Irish Abroad 2024/25

[tetsujin1979]

Starting the season thread a little later than usual this year
Kicking things off with a strange connection between actress Claire Foy and Italia 90
https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/blog/5818129901824572887/clare-foy-three-manchester-martyrs-and.html

[tetsujin1979]

Just in time for the new Premier League season, I've added an option to the live blog to render the day's fixtures as the classic Aertel page 221!
https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/live
https://i.ibb.co/PWgCP5M/live-blog-aertel.png

[Demesne Lad]

Good Irish representation today in the 12.30 pm Championship starting XIs: Azaz, Cashin, Collins, Molumby, Ogbene, Shaughnessy.

[tetsujin1979]

1824869565597409594

[tetsujin1979]

Callum Robinson's 50th appearance for Cardiff, Matt Doherty's 150th Premier League appearance, Chiedozie Ogene's 200th appearance in English football, and more in the first round up of the 2024/25 season!
https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/blog/5374074614556238106/round-up-for-weekend-of-saturday-17th.html

[tetsujin1979]

As noted elsewhere, three Irish top flight debuts in the same game is a rare occurrence, so, after Sammie Szmodics, Jack Taylor, and Marcus Harness' all made their first Premier League appearance for Ipswich at the weekend, I've searched the records to find the other times three(or more) Republic of Ireland players made their top flight debuts in the same game
https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/blog/104597380631767209/three-debuts.html

[tetsujin1979]

There is an Instagram account for the site here - https://instagram.com/irish_football_statistics - but right now I can't sign up for Threads(thank you Brussels)

IMO Instagram didn't want to release it just yet, but with Twitter burning down, and mastodon and blue sky picking up numbers, it was deemed "good enough" to release, and it's up 100 million users in under a week.
I think they'll focus on getting things like searching and hashtags working before moving on to automation. If that functionality is made available for developers, then I'll investigate it.

There's a few other services that have launched recently too - spill (https://www.spill.com/), t2 (https://t2.social/), and NOSTR (https://nostr.com/) (that last one intrigues me) - and if they make automation available I'll look into that too

For now I'm going to focus on getting the automation for blue sky and mastodon working before the women's World cup starts
More than a year after this post, automation has been introduced it for threads, and I've been doing some work with threads recently. I'm running an experiment with the same live updates that used to be on twitter twitter
Please follow below

https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics

Incidentally, two of the alternative services - spill and t2 - didn't last very long, and NOSTR seems to be a weird hangout for crypto bros.

First automated thread posted successfully, let's see how the rest of the day goes
https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics/post/C_S_-GXCiL-

[tetsujin1979]

More than a year after this post, automation has been introduced it for threads, and I've been doing some work with threads recently. I'm running an experiment with the same live updates that used to be on twitter twitter
Please follow below

https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics

Incidentally, two of the alternative services - spill and t2 - didn't last very long, and NOSTR seems to be a weird hangout for crypto bros.

First automated thread posted successfully, let's see how the rest of the day goes
https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics/post/C_S_-GXCiL-
A few minor issues aside, I'm going to count that as a success!
There won't be any updates on threads tomorrow while I resolve them, and hopefully I'll be running updates again on Sunday

[tetsujin1979]

All birthday greetings and #OnThisDay posts automated on threads. Live updates still need some work, but I'm hoping to have it ready when the international break ends next week
https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics

[tetsujin1979]

Was asked to go on an England fans podcast ahead of the game tomorrow. It's online now, my segment starts at 16:40
https://open.spotify.com/episode/754TBZIxDtW0E5wBcgZkfZ

[tetsujin1979]

More than a year after this post, automation has been introduced it for threads, and I've been doing some work with threads recently. I'm running an experiment with the same live updates that used to be on twitter
Please follow below

https://www.threads.net/@irish_football_statistics
Next step on the live updates on threads today - updates from a full day's fixtures.

[Demesne Lad]

Only three of the nine penalties taken in the shootout to settle the Stoke City v Fleetwood EFL Cup tie were successful. Tom Cannon, Ryan Graydon and Mipo Odubeko all failed to convert, as did former Waterford player Phoenix Patterson.

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the opening two games of the Republic of Ireland's 2024/25 UEFA Nations League campaign against England and Greece - has the managerial honeymoon ended in record time?
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-75-the-shortest-honey)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/0SqoJqjt802luelHvQh3OW?si=86b27cb11f8c4b19)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-75-the-shortest-honeymoon-period-ever/id1626813727?i=1000669936049)

[tetsujin1979]

We're delighted to be joined on the podcast by Landon Cotham and Jeremiah Bentley of Moontower Soccer (https://www.moontowersoccer.com/) to discuss all things Austin FC -- the fan culture, the stadium, where Jon Gallagher should play, and using LOITV as a scouting tool!
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-76-moontower-soccer)
Spotify (http://open.spotify.com/episode/3KUi4VMQeWZSeZB1nozSzL?si=9f7f67636ba141ad)
iTunes (http://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-76-moontower-soccer/id1626813727?i=1000670648288)

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick to discuss the Republic of Ireland's upcoming UEFA Nations League games against Finland and Greece, and the U21s final two qualifiers for the 2025 UEFA Under 21 Championship
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-77-heimir-hallgrimssons-first-gameseffectively)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-77-heimir-hallgr%C3%ADmssons-first-games-effectively/id1626813727?i=1000672246106)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/16TyUt31lHf08fMBZnakIK?si=3000dd2d329a4343)

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the Republic of Ireland's two Nations League games in October. What did we make of the changes to the side and how the players reacted to going behind, and what does it mean for the final two League B games in November?


Going into their final two qualifiers for the 2025 UEFA U21 Championship, the Under 21 side knew what was needed, but still fell short of qualification. What players from the squad can look forward to promotion to the senior side, and what does another campaign that finished in disappointment mean for coach Jim Crawford?


Also, Sideshow Bob's rakes and I do a live countdown math problem!
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-78-not-quite-a-moral-victory)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-78-not-quite-a-moral-victory/id1626813727?i=1000674309875)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/2SXsXKrY6TYinDbT5XWuyM?si=c713c4c520b149be)

[tetsujin1979]

Was asked to appear on the 3 Lions Podcast again ahead of the return game against England in Wembley next week. Shared a few insights to the Ireland squad with Russell, and some background to the FAI Cup final
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6ziG9Ec0cL3TbIHrG7Ww5X

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick to preview the final 2024/25 UEFA Nations League games for the Republic of Ireland National Men's Team against Finland and England. What do we think of the squad selected by Heimir Hallgrímsson, will the performances against Finland and Greece affect the expectations of Ireland fans, and how do we think the Boys in Green will fare over the two games?

Following the National Women's Team defeat of Georgia in the first round of the play off for UEFA Women's Euro 2025, what can Eileen Gleeson's team expect in the second round against Wales.

Finally, we review the U17 Mens Team's performance in the Qualifying Round for the 2025 UEFA Under 17 Championship and explain how a rare, possible unique, set of circumstances led to them qualifying with three yellow cards

Also, I make a prediction for the attendance in the final home game of 2024.
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-79-a-unique-set-of-circumstances)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-79-a-unique-set-of-circumstances/id1626813727?i=1000676812896)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/6PpRte55EfDawOwr35ZDO2?si=b4386bded7ba40b0)

[tetsujin1979]

Myself and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football are delighted to be joined by John Nicholson of football365 to discuss a wide range of topics, from Lee Carsley's time in charge of England, the waning power of the press, the poppy controversy, and more!

(Note this was recorded before England and Ireland's games against Greece and Finland, respectively)
acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-80-a-northern-mind)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-80-a-northern-mind/id1626813727?i=1000677092199)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/2NaekYaqvQ2I1HRsTFtWSP?si=4c49fe48b0344bfe)

[Demesne Lad]

Is it just my imagination, or do the BIG tend to score more often in the PL/EFL in the couple of weeks after an international break than at other times, even after Ireland have not done well?

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to review the final two games of the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League campaign. Was the post in with a chance of winning the Player of the Match against Finland, and were there any positives from the second half collapse against England?


With the Women's team preparing for their UEFA Women's Euro 2025 play off against Wales, we examine both squads and encourage fans to attend the second leg in Aviva Stadium, not least because of a prediction I stand by!

acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-81-three-positive-halves)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-81-three-positive-halves/id1626813727?i=1000678557479)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/6QK7bsrndYt1h9VSdBSwUH?si=505c486bb4f34e16)

[tetsujin1979]

Missed this at the beginning of the season in England, Deji Sotona tore his ACL in August, in what was his debut for Eastleigh
https://eastleighfc.com/2024/08/news-deji-sotona-suffers-acl-injury/

[Demesne Lad]

Just three of the Bristol City squad have played every minute of EFL Championship football so far this season - including Jason Knight and Max O'Leary. (Bristol Live, 24 Dec).

[tetsujin1979]

Jack Henry Francis travelled with the Arsenal squad at the weekend
1875617741396439061

[Olé Olé]

Jack Henry Francis travelled with the Arsenal squad at the weekend
1875617741396439061

I actually hadn't heard anything surrounding his loan spell at Sligo Rovers. Was the consensus that he did well? Great to hear if so, that opportunity didn't work out well for other Irish underage internationals born in England e.g. Ollie O'Neill and Joe Hodge (latter due to injury). Ollie O'Neill is an interesting one. Didn't seem to achieve much at Derry City which would have concerned me at the time with regards to his ability to step up or progress in England. I think he went back to Fulham for 6 months before then taking to League One much better than he took to LOI. Different leagues, teams etc. of course.

[tetsujin1979]

He was voted their player of the month for October
1852358182099628504

[Olé Olé]

He was voted their player of the month for October
1852358182099628504

Yes, I see an article here where Sligo manager John Russell states that he wanted to keep JHF for the second half of the English season and called him "top class."

https://www.independent.ie/regionals/sligo/sport/soccer/john-russell-in-talks-to-try-and-keep-top-class-jack-henry-francis-at-sligo-rovers/a1800226175.html

Great to see a positive experience, as I say.

[tetsujin1979]

Highlights package of Trent Kone Doherty's season so far in Liverpool's underage sides
1734432747492376792

[tetsujin1979]

Myself, Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick, and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football take one last look at the highs and lows from 2024 in Irish international football and make some predictions for the next 12 months

What do you think of our picks?

acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-82-2024-a-year-in-football)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/1WK550ZUzNiE84Uvbn7Geb?si=X9jgp5I2RqunzZWQQ5COsw&context=spotify%3Ashow%3A4lwsHDfzHKDdt2LKbvUkCA)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-82-2024-a-year-in-football/id1626813727?i=1000683783734)

[tetsujin1979]

Ranked number 97 on this list
Watch out Irish History Student's Association, we're coming for you
https://podcast.feedspot.com/ireland_podcasts

No idea how legitimate the list, or even the site itself, is, but it's nice to see

[tetsujin1979]

1884729625210744866

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick to look through the moves for Republic of Ireland players that caught our eye during the January 2025 transfer window, and with Carla Ward's first squad as manager of the Womens' National Team, we preview her first two games against Turkey and Slovenia
acasr (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-83-the-january-transfer-window-and-the-first-interna)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-83-the-january-transfer-window-and/id1626813727?i=1000693457266)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/0krBUG9I09KGfgcfUTBRJL?si=bad86cf11ff44c95)

[Demesne Lad]

Ballingarry man Anthony Forde (31), a former U-21 international, has been released by Wrexham and has signed for EFL 1 strugglers Burton Albion, on a deal for the rest of the season.
(BBC Football - Transfers, 20 Feb.)

[tetsujin1979]

1897692489256935547

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to discuss the squad announced by Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson to face Bulgaria in the 2024/25 UEFA Nations League Relegation Play Off and give our predictions on how the two legged tie will finish.

Carla Ward's first two games in charge of the Womens Team ended in a home win and an away loss, but how did we rate the performance under the new manager, and what do they mean for the upcoming games against Greece?
Finally, with the U21s due to play two friendlies in Spain as part of their build up for the 2027 U21 European Championships qualifying campaign, how do we think the current squad compares to previous U21 sides?

acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-84-202425-nations-league-relegation-play-off)
iTunes (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-84-2024-25-nations-league-relegation-play-off/id1626813727?i=1000699950335)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/6YyUGtnvyoxEriRswm0Y9H?si=e02cf7033f674fd7)

[tetsujin1979]

After the recent discussion in the U19 Championship thread, I noticed that more than half of the players named in Heimir Hallgrímsson's squad to face Bulgaria were born in this century, which got me thinking - how far are we from a starting XI of player born after the millennium, and what were the first games with players born after the first day of each decade?

https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/blog/3508852764797715347/starting-xi-decades.html

[samhaydenjr]

After the recent discussion in the U19 Championship thread, I noticed that more than half of the players named in Heimir Hallgrímsson's squad to face Bulgaria were born in this century, which got me thinking - how far are we from a starting XI of player born after the millennium, and what were the first games with players born after the first day of each decade?

https://irish-abroad.appspot.com/blog/3508852764797715347/starting-xi-decades.html

Might be a while yet, given the importance of Kelleher, O'Shea, Scales, Cullen, Molumby, Szmodics, Ogbene and Johnston.

[tetsujin1979]

In the latest of our series of speaking to fan podcasts from clubs around the world with an Irish player, myself and Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick are delighted to welcome Adam Pace of Brisbane Football Review to the show to discuss the sporting culture in Brisbane, the history of Brisbane Roar, and their current Irish players. We go into the similarities between the A-League and the League of Ireland, and what solutions have been approached by both competitions to resolve the issues that both competitions face

acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-85-brisbane-football-review)
Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-85-brisbane-football-review/id1626813727?i=1000701569563)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/02DNzAnubOi4KTRWTCPMy3?si=da5b7428267342d1)

[tetsujin1979]

I'm joined again by Mark Kennedy of Hawkeye Sidekick and Philip Flanagan of The Bottomless Pit of Football to review the Republic of Ireland senior men's team's play off against Bulgaria, we've picked up one bad habit under the new manager, but also seem to know how to recover from it. With the women's team needing to bounce back from two underwhelming performances, and one particularly bad result, in their opening games of the Nations League, and facing a Greek side looking to get their first points on the board for their campaign, how do we think it'll go over the two games for Carla Ward's side?Finally, the U19 and U17 qualifying campaigns reached their climaxes, with a disappointing result for the U19s in Germany, but the U17s will play in their first World Cup in Qatar this November. What did we think of the performances from both sides, and who do we think is going to worth looking our for at the end of the year?


(note this was recorded before the women's team's first game against Greece)

acast (https://shows.acast.com/irish-football-fans/episodes/episode-86-bulgaria-greece-and-the-world-cup)
Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-86-bulgaria-greece-and-the-world-cup/id1626813727?i=1000702521771)
Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/episode/6WEEHWG7bNMH0SNRKRQeV4?si=b3b278f46be44941)

[pixiehead]

https://www.reddit.com/r/coybig/comments/1jwyqzn/who_has_the_record_for_most_assists_for_ireland/

Light up the Tet signal

[tetsujin1979]

https://www.reddit.com/r/coybig/comments/1jwyqzn/who_has_the_record_for_most_assists_for_ireland/

Light up the Tet signal

McGeady would be my best guess
Maybe duff

[seanfhear]

https://www.reddit.com/r/coybig/comments/1jwyqzn/who_has_the_record_for_most_assists_for_ireland/

Light up the Tet signalJohnny Giles / Liam Brady but I doubt the information has been recorded !

[tetsujin1979]

Caden McLoughlin is part of this study into how stress can aid young elite performers
https://www.kevingeorge.online/case-study

[tetsujin1979]

Was asked to contribute to this podcast series on unlocking Irish footballing talent, I'm in episode one and episode four
https://open.spotify.com/show/2cvqYiNdkhKM8dZI73QjOb

[tetsujin1979]

Noticed this after the weekend's premier league games
1920424849970770277

[Demesne Lad]

Barnsley manager Conor Hourihane has released fellow Corkman Conor McCarthy, whose contract expires at the end of June. Defender McCarthy (27) made 68 appearances for St Mirren, but only 27 for Barnsley, plus 18 while on loan to EFL 2 club Swindon. (Yorkshire Post/Wiki).

[seanfhear]

Barnsley manager Conor Hourihane has released fellow Corkman Conor McCarthy, whose contract expires at the end of June. Defender McCarthy (27) made 68 appearances for St Mirren, but only 27 for Barnsley, plus 18 while on loan to EFL 2 club Swindon. (Yorkshire Post/Wiki).
Is he just giving the lad a head start for finding a new club ~ ~ I like to put a good spin on these things at times !

[Demesne Lad]

You may be right, SeanFhear. McCarthy had actually been on a good run of appearances in recent months, which makes his release a little surprising.

Meanwhile, Hourihane has admitted that he is tapping up some former team-mates in an attempt to bring them into the club.

[Demesne Lad]

At Swindon Town FC, Gavin Kilkenny and Ryan Delaney are retained, while negotiations on new terms for Aaron Drinan are ongoing (www.swindontownfc.co.uk)

[Demesne Lad]

Rotherham Utd have offered a new contract to former Republic of Ireland u-21 forward Joshua Kayode (just turned 25) -- and to N. Ireland U-21 forward Ciaran McGuckin, who had a short loan spell at Dundalk last year. (Rotherham Advertiser, 9 May)