excellent at Craven Cottage and very careless and easily dispossessed on Saturday. He turned into trouble and took poor decisions more times in one game than I'd say he'd normally do in 3 or 4. None of this by itself really proves anything. He was, in my opinion, uncharacteristically easy to dispossess on Saturday. I'd point to games like Sweden in Paris where he absolutely wasn't.

[paul_oshea]

Look back over his games Stutts, he is always dispossesed easily, and as I say I point to the fact he has this time when playing in the Championship. When he comes up against it at international level he doesn't get that same time. That's why to the untrained eye it comes across as careless. But he does it in all games, just more often in some than others, that Sweden one they did an Ireland on Ireland for 55 minutes or so, and just sat back and gave us time, normally most teams don't give us that time or space. As I said I think if he started at a younger age in the Premiership and worked on his S&C that side of his game would be a distant memory.

[tricky_colour]

If you don't mind, I'll get carried away with the result (as opposed to the performance). By my count (open to correction), I have witnessed Ireland fail to win away since Scotland in 1987 against a group challenger on about 30 consecutive occasions. It's a list as long as my arm and includes Spain, Hungary, Denmark, Romania, Portugal, Italy, Israel, Croatia, Yugoslavia, Serbia, Russia, England, Poland, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Holland, Wales, Scotland, Turkey etc etc Of course they almost blew it again (I was at the game and I suspect George H was already counting his chickens in the 94th minute) but this time the fates smiled kindly on us and we actually won. It's a huge result for the group and for the monkey who can get off our back and climb on to someone else's.

The players I was impressed with was Randolph who despite my doubts performed well, the back four (not sure why Duffy fell back to the line in the last 30 seconds rather than marking his man), Hendrick and of course McLean.

For once we did not have to leave the ground to the smiles and condescending looks of the locals, who for a change with downcast eyes avoided our smug expressions and scurried off with their little flags in to the cold and biting wind. Their team reminded me of ours when we played them after our poor Euros in 2012 - it was role reversal.

Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. Imagine how old you might be if you have to wait as long for the next one. I'll be 91 !!

Well you may have too, all I am saying is do not overestimate the result, some is down to our good play but you need to consider the performance
of the opposition Austria, they are not going trough their best spell.

If you roll a dice often enough you will get two sixes in a row, you could put it down to your improved dice rolling skills, but equally you could put it down to luck!

Having said that there were positive thing for us the performance of McClean, Hoolahan and Randolph for starters, However we will come up against teams who have strikers who can head the ball with their eyes open.

[jbyrne]

Well you may have too, all I am saying is do not overestimate the result, some is down to our good play but you need to consider the performance
of the opposition Austria, they are not going trough their best spell.

If you roll a dice often enough you will get two sixes in a row, you could put it down to your improved dice rolling skills, but equally you could put it down to luck!

Having said that there were positive thing for us the performance of McClean, Hoolahan and Randolph for starters, However we will come up against teams who have strikers who can head the ball with their eyes open.

here we go again... as sure as night follows day someone will follow a very decent Irish win and performance with mitigating factors for the opposition. yes Austria didn't have a great game but i thought a lot of that was how we approached the game particularly after the Meyler substitution. i would attribute our wins in the last 12 months against germany, bosnia, italy and now austria to improved dice rolling skills, as you put it yourself, rather than luck. credit where its due please

[SwanVsDalton]

Austria were rank bad (particularly for a 10-minute spell after we scored) and plenty has been rightly said about poor Marc Janko.

But we're getting into quite a nice habit of beating better ranked/better quality opposition in high-pressure situations after years of chronic failure on that front. That can only point to a team improving their mental attitude, composure and approach at long last. Long may it continue.

Despite it being 1-0, Saturday felt very comfortable to watch. Perhaps Bosnia at home is the only other time in recent memory where we just seemed to exude a winning confidence.

I think someone earlier did mention it's the first time since Euro '96 we've led a group into Christmas...not a great omen, but still...

[OwlsFan]

here we go again... as sure as night follows day someone will follow a very decent Irish win and performance with mitigating factors for the opposition. yes Austria didn't have a great game but i thought a lot of that was how we approached the game particularly after the Meyler substitution. i would attribute our wins in the last 12 months against germany, bosnia, italy and now austria to improved dice rolling skills, as you put it yourself, rather than luck. credit where its due please

I agree with you but let's be honest, in the past that 94th minute chance would have been put away. This time the fates were on our side and we rolled the two 6s.

What I liked about the performance was that despite going ahead in the early part of the second half, we didn't immediately fall back on our box and engage in desperate defending. We only left that to the 94th minute :) As you say, we have at last started to beat higher ranked teams (outside of tournaments) which is a huge bonus for us. I am not sure Austria are as bad as people make out. We had a game plan. Stifle Alaba which we failed to do last time we played them, and hit them on the break. Worked very well. Sure the Wales/Serbia game might have been more attractive to watch, but each team let the other play to a certain extent unlike our tactics which are get in your face and stay there and rely on Wes for the odd moment of magic. I am more than happy with that.

I think we have only once ever topped a group (1987/8) so tons of work to do. It would be great if Wales were out of it by the time we go to Cardiff and we can go a long way to doing that next match. In the meantime I continue to savour the pleasure of hearing that final whistle in Vienna and seeing the Viennese with their flags tucked under their armpits sulking off to catch the next U Bahn over the Danube.

[Stuttgart88]

If it was that easy to beat teams that are there for the taking away from home we wouldn't be asking whether this is better than 1987 or not. This was a gig win, no question. Missed opportunities in Bulgaria, Slovakia and Israel stand out and in every campaign in my lifetime bar 1987 we have failed to beat teams like Austria. 29 years is a lot of dice rolling and frankly our return against this type of team has been pathetic.

[Stuttgart88]

I just read Owls' post. I've lost count of the number of times I watch teams who get away with conceding a late chance and then get plaudits for a professional performance. It happens. I'm tired of conceding last ditch goals like Austria 2-2, Slovakia 2-2, Israel 1-1 that were superbly struck, deflected or both. We rode our luck with Janko but deserved it overall.

[Stuttgart88]

Didn't Groucho Marx say that he wouldn't want to join a club that'd have him as a member? It's like that with Ireland matches for some people. Sure, anyone we beat can't be any good.

[OwlsFan]

Is that it now ? Any more after thoughts ? :)

We're pretty much agreed. In some quarters, we get a result so the opposition were cr+p.

We went to Vienna. Stiffled a higher ranked team on its own turf and came home with a win from a nicely worked goal and then defended well for all but 30 seconds of the the next 40 minutes. As far as I am concerned it is "Allah be Praised" rather than "Allah they were rubbish".

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

I'm relieved that the horror stories about us not being able to score goals after Keane's retirement haven't materialised.

Good mix of players scoring and 20 Intl goals looks like an attainable target for McClean atm.

[OwlsFan]

I'm relieved that the horror stories about us not being able to score goals after Keane's retirement haven't materialised.

Hmmmmm

2491

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Hmmmmm

2491

No, I think it's a valid thing to bring up. There was a worry from certain quarters about where goals were going to come from in this campaign. Even going back to the last Campaign, Brady, Long and Walters stepped up. The spread has continued into this campaign.

It's good to see.

[paul_oshea]

I would normally be middle of the road not swayed by a good performance or win as easy as others on here. I would see the glass as somewhere between half full and half empty, as its never exact. But I have noticed that we have been getting that bit of luck that others pointed out a few years ago was made. I still don't fully agree, but I definitely think O'Neill has that luck about him that certain managers get at the right time. Having said all that I still think we are getting better and we are begining to ride our luck a bit because of how we are generally playing. We are playing better, and we were a lot more chartlonesque/guardiolaesque in our defending the last day, so sometimes with that enthusiasm you can leave space and be punished, and thats where I think we have got our luck. We have played a better pressurised game that has ridden its luck when it needed to. We are beating teams that normally we wouldn't beat away or home. Things are definitely looking up. And to draw/criqique on the previous manager we don't cruise by where a team could have beaten us 2 or 3 on a good day.

At least with these wins, it gives us a good ranking(not seeding) for the playoffs if we make them.

One thing I forgot to mention was the derision of Brady for hitting the ball away. He had to do it, he was out of position and would have been caught on a counter with a quick throw. It was smart, maybe he could have been smarter by just holding the ball in his hands but he needed to do something. I don't think this was clear on the TV, an austrian attacker had taken up a position on the wing behind him and no one was near him. Brady did what any smart defender would do and held up play.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

JOS right on the mark re: Brady's booking. Someone pointed that out during the coverage but I forget who.

[paul_oshea]

JOS? what did they say?

Also wanted to add we shouldn't get too carried away either because things can change very quickly as we even saw in the last campaign.

What I don't want to hear from now on though is that we dont have the player to compete at this level and be expecting to qualify every campaign. MON has shown that you can, and that its down to a bit of self-belief, camraderie and a decent playing level. NEver, ever do i want to see the likes of a Trap again managing us or people on here or in the media trying to underplay our fair expectations. We have a far worse team than we had under Kerr, Staunton and Trap, yet we have performed much better and gotten much better results than under any of them. We have more championship players than we've had in a squad for a long time too, but its not affecting our performances adversely.

[OwlsFan]

JOS right on the mark re: Brady's booking. Someone pointed that out during the coverage but I forget who.

I can't remember what his first booking was for or even the game. MO'N says Brady wasn't even aware that he had an earlier booking. If it was in the Georgian game I might understand that as he was taken off concussed. Wes should be able to step in to take the frees and corners.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

I meant to say POS not JOS.

And whoever said it (Liam Brady?) Said he was slowing down play, preventing Austria from making a move and taking a fast throw when he was out of position.

[Charlie Darwin]

I doubt there's anybody who didn't spot he was trying to prevent a quick throw/free (whichever it was). The point is he a) should have known he was on a booking and b) should have been a lot smarter about how he wasted time so he didn't get booked.

[tetsujin1979]

I can't remember what his first booking was for or even the game. MO'N says Brady wasn't even aware that he had an earlier booking. If it was in the Georgian game I might understand that as he was taken off concussed. Wes should be able to step in to take the frees and corners.

It was against Serbia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_FIFA_World_Cup_qualification_%E2%80%93_UEFA_G roup_D#Discipline

According to the live blog on rte.ie it was for something similar - https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2016/0905/814351-build-up-sebia-v-republic-of-ireland/

58 mins Robbie Brady is shown a yellow card for kicking the ball away in frustration after appearing to injure his shoulder in a collision with a Serbian midfielder.

[paul_oshea]

I doubt there's anybody who didn't spot he was trying to prevent a quick throw/free (whichever it was). The point is he a) should have known he was on a booking and b) should have been a lot smarter about how he wasted time so he didn't get booked.

I read in a few places and I thought I saw it on here that he was kind of petulant and it was a stupid thing to do. Perhaps even a lack of experience. It was wholeheartedly the right thing to do, he could just have been cuter. 3 points over 1 v 1 player supspended for the next game. Give me the 3 points all day. But as I said he could have picked the ball up and walked back maybe then looped it in the air.

O'Neill was also saying it was a stupid booking. It was one for the team, similar to how Dundalk let Legia get the 2nd in the Aviva, take one for the team.

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

Sure I remember when I commented on Hendrick making what I thought was a silly challenge in our half against France to incur a booking, Charlie mitigated it saying (Hendrick) was carrying a knock when it happened.

It's not like Brady was on a second yellow. He is going to have to miss a game eventually. Doesn't matter which one it is - unless he timed it perfectly to miss the Moldova game.

What better mitigating circumstance than to prevent a break away, reorganise and get back into position while defending a one goal lead?

Ward will be back for Wales and Walters can go back to a wide position to allow Long to go up front.

Will miss his set pieces, but I thought the best corner delivery actually came from Arter.

[SwanVsDalton]

On Brady, there's a thin line between cute and clumsy here. Cute players don't get booked and two yellows for the same thing suggest he has a way to go.

Having said that, I'd be more than happy for us to develop a solid cynical streak.

[Charlie Darwin]

Hendrick was booked twice in the Euros for silly things too. Sounds like St Kevin's Boys have a discipline problem.