Stephen Ireland

[Reality Bites]

Great touch, vision and technically good on the ball , the best debut last night?

[Kingdom]

Nah the Best debut happened in early 64 didn't it ?

[as_i_say]

ba bum tsch

[bluemovie]

Looked very good last night. Brady-esque.

[livehead1]

Looked very good last night. Brady-esque.
20mins against a poor swedish side and already 2-0 and hes been compared to liam brady... :rolleyes:

[klein4]

jaysus I didnt think he was that great at all last nite..expected a bit more of him with all the hype......

[Schumi]

the best debut last night?Surely Kevin Doyle?

[A face]

Surely Kevin Doyle?

Dont think Doyle was the best to be honest but i have seen a match rating report where Doyler scored a five out of ten (the lowest) .... not a fúcking chance was he the lowest on the pitch. You'd have to wonder about these things ... i mean some of the journos are given far too much leighway being allow that much ink, clowns probably aren't even at the games half the time.

[greatbleddyman]

Saw that review alright; definitely watching a different match to me. Thought Doyle had a fine debut, linked up really well, used the ball intellegently and caused trouble for the defenders. Unlucky not to bag a goal from a header. Hopefully he can be a premiership regular shortly.

[Clifford]

Ireland's new 'baby' is hungry for more



Stephen Ireland: the baby of the Irish squad has a baby son of his own

Eoin Dunne

AS far as international debuts go, Stephen Ireland's was pretty much a walk in the Lansdowne Road park on Wednesday night.

An embrace from Mick Byrne, who was celebrating Ireland's second goal, was the prelude to the 19-year-old's introduction and, suitably loved-up, he entered the fray just as Sweden were visibly wilting in the face boundless guile and endeavour.

Even so, at such a tender age, the experience could well have been overwhelming for the Cobh kid.

However, one person who knew exactly what he was going through was his new manager. Steve Staunton made his debut under Jack Charlton at the same age and, like Ireland, was the youngest member of the squad.

Staunton's time as 'baby of the squad' was a prolonged one, stretching all the way to Italia '90. However, if his policy of blooding new talent continues, that may not be the case with Ireland, especially if Owen Garvan continues to progress, but for now he is the young 'un.

"I felt nervous coming over because it was a new experience for me and they are all big names here," admitted the Manchester City midfielder.

"I've only really come onto the scene this year, but all I can do is act like myself and hopefully they will take to me."

Worries

There does not appear to be any worries on that score. "From the very first night they have all been brilliant. They all introduced themselves, have been very supportive and encouraging to me. I got the taste of it now and I'd love to have more. The players, the staff, and the gaffer's ideas have been brilliant. The training sessions were very good and morale has been high."

At 5'8", Ireland wouldn't be as imposing a figure as another debutant, Joey O'Brien, but he is tenacious, as he proved in the recent Manchester derby.

Stuart Pearce is one of English football's most respected figures and he showed just how much faith he has in Ireland by handing him a four-year-contract last October.

Ireland consulted Pearce before flying to Dublin. "The gaffer said go and do what you do best," revealed Ireland. "I was a bit nervous and didn't know what to expect, but he just said don't forget what you are good at and when you get your chance, whether it is at the start or when you come on, go and do what you can and try to impress."

Bust-up

Impress he did during in his 42-minute stint. It was in stark contrast to his last Irish experience which ended in an international exile after a bust-up with then underage manager Brian Kerr.

That chapter was well and truly ended against Sweden, and with a girlfriend and young son, he has much to be happy about as his career begins to blossom.

"I have great support in my corner," said Ireland. "My dad is very, very good to me. I have my own family, my girlfriend Jennifer and my baby boy, Joshua. Living with them gives me great determination and inspires me to go out and play well."

On returning to the Irish dressing room, every member of the squad signed Ireland's number 18 jersey and it will take pride of place on his wall at home.

[CollegeTillIDie]

Stephen Ireland is from Cork... how long before he throws a wobbly again? :D

[Soko]

Stephen Ireland is from Cork... how long before he throws a wobbly again? :D



Yet Staunton thought he needed the granny rule to get him to play. I really hope he gets that stupid idea out of his right now.

[zinedineontour]

jaysus I didnt think he was that great at all last nite..expected a bit more of him with all the hype......

the lad did well when he came on but hard coming into a game like that ffs .. he is not a regular for city yet so give the lad a chance .. joey o brien had the best of the debuts by a country mile imo ..doyle did well nothing spectacular but o brien looks a great little player .

[Irish_Praha]

the lad did well when he came on but hard coming into a game like that ffs .. he is not a regular for city yet so give the lad a chance .. joey o brien had the best of the debuts by a country mile imo ..doyle did well nothing spectacular but o brien looks a great little player .

He's actually not so little at 6ft1 :p

I hope he starts getting games in CMF for Bolton soon because we need players there for the starting 11 more urgently.
As it stand he would only be cover for Finnan at RB.
Him and Stephen Reid together in CMF would be a nice hardy CMF pairing. If they are not creating a decent amount of chances we could replace one of them with a tricker player like A. Reid or Ireland with 20 mins to go after they have worn the opposition down. Would be abetter plan B than Kerr's one of bringing on Ian Harte and Ginger Pele and hoofing the ball into the box. Of course with all the small players we have at the moment another 6 footer on the pitch would be useful for set-pieces.

[livehead1]

He's actually not so little at 6ft1 :p

I hope he starts getting games in CMF for Bolton soon because we need players there for the starting 11 more urgently.
As it stand he would only be cover for Finnan at RB.
Him and Stephen Reid together in CMF would be a nice hardy CMF pairing. If they are not creating a decent amount of chances we could replace one of them with a tricker player like A. Reid or Ireland with 20 mins to go after they have worn the opposition down. Would be abetter plan B than Kerr's one of bringing on Ian Harte and Ginger Pele and hoofing the ball into the box. Of course with all the small players we have at the moment another 6 footer on the pitch would be useful for set-pieces.

wouldn't be very confident asbout big sam playing him c-mid. o'brien said, "i suppose the gaffer would see me as a right back now". I read that a few days ago, it was followed with something along the lines of i dont mind as long as im playing. On a brighter note, i think i would be correct in saying he has played left back for bolton this season .

[sligoman]

Surely Kevin Doyle?Not a hope. I was very disappointed with Doyle, especially after all the hype the Cork fans were building up. Joey O'Brien had the best debut by far, in my opinion. Doyle didn't do much the whole game, how can you honestly say his was?

[gustavo]

I thought Doyle was relatively quiet but i do feel he will get another chance and didnt disgrace himself whatsoever.

[sligoman]

I thought Doyle was relatively quiet but i do feel he will get another chance and didnt disgrace himself whatsoever.Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying he was a disgrace, I just don't see how someone would claim that he was the best out of all the debut's that night. I hope he starts the next game too, cos I know he has the ability and is well capable of playing for us, but he just didn't do well against Sweden in my opinion.

[joema]

Ireland came on for the last 10 mins for city today. Not on long enough to warrant a rating

btw I thaught Doyle was very good last wednesday - he was a bit quiet but you could definitly see glimpses of his class alright

[Soko]

Not a hope. I was very disappointed with Doyle, especially after all the hype the Cork fans were building up. Joey O'Brien had the best debut by far, in my opinion. Doyle didn't do much the whole game, how can you honestly say his was?



He was rubbish alright, completely over shadowed by Morrison who ran the show when he came on. Drop him for eternity.

[sligoman]

He was rubbish alright, completely over shadowed by Morrison who ran the show when he came on. Drop him for eternity.I knew a Cork fan would over-react:rolleyes:.

[Soko]

I knew a Cork fan would over-react:rolleyes:.



Kevin Doyle plays for Reading, not Cork City. Have you not read all his hype - coming from the English papers and all that?


He was tidy and did ok but you were very dissapointed in him. I can hear the calls for Gary Doherty coming from Sligo already......

[FarBeag]

.Give the guy a chance to adapt to the International step up before any type of assessment can be done.ffs it was his first time probably playing in Lansdowne in front of a big crowd who have high expectations of him. He played with a lot of players he did not play with before and was a bag of nerves. Give him five or six more games and judge him then.

[sligoman]

Kevin Doyle plays for Reading, not Cork City. Have you not read all his hype - coming from the English papers and all that?

He was tidy and did ok but you were very dissapointed in him. I can hear the calls for Gary Doherty coming from Sligo already......Jesus Christ! All I said was he didn't do much and I was disappointed with his overall performance, ffs, what's wrong with that? Just cos you don't agree doesn't mean you have to get sarcastic. If you can't post without overreacting, why post at all?

[Soko]

If you can't post without overreacting, why post at all?


Ah the irony. Very dissapointed were the words I believe you used. What did you expect a goal and a cartwheel, even Keane didn't pull that off.

[John83]

I knew a Cork fan would over-react:rolleyes:.
Read it again. Note the sarcasm dripping off the post.

[livehead1]

am i the only person who is slightly worried about ireland's inability to get in the manchester city side for the last few weeks. It seems an age since he started for them, normally he seems to make 5 min appearances at the end of games. he's not even in the squad for tonights game against villa, dont think hes injured.

[Dj Duffer]

Hes 19 and hes bound to drift in and out of form. Im suprised that hes not in tonights squad though.

[livehead1]

Hes 19 and hes bound to drift in and out of form. Im suprised that hes not in tonights squad though.

yeh, just hope to god not gona see another willo flood. when he came on the scene he looked great, motm perf. for the man city team and now no word about him

[gustavo]

I havent really been following him that much but am i right in thinking that he is a bit on the lightweight side ?

[Dj Duffer]

Maybe but hes well able to tackle and he will get stronger as he gets older.

[zinedineontour]

Hes 19 and will struggle this season to get in to side full time ... highly regarded at city and think he will make his mark next season

[Dj Duffer]

Hes 19 and will struggle this season to get in to side full time ... highly regarded at city and think he will make his mark next season

Agree with you totally zinedine. People just have to be patient with him.

[livehead1]

Agree with you totally zinedine. People just have to be patient with him.
is this flood or ireland we're talking about!

[tetsujin1979]

Ireland got into the team in the first place early in the season because one of Reyna, Sinclair and Barton were all unavailable for selection for long periods, either through injury or suspension. All are available for the first team now, plus Riera has come in on loan to allow Musampa to move into the centre from the left wing, so he has become another competitor for the centre midfield slot alongside Joey Barton. All of this has contributed to Ireland's demotion from the starting XI in recent weeks and out of the matchday 16 altogether in this instance. However, I fully believe this is only to give him a rest, at his age he shouldn't have had to play as many games for the first team and yet he has come through it magnificently and with many plaudits ringing in his ears, not least of which his first senior international cap, and we will see him back in the side before long. City's under 18 side are playing in the FA Youth Cup on wednesday night, and he may still be eligible for that, if he plays I will post it on the site tomorrow night.

yeh, just hope to god not gona see another willo flood. when he came on the scene he looked great, motm perf. for the man city team and now no word about him
Flood was out since before Christmas after having an operation to cure a hernia problem, he's returned in recent weeks to captain the reserve side. Read some of my recent posts in the "List of Irish players in Britain" thread for reviews of games he's played in.

[livehead1]

Flood was out since before Christmas after having an operation to cure a hernia problem, he's returned in recent weeks to captain the reserve side. Read some of my recent posts in the "List of Irish players in Britain" thread for reviews of games he's played in.
cheers, city have signed reira on a permanent deal now for 3.5million. Does anyone know much about flood, i know bits and i was impressed but hes been criticised by people before who don't believe he has what it takes.

[Dr. Ogba]

I think for Flood there's a lot of similarities to be drawn between himself and Duff at a young age.

Anyone remember when Duff first broke through to the Ireland set-up? We all knew he had the talent but he looked a bit lightweight and was unable to stamp his authority on the game in the way we now know he can do.

Flood was impressive in the few games for City last season but still looked like a stiff breeze would blow him over. Hopefully he'll echo the progress of Duff and bulk up a bit cause there's a vacant place on the rhs in the Irish midfield begging to filled.

Worst case scenario: he'll end up like Richie Partridge :eek:

[youngirish]

I don't believe Flood can be compared to a young Duff. They are not in the same class. Duff always looked like he would definitely make it even though as suggested he was a bit lightweight when younger (he still is). Another difference is that Duff had been a regular for Blackburn since he was 18 even if he didn't start every game he was usually on the bench so he was always likely to get the opportunity to prove his talent.

Flood on the other hand is now 21 and still isn't anywhere near the city first team. Yes he had a couple of good performances last season but the majority of the time he played he was s**t. He was also pretty s**t at Coventry when on loan earlier in the season. Another Ritchie Partridge I'd say though hopefully he'll get on the ReadyBrek and prove me wrong.

[tetsujin1979]

I don't believe Flood can be compared to a young Duff. They are not in the same class. Duff always looked like he would definitely make it even though as suggested he was a bit lightweight when younger (he still is). Another difference is that Duff had been a regular for Blackburn since he was 18 even if he didn't start every game he was usually on the bench so he was always likely to get the opportunity to prove his talent.

People have been saying the same about Flood since he was 16, the difference is Duff got a run in the first team when Blackburn were in the Championship (1st Division at the time) and this taught him a lot about the physical side of the game and made him tougher, Flood didn't have the same experience and could be suffering a little because of it now. Lee Croft was in a similar situation at City, and went on a season long loan to Oldham last season, and came back a much stronger player because of it.

[livehead1]

duff was never as weak as flood surely, sure wasn't he a rugby player in his younger days. Duff just seemed to blow hot and cold, lacking consistancy.