David Connolly [Archive] - Page 12

jbyrne

11/03/2015, 1:32 PM

I suppose when we were losing play offs with 10 men on the pitch, it's was harder to qualify.

plus another dodgy play off decision that went against us. clear throw in to us not given in the immediate build up to their winner

DeLorean

11/03/2015, 1:47 PM

He stamped on a Belgian player on the ground. Totally mindless.

It's like a dream to me, or nightmare I suppose. The annoying memory I have of that game is conceding such a bad goal so soon after getting ourselves in a brilliant position. I can't remember who left Nelis run past him (obviously not as unforgiving as you guys :)) but it was pretty shabby defending anyway.

One thing I always remember about that campaign is Roy Keane missing a penalty in Bucharest. I always thought it was 0-0 at the time he missed it but I must be wrong about that. I was looking at the Ireland on YouTube database and it only has Adrain Ilie's brilliant winner, but that was a first half goal scored into the same goals that Keane missed (I think).

Fixer82

11/03/2015, 2:49 PM

He stamped on a Belgian player on the ground. Totally mindless.

Euro 92 and 2000 were big opportunities missed alright.

i thought he punched him

DeLorean

11/03/2015, 3:04 PM

Ireland's hopes of a third consecutive appearance in the World Cup finals then disappeared completely when substitute David Connolly was sent off for kicking out at Gert Verheyen.

BBC Sport - Belgium 2-1 Rep of Ireland

(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sport/31777.stm)

DeLorean

11/03/2015, 3:59 PM

Unique Connolly calls time on career that ticked many boxes (http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/international-soccer/unique-connolly-calls-time-on-career-that-ticked-many-boxes-31050938.html)

Stuttgart88

11/03/2015, 4:29 PM

Ok, I'll cut him some slack. Certainly an interesting player, more interesting than many we have had.

Charlie Darwin

11/03/2015, 4:36 PM

Seem to remember Connolly refusing a call-up for a friendly under Don Givens because Glen Crowe was called up ahead of him. I think he effectively burned his bridges with the FAI there.

DannyInvincible

11/03/2015, 7:19 PM

Seem to remember Connolly refusing a call-up for a friendly under Don Givens because Glen Crowe was called up ahead of him. I think he effectively burned his bridges with the FAI there.

According to Givens, Connolly thought he should have been first-choice striker, never mind fifth-choice:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXaiBHzc3_I

CraftyToePoke

11/03/2015, 7:31 PM

'' Don, to what do I owe this honour ''

Fixer82

11/03/2015, 10:12 PM

Seem to remember Connolly refusing a call-up for a friendly under Don Givens because Glen Crowe was called up ahead of him. I think he effectively burned his bridges with the FAI there.

Connolly was injured at the time.
Not the first or last player Givens ever fell out with.
Why Givens felt the need to go public with this when he was a caretaker manager needs to be questioned also. Trying to make a name for himself. Never liked him.

Fixer82

11/03/2015, 10:28 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpsPwxJ-eSg

20 minutes in he talk about being Irish and representing Ireland etc

CraftyToePoke

11/03/2015, 11:06 PM

Interesting, he repeatedly refers to the step up to Feyenoord, and the technical skill levels he encountered there and the comparisons to passing training there Vs training & passing drills in England.

DannyInvincible

11/03/2015, 11:36 PM

Connolly was injured at the time.
Not the first or last player Givens ever fell out with.
Why Givens felt the need to go public with this when he was a caretaker manager needs to be questioned also. Trying to make a name for himself. Never liked him.

Was he definitely injured? Givens' version of events (as outlined at a press conference in the video I posted) would seem to suggest otherwise; as if Connolly would have accepted a call-up had he been first-choice rather than back-up to another player who got injured and dropped out.

Givens does strike me as a bit of a mouth either way, mind.

Fixer82

12/03/2015, 7:12 PM

Was he definitely injured? Givens' version of events (as outlined at a press conference in the video I posted) would seem to suggest otherwise; as if Connolly would have accepted a call-up had he been first-choice rather than back-up to another player who got injured and dropped out.

Givens does strike me as a bit of a mouth either way, mind.

I remember this well at the time. Connolly's manager at Wimbledon (was it Wimbledon he was with then? Leicester?) came out saying he would never turn down a chance to play for Ireland but he'd gotten injured that weekend and had stitches in his ankle.

I think I remember Givens getting involved with a row over Anthony stokes too when it really had nothing to do with him.
And a few other players who's names don't spring to mind

TheOneWhoKnocks

12/03/2015, 7:20 PM

Fell out with Chris McCann too.

DannyInvincible

12/03/2015, 7:21 PM

I remember this well at the time. Connolly's manager at Wimbledon (was it Wimbledon he was with then? Leicester?) came out saying he would never turn down a chance to play for Ireland but he'd gotten injured that weekend and had stitches in his ankle.

I think I remember Givens getting involved with a row over Anthony stokes too when it really had nothing to do with him.
And a few other players who's names don't spring to mind

Does that mean Givens was embellishing or completely fabricating the claimed content of their conversation? Why would he do that?

If not, and if Connolly was injured, why would he say those things to Givens if he wasn't available anyway?

Fixer82

12/03/2015, 7:32 PM

Does that mean Givens was embellishing or completely fabricating the claimed content of their conversation? Why would he do that?

If not, and if Connolly was injured, why would he say those things to Givens if he wasn't available anyway?

I'd say the truth is in the middle somewhere.
Maybe Connolly was a bit smart with him but a simple bit of diplomacy and man management would have seen there was no trouble.
At the time, I got the impression that Givens didn't like Connolly (perhaps because of something to do with Connolly when he was an underage player?) and anticipated an awkward phonecall and got exactly what he expected/wanted.
If Givens didn't have such a bad track record I wouldn't have been so quick to jump to Connolly's defence at the time.
I believe he fell out with many players when he was the U-21 manager.

TheOneWhoKnocks

12/03/2015, 7:33 PM

Fell out with Owen Garvan as well.

DannyInvincible

12/03/2015, 7:42 PM

If Givens didn't have such a bad track record I wouldn't have been so quick to jump to Connolly's defence at the time.
I believe he fell out with many players when he was the U-21 manager.

I think you're right. I've always had the impression he was a very inept man-manager.

tetsujin1979

12/03/2015, 8:52 PM

wasn't there something with Alan Judge as well?

CraftyToePoke

12/03/2015, 10:11 PM

I'm with Connolly on this one, Givens has too much previous.

OwlsFan

13/03/2015, 10:09 AM

Fell out with Owen Garvan as well.

Don't let Stuttgart see you referring to Owen Garvan. He had high hopes for him and now the very mention of his name pains him.

Yard of Pace

13/03/2015, 10:14 AM

Garvan, Stokes and Judge, though.....not exactly saints if you believe what you read.

Not a fan of Givens, mind. Though his da hurled for Limerick so he maybe gets a bit of a pass off me....!

OwlsFan

13/03/2015, 12:56 PM

Garvan, Stokes and Judge, though.....not exactly saints if you believe what you read.

Not a fan of Givens, mind. Though his da hurled for Limerick so he maybe gets a bit of a pass off me....!

Anyone who scored a hat trick against the Soviet Union and 4 (yes 4) against Turkey, can't be all bad. Don't mind them, Don, I still love you.

As an aside, has anyone else ever scored 4 for Ireland in a game?

DeLorean

13/03/2015, 1:17 PM

Republic of Ireland national football team (Wikipedia) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Ireland_national_football_team)

On 25 February 1934, the Irish Free State made their FIFA World Cup debut, drawing 4–4 with Belgium at Dalymount Park in a 1934 World Cup qualifier. Paddy Moore scored all four of the Free State's goals and became the first player ever to score four goals in a FIFA World Cup game.

Charlie Darwin

13/03/2015, 4:47 PM

wasn't there something with Alan Judge as well?
And Steven Ireland. Although we can't hold that against him. Fairly sure there were a few others too.

TheOneWhoKnocks

13/03/2015, 5:33 PM

Pretty sure Givens fell out with Treacy too.

And these are just the ones we know about.

geysir

14/03/2015, 7:15 PM

My impression of him was of a dedicated professional, I liked him, he was a stylish crafted player, bottom 1/4 of the epl to upper championship standard.

As regards the WC play-off, kick into the player on the ground, I felt a similar frustration as Connolly at the time so I can't criticise him for that, I just could understand it at that very second, why he impulsively did it on a player milking a run of the mill tackle for all it was worth, when we were frantic to keep the ball moving.

Olé Olé

14/03/2015, 8:29 PM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpsPwxJ-eSg

20 minutes in he talk about being Irish and representing Ireland etc

Cracking little anecdote in there about Jim Beglin. For those who haven't watched the video, Connolly asserts his Irishness and goes on to say that he supported Ireland growing up and supported Liverpool because they had Irish players. Such a supporter was he that at 8 years of age Connolly wrote a letter to Jim Beglin asking for his autograph. Beglin sent back two tickets to a Liverpool game. Little did Beglin know that he was sending tickets to a future Ireland international...

Charlie Darwin

16/03/2015, 11:44 PM

DeLorean

20/11/2018, 3:55 PM

The talk about Connolly on another thread got me wandering through YouTube. I came across this little video which seems to be featuring strikers who didn't quite succeed at Feyenoord, I think that's what it is anyway. It shows a few missed chances from Connolly but also a couple of big goals in a match away to Ajax, which they won 4-3 to almost guarantee automatic CL group stage qualification. This match is from around 1:10 in the video, both goals are Michael Owen-esque I think, particularly the first one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-vK09bG4zg

Kingdom

20/11/2018, 5:27 PM

Connlly would have broken the scoring record of Quinn's if a certain Robbie Keane wasn't around.

Fixer82

20/11/2018, 5:39 PM

Connlly would have broken the scoring record of Quinn's if a certain Robbie Keane wasn't around.

Probably right

brine3

20/11/2018, 6:01 PM

Shouldn't have moved back to England.

Fixer82

20/11/2018, 6:08 PM

Shouldn't have moved back to England.

He was playing third division in Holland

pineapple stu

20/11/2018, 6:30 PM

Second tier, not third tier. (There wasn't a third tier in Holland at the time really; just regional leagues with no promotion/relegation)

dr_peepee

20/11/2018, 10:05 PM

I read before that he said before he left for Feyenoord he was Keeping Kevin Phillips out of the Watford team. Imagine a sliding doors moment where Connolly moved to Quinns Sunderland in ‘97.

brine3

20/11/2018, 11:00 PM

He was playing third division in Holland

That was because he got into a massive bustup with Leo Beenhakker and was farmed out to Feyenoord's feeder team in the Dutch second division, where he scored goals for fun.

After Beenhakker was sacked, the new manager (Van Marwijk) brought Connolly back into the Feyenoord team. Connolly was a revelation, getting goals and assists. Including his demolishing of Ajax. He left at the end of the season on a free transfer, to live the dream of playing for Wimbledon. Feyenoord went on to win the UEFA Cup the next season. Wimbledon, well, we know how that turned out.

Should have signed on for another couple of seasons with Feyenoord.

Fixer82

21/11/2018, 8:46 AM

Yes I remember keeping an eye on him at Excelsior and he’d often score 3 or 4 goals in a match.

He wanted to be highest paid at Feyenoord and so they let him go. Silly boy.

Always liked him though. He’d run all day. Played a cracker of a game against Turkey in a crazy friendly where Dunne scores the equaliser.
Just couldn’t play beside Robbie really.

brine3

21/11/2018, 9:49 AM

Well, he could have played on the wing for us I think.

4-3-3 with Duff-Keane-Connolly up front.

Stuttgart88

21/11/2018, 11:00 AM

Not sure I can say I always liked Connolly. Petulant aggression in Brussels cost us dear.

Fixer82

21/11/2018, 11:36 AM

Well, he could have played on the wing for us I think.

4-3-3 with Duff-Keane-Connolly up front.

Nah not a winger. He was a poacher. Unfortunately blew very hot and cold when it came to his finishing

Fixer82

21/11/2018, 11:39 AM

Not sure I can say I always liked Connolly. Petulant aggression in Brussels cost us dear.

He was 19 at the time though.
I remember Robbie getting booked in 1st leg against Turkey in play off for Euro 2000 for whinging at the ref. Put him out of the return leg.
Robbie was probably 19 then too

Stuttgart88

21/11/2018, 4:34 PM

brine3

21/11/2018, 4:43 PM

His head shouldn't have been there.

[/shearer defence]

Fixer82

21/11/2018, 10:11 PM

Big difference! He got his second yellow of the campaign very harshly. He kicked the ball into the ad hoarding rebounding it into play exactly where the free kick he was angry about was to be taken. Petulant but equally jobsworthy of the ref I thought. His first yellow was 8 or 9 games earlier. Connolly stood on a bloke's head!

I actually thought he threw him a little dig. I can’t remember the incident exactly and there’s no evidence of it on YouTube.
But, my point was, a lot of young players do stupid things. Roy Keane was always getting sent off when he was a nipper. Remember him against Romania kicking the lad from behind? And he was well in his 20s at that stage.

geysir

22/11/2018, 12:00 AM

i could never criticise Connolly for sticking the boot in in Brussels because I felt exactly the same.

Fixer82

22/11/2018, 9:11 AM

I wish Andy O’Brien had actually planted that Israeli keeper and I really wish Neil Lennon had stuck the boot into the Porto keeper in the UEFA cup final