Spotlight

[Only1Rovers]

BBC One Norn Ireland, Tuesday night, Jan 29th, at about 10.30pm

Special Spotlight programme looking into the big question...

Should the Republic be allowed 'poach' players from Northern Ireland to represent the national team under the Good Friday Agreement?

In the mean-time, who was the best player from the North to play for the Rep?

[GavinZac]

NI are allowed to "poach" players from down here, no?

Opportunity goes both ways.

Anyway, I'm not sure. Does Scotland count as North? :D

[Bondvillain]

Aye, Saw the ad on the beeb.

All terribly dramatic, with doomy music and editing...

[micls]

NI are allowed to "poach" players from down here, no?


No. That was one of FIFAs suggestions as a solution. It was rejected

[GavinZac]

No. That was one of FIFAs suggestions as a solution. It was rejected

Pity. Georgie could've finally gotten his call-up!

[stojkovic]

In the mean-time, who was the best player from the North to play for the Rep?

Alan Kernaghan :D

[cheifo]

Aye, Saw the ad on the beeb.

All terribly dramatic, with doomy music and editing...

:D Yeh saw that BV.The trailer for the programme exuded an impending sense of doom.Dear oh dear, a bit of perspective please BBC NI.

[HolylandsMan]

BBC One Norn Ireland, Tuesday night, Jan 29th, at about 10.30pm

Special Spotlight programme looking into the big question...

Should the Republic be allowed 'poach' players from Northern Ireland to represent the national team under the Good Friday Agreement?

In the mean-time, who was the best player from the North to play for the Rep?

Or alternatively, Why are the IFA attempting to stop northern Nationalists expressing their Irish identity?

Should be worth a watch anyway. Post beating England supporting NI seems to be the fashionable thing for the establishment media to do up here.

[Paddy Garcia]

Never mind. Still great to see that David McDaid and Seamus Sharkey are inthe U 19 squad.

Ruairi Harkin is also in the squad.

[co. down green]

Bit of a pointless exercise by the bbc since FIFA have already told the FAI that the existing situation remains and players from the 6 counties can continue to declare for Ireland, and so Ruairi Harkin returns to the u19 squad for the friendly double header against the Czech Republic next month & a first call up for two other Derry lads in the squad.

Suppose they will role out Gerry Armstrong again :rolleyes:

[cheifo]

Yes Gerry was shown in the preview!Dont know what his views are but always liked him though.Always seemed a decent skin.

[elroy]

Yes Gerry was shown in the preview!Dont know what his views are but always liked him though.Always seemed a decent skin.

Ya so do I. I think he said in the clip advertised that he could never have imagined himself playing for ROI. Correct me if im wrong but am sure thats what he said.

[Ceirtlis]

Ya so do I. I think he said in the clip advertised that he could never have imagined himself playing for ROI. Correct me if im wrong but am sure thats what he said.

Ya he said that. There was also a clip with Kevin Deery saying he thought he should be allowed to choose.

[Krstic]

Ya he said that. There was also a clip with Kevin Deery saying he thought he should be allowed to choose.


It'll soon cease to be a problem for Deery, once he's too old for the U-21's his international career will be over.

[cheifo]

Deery really looked to be on the up.I suppose at the moment everyone will remember him for that wonderful goal against Gretna.

[Wolfie]

Ealing Green et all should be along any minute now for yet another entertaining cross boarder debate we all know and love.................................

[antrimgreen]

I hope not he talks out his hole!

[Krstic]

Deery really looked to be on the up.I suppose at the moment everyone will remember him for that wonderful goal against Gretna.

limited player, who has scored some spectacular goals for Derry And always seemed to score them on live TV.

[kingdomkerry]

Saw the add. They are really clutching at straws. The add looked very one sided. Edmin poots was pussing and they only gave one small clip of kevin deery from the other perspective. I'll watch it but I know what to expect.

Its a non issue really, Players in the 6 counties have the right to choose to play for Ireland or the one sided northern team. FIFA have ruled in favour of the FAI. Hence three players from the north in the u19 squad.

Great to have a 32 county team IMO.

[Jerry The Saint]

Only saw the very end - looked like absolute tripe. Felix Healy freezing his nuts off in a field and Mark Lawrenson spoofing about an All-Ireland team which had somebody called McGeedy on the wing (according to the graphic):rolleyes:

[NeilMcD]

Lawrenson must be one of the worst pundits going. I reckon he is a man with very few principles, he always strikes me as been spineless. Great player though

[HolylandsMan]

Didn't tell anybody a lot we didn't already know. Disappointed though that the FAI didn't have the balls to put some one up to argue their case, especially when they have a much stronger arguement than Howard Wells.

Sad to hear of how the choice for some players is based on either which team calls them up first or how they can best further their careers.

[HolylandsMan]

Lawrenson must be one of the worst pundits going. I reckon he is a man with very few principles, he always strikes me as been spineless. Great player though

Didn't give an opinion on the eligibility issue. No doubt he was asked but wouldn't give a view for fear of offending anyone. He's basically just on the BBC for comic effect at this stage. Any pretence at serious punditry was given up ages ago.

[kingdomkerry]

Fairly one sided as predicted. I dont think I heard anyone say i want to play for ireland because they are my country. They would'nt of had to try too hard in all fairness

[rovers77]

Yeah just watched it too it was pretty poor. Does anyone know what Eammon Macann was on about though, he didnt make any since at all.

[HolylandsMan]

Yeah just watched it too it was pretty poor. Does anyone know what Eammon Macann was on about though, he didnt make any since at all.

He tends not to. But he does make nonsense seem interesting and dramatic which is a plus point.

He went on about Ireland fans in the north supporting England against NI. Personally I was glad NI won but my priorities were very much with the Ireland France match that night.

[kingdomkerry]

Given
Hughes Evans Dunne Finnan
O'Shea Carsley
McGeady Keane Healey Duff

And look at that team Lawrenson picked. He managed to squeeze 3 northern players in. (just not to offend im sure)

[backstothewall]

Its an argument that will never end. If they say its a free for all NI aren't happy. If they lock northerners into playing for NI it will end up in a very messy court case in Belfast between FIFA and someone who wants to play for ROI U-21s or something

Which is i suggest why FIFA are washing their hands of it and walking away. There is little else they can do until there is a united Ireland, an all Ireland international side, or every nationalist in the 6 counties decides to abandon 5000 years of history and throw their lot in with the empire.

An all Ireland international side is the most likely of 3 not terribly likely endings, in the near future at least.

I am loath to get into the wider debate because it has no end, but the spotlight programme itself was a peice of lazy journalism which almost completely failed to offer the other perspective and which leaves serious questions that should be asked of the BBC on their editorial slant on this issue. The BBC's latest charter includes...

- Representing the UK, its nations, regions and communities;

... and they completely failed to represent the Irish nationalist/republican communities in that programme.

Given the subject matter one would of thought they might have had mentioned Derek Dougan playing for Shamrock Rovers XI vs Brasil, or George Best being a declared supporter of an all ireland team. Perhaps some examination of exactly why so many Catholics ceased supporting Northern Ireland sometime around November 1993 might have been worth while.

And that without giving mention to that idiot Lawrenson. the one player i would have above all others from NI in an All-Ireland XI is George McCartney.

[boovidge]

Healy over Doyle? On yer bike Lawrenson! :D

[kingdomkerry]

"And that without giving mention to that idiot Lawrenson. the one player i would have above all others from NI in an All-Ireland XI is George McCartney."

I was just about to say it. Although with Steve "the traitor" Finnan retiring arran hughes would probably get in there.

Healy is overrated and has been found out this year in the EPL

[co. down green]

He went on about Ireland fans in the north supporting England against NI. Personally I was glad NI won but my priorities were very much with the Ireland France match that night.

Agreed Holylandsman.

Was speaking to a guy who helps run one of the Ireland supporters clubs in Belfast yesterday. He got wind of the programme a couple of weeks ago and contacted the BBC about taking part, he never received a reply. Instead they went onto the Falls Road and asked a couple of people if they would rather see the north beat England.

Strange research !

Apart from that we had 'Hard' Wells talking about 'eligibility to the mother association', Enwin Poots playing the 'inappropriate pressure' card, Felix Healy's recollections of terrible sectarian abuse at Windsor Park & and Guys who played 20 years ago.

A case of the BBC shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.

Should we call Mark McChrystal up to the Ireland squad for a laugh ;):D

[EalingGreen]

Its an argument that will never end. If they say its a free for all NI aren't happy. If they lock northerners into playing for NI it will end up in a very messy court case in Belfast between FIFA and someone who wants to play for ROI U-21s or something


FIFA don't do court cases.



Which is i suggest why FIFA are washing their hands of it and walking away. There is little else they can do until there is a united Ireland, an all Ireland international side, or every nationalist in the 6 counties decides to abandon 5000 years of history and throw their lot in with the empire.


What, only 5,000 years? Surely your grievances are older than that? :rolleyes:



An all Ireland international side is the most likely of 3 not terribly likely endings, in the near future at least.


Do you think you can hold your breath for another 5,000 years? ;)



I am loath to get into the wider debate because it has no end, but the spotlight programme itself was a peice of lazy journalism which almost completely failed to offer the other perspective and which leaves serious questions that should be asked of the BBC on their editorial slant on this issue. The BBC's latest charter includes...

- Representing the UK, its nations, regions and communities;

... and they completely failed to represent the Irish nationalist/republican communities in that programme.


Agree that the programme was poor enough, but I suspect that this was because they only had 30 minutes to cover what is a complex subject, for an audience the most of which aren't much interested in football, never mind the intricacies of FIFA Directives on international eligibility etc. Within those constraints, however, I thought it wasn't that bad, tbh.

As for the balance, I think you'll find that there may actually have been more representatives from the Nationalist side than from their Unionist counterparts - e.g. Felix Healey, Pat Ramsey, Gibson's uncle, two Derry City players, Eamonn McCann and Gerry Armstrong, the two "vox pops" in West Belfast.

I haven't a full count, but I'm sure that that is at least as many as from a Unionist background. Perhaps your disappointment stems from the fact that not all of them said what you might have wanted to hear? E.G. Eamonn McCann, when he pointed out that "footballing nationality" is not the same as "political nationality"? Or Felix Healey when he agreed that the whole eligibility uissue had now become "politicised"? Or those Derry players when they said they just wanted to play for the "best" team thay could, not the "most Irish" team? Or Gerry Armstrong when he said... well everything he said! :)

And in any case, Spotlight can hardly be blamed if nobody from the FAI was prepared to go in front of the camera. Might they have been worried that the programme was going to give the lie to the assertion that the FAI doesn't approach players, but just waits to be approached. Some of the testimony coming out of Derry clearly suggested the latter.



Given the subject matter one would of thought they might have had mentioned Derek Dougan playing for Shamrock Rovers XI vs Brasil

What would that have proved? How would it have shed light on the present issue of eligibility? It was 35 years ago, for goodness sake.



or George Best being a declared supporter of an all ireland team.

I closely followed Best's career almost since he started playing. I've heard other people (invariably Nationalists) repeat this line, yet none has ever been able to produce any evidence. Can you? I seem to recall an interview where he agreed that an all-Ireland team would likely be stronger than two separate teams (a statement of the bleedin' obvious, if ever there was one) and that he would have been prepared to play for them if asked (whether he'd actually have turned up is another thing, mind). But that is not the same as what you (and others) claim.
Anyhow, exactly what authority does George Best's (alleged) opinion from 25-odd years ago have on the issue of eligibility in 2008?



Perhaps some examination of exactly why so many Catholics ceased supporting Northern Ireland sometime around November 1993 might have been worth while.


There are a number of reasons, some of which were touched on (Felix Healey on sectarianism, Neil Lennon etc), but the core subject of what was an already packed programme was whether Northern Nationalists should be eligible to play for ROI, not whether they want to.

Besides, the situation has changed out of all recognition since 1993, whether some people wish to admit it or not.



And that without giving mention to that idiot Lawrenson. the one player i would have above all others from NI in an All-Ireland XI is George McCartney.

At last! Something we can agree on (if that's not being unkind to idiots...)

[geysir]

It is a poor state of affairs when the most acute intelligent statement in the programme comes from the FAI :) who acted like some sort of Politburo, heard but not seen to be heard.
Howard Wells is waiting for the minutes of the Fifa meeting, what an áss.

Programme didn´t mention that NI born were always entitled to play for the Republic but there was an unwritten gentlemans agreement between the 2 federations not to mix.
This changed in Brian Kerr's time with the youngsters.

Too much was made of the GFA
The GFA has nothing got to do with eligibility. Automatic citizenship has.

The GFA has political significance from a Nationalist perspective in the North, it cements their citizenship rights into a NI constitutional type agreement.


On Eamonn McCann, he said something like

There is no Scottish citizenship, there may be sense of Scottishness. There is no Welsh citizenship or NI citizenship, that in itself tells you that the rules to do with football and the eligibility to play for national teams is not dependant on the political arrangement on the ground

Nice opening footage from Alan McLoughlin :)

[LeviathanNI]

The most interesting bit was the players saying repeatedly that 'they were never asked' to play by the IFA.. ergo they were asked by the FAI? Kinda flys in the face of the rubbish about not poaching our players doesnt it?

See to be honest, the one thing that has annoyed me more about this than anything else is this - for ages we have tried to take the religion out of our team.. it was a milstone around it and it has taken ages, and some dedicated people, to get rid of it.... then the FAI come up and start religiously segragating gthe kids again? WTF is that about? And none of you down there can't say it hasn't happened, but you come up here and see what it has done. Thanks.

[cheifo]

Leviathan I am not saying I dont believe you but at this stage we are only talking about a handful of kids.How has the FAIs actions resulted in the return of religous segragation in football(in practical terms).I am not in the habit of defending the FAI btw.:)
BTW Eamon McCann can be amusing at times but he was a bad choice for this.Boy did he talk a lot of b******s.

[geysir]

The most interesting bit was the players saying repeatedly that 'they were never asked' to play by the IFA.. ergo they were asked by the FAI? Kinda flys in the face of the rubbish about not poaching our players doesnt it?
You talking about the bit that was spoken by Felix Healy when he said the IFA never phoned them up once in all the years to ask about the Derry players and the FAI were phoning up the club regularily?
Or the bit spoken by Darron Gibson's uncle Peter McLoughlin who said that the IFA cut off contact and he brought Darron himself to the attention of the FAI?

[ifk101]

The most interesting bit was the players saying repeatedly that 'they were never asked' to play by the IFA.. ergo they were asked by the FAI? Kinda flys in the face of the rubbish about not poaching our players doesnt it?

If we want to pick them we are entitled to pick them. See the eligibity thread. Use of the word "poaching" is hardly accurate in this context.


See to be honest, the one thing that has annoyed me more about this than anything else is this - for ages we have tried to take the religion out of our team.. it was a milstone around it and it has taken ages, and some dedicated people, to get rid of it.... then the FAI come up and start religiously segragating gthe kids again? WTF is that about? And none of you down there can't say it hasn't happened, but you come up here and see what it has done. Thanks.

I agree. The FAI is at fault for everything. Delaney OUT!

[rovers77]

I closely followed Best's career almost since he started playing. I've heard other people (invariably Nationalists) repeat this line, yet none has ever been able to produce any evidence. Can you? I seem to recall an interview where he agreed that an all-Ireland team would likely be stronger than two separate teams (a statement of the bleedin' obvious, if ever there was one) and that he would have been prepared to play for them if asked (whether he'd actually have turned up is another thing, mind). But that is not the same as what you (and others) claim.
Anyhow, exactly what authority does George Best's (alleged) opinion from 25-odd years ago have on the issue of eligibility in 2008?


I seen an interview with George Best that was not that old, it was broadcast either on UTV or BBC NI one evening by a lady interviewer. He said during the interview something along the lines of a combined Irish team making sense. However after a quick search I could not find any links to it.

But I did find this link which may be from around the same time;

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/irish/4374631.stm

[Gather round]

I broadly agree with EG, although

a) the evidence that Best supported an all-Ireland side is widely referred, including on OWC

b) McCann's a (waffling) socialist ;)

Hard Wells is lazy, if he genuinely didn't bother to get briefing on how many players we've lost to RoI age-group sides in recent years. He must have expected the question?

Delaney did the FAI no favours by blanking the program.

Let lie, I say. Although regardless of dual citizenship factors I'd prefer anyone who's played internationally at post-school/ youth level to be ineligible for anyone else thereafter.

[dr_peepee]

Failry one sided delivery I thought.. ( i.e Emotive words like "Defect" being used).. There are allot of factors and it needed more than a half hours attention.. I can see why the IFA feel agrieved, but question the focus of their efforts.. Neither the FAI or Wells didn't come accross very well for me.

[paul_oshea]

i believe this thread already exists....

[geysir]

I thought it was balanced and interesting even if not exactly perceptive of the core issue it is a documentation of sorts.

From the Spotlight Program, some of the text was sent to me.

Eamonn McCann
"The Neil Lennon incident certainly confirmed in the minds of many NI nationalists that the NI team was not for them and wasn't part of them".
"There were loads of them in Derry deeply depressed by the fact that NI had beaten England, there were loads of pubs in NI where nationalists were cheering on England. It told you something about who the people thought was the real enemy."

"Football associations particularily in these Islands is run by blazers, not only by blazers but by people who polish the buttons on them :) if there was an all Ireland team one result of that would be that only half the number of them would entitled to go on junkets and rules revisions in Hawaii, where the 2 Ireland teams are well represented".

Felix Healy
"Footballers from the Brandwell have played for NI and were proud to do so, playing for the Republic was never an issue I think in this day and age the issue has been politicised because footballers only want to play for ...."(cut)
Asked on the reaction from Derry people to him standing for GSTQ at WP
"You were playing for NI you were a footballer who was an international player, the political overtones didn´t come into it."
Then some stuff about the Bingham team being together and united, the political situation made them more so
Felix is not surprised that the IFA are not holding onto players
"when I was the manager of Derry I had people from Dublin ringing me about players, nobody rang me from Belfast nobody from any international set up in Belfast rang me about players that I had in Derry".
"I got dreadful abuse at Windsor Park, shocking sectarian abuse at WP as was the case at the Oval and one or two other grounds because I was a high profile player for Coleraine and some of the abuse directed at me and my family was sectarian garbage and it was difficult not to react to that."

Pat Ramsay - nationalist politician- viewpoint
"They (IFA) are trying to remove someones Irishness and exclude them from playing for the country that they have affiliation with.
These players are not interested in living in the South, they are born and bred in NI they are part of a small Island, Poots knows the GFA was introduced to give some equality across the board and a consensus to bring about the resolution (to problems) we have in NI in terms of Assembly/ executive he can´t cherry pick that now".

Paul Mc Loughlin, DG´s uncle
"From very very young Darron has always wanted to play for the best, you just knew that he was going to be a professional footballer, nothing else mattered to him."

Paul grew up supporting NI and said it was nearly second nature to go and want to play for them
Darron had played in u17 internat for NI in a tournament in Germany and had been awarded player of the tournament.
"Thats the last we heard of Northern Ireland, nobody has ever come back again, they havent come back, Darron was saying has anything happenned but I couldnt say anything."
Noel says from his own initiative he then took Darron for a trial with the Republic's youngsters
"The IFA came back when he was on the bench against San Marino and said hi Darron can´t play for the Republic, they were saying he is our player whoom they didn´t show any interest in until the senior manager picked him, they didn´t use their own opinion they just went with the opinion of another national manager."

Wells - "my info is that he was continued to be selected that was prior to my being here" Wells said he has seen the records and the that it was unlikely that there would have been a long gap.

[jmurphyc]

I only caught a few minutes of it but taped it as well. It seemed like it wasn't really aimed at people who were already paying attention to it beforehand and was merely introducing the issue to the wider public.

[elroy]

I thought it was balanced and interesting even if not exactly perceptive of the core issue it is a documentation of sorts.

"Football associations particularily in these Islands is run by blazers, not only by blazers but by people who polish the buttons on them :) if there was an all Ireland team one result of that would be that only half the number of them would entitled to go on junkets and rules revisions in Hawaii, where the 2 Ireland teams are well represented"[/I].
.[/I]

Have to agree with this, this is one of the major obstacles to an ireland team. (not that id want it though if im honest)

[shantykelly]

I thought it was balanced and interesting even if not exactly perceptive of the core issue it is a documentation of sorts.

From the Spotlight Program, some of the text was sent to me.

Eamonn McCann
"The Neil Lennon incident certainly confirmed in the minds of many NI nationalists that the NI team was not for them and wasn't part of them".
"There were loads of them in Derry deeply depressed by the fact that NI had beaten England, there were loads of pubs in NI where nationalists were cheering on England. It told you something about who the people thought was the real enemy."

This program was neither balanced, nor interesting. it was a partisan political broadcast on behalf of unionism. The entire tone of the program was set by the reporter / mouthpiece's constant referrals to 'stealing', poaching', and 'defection' of players. Hardly suitable language to illustrate one side of the argument fairly.

And as for Red Eamonn? The man is talking absolute sh1te. he would rather revel in the notion that we don't hate england, we actually hate each other as the downtrodden working class manipulated by the foul, insidious bourgoisie. Following englands defeat at the hands of Norn Irn, i didnt meet ONE SINGLE PERSON in derry who was upset. most were actually quite pleased at the result.

Despite the efforts of some to eradicate sectarianism from the IFA, the fact of the matter is that such efforts are STILL ongoing, hence the sectarianism still exists. Hardly a conducive atmosphere to entice a young talented footballer from a nationalist background to go and play for the north. Lennon is the prime example, but not the only one that exists, I'm sure.

Wells just showed himself up as a fool who either didnt know very mcuh about the subject, or didnt want to talk about it in real, definitive, FACTUAL terms, which was supposedly the point of the programme.

As for the FAI 'poaching' players by asking them to ask when the IFA has ignored them? catch yourself on. ever hear the saying 'don't ask, don't get'? if the IFA do not invite someone to play at an international level for them, then they can't complain if someone else offers them the same chance and they take it. is this the current attitude in the IFA? 'we don't want him, but you can't have him'? infantile at the very least.

and as for nationality? your nationality is your nationality, be it in political, footballing, social, or economic terms. I'm irish. if i go to work in britain, i'm still irish. if i got watch the milan derby, i'm still irish. if i live in france for so long that i can vote there, i'm still irish.

[EalingGreen]

if i go to work in britain, i'm still irish. if i got watch the milan derby, i'm still irish. if i live in france for so long that i can vote there, i'm still irish.

And if you represent the Irish Football Association, playing for Northern Ireland in Belfast, in an Emerald Green shirt with a Celtic Cross on it, what does that make you? Greek? :confused:

As Felix Healey - himself clearly happy enough to play for NI put it - this whole issue of eligibility has become politicised, which is never a good thing for any sport in any context.

Gerry Armstrong is living proof (as well as a Living Legend!) that it is possible for someone to play Gaelic Football at Croke Park, then International Soccer for NI at Windsor Park, without either making him more or less "Irish" or more or less "British" - in the end, he can be whatever he wants to be.

Quite simply, there are two Irish Football Associations and therefore two Irish International Football Teams on this island, each equally valid as the other.

And I believe that if you are born within the juridiction of one, you should represent them but if born within the jurisdiction of the other, that is who you should represent (unless you have valid connections such as parent/grandparent/residence with both, in which case you may choose).

[Not Brazil]

And look at that team Lawrenson picked. He managed to squeeze 3 northern players in. (just not to offend im sure)

And, you're the wise guy who would "love to see" an All Ireland team, but don't think any Northern Ireland players are good enough to be in it.

Brilliant.:D

[Not Brazil]

[QUOTE=shantykelly;866282]This program was neither balanced, nor interesting. it was a partisan political broadcast on behalf of unionism. QUOTE]

:D

[janeymac]

And if you represent the Irish Football Association, playing for Northern Ireland in Belfast, in an Emerald Green shirt with a Celtic Cross on it, what does that make you? Greek? :confused:

As Felix Healey - himself clearly happy enough to play for NI put it - this whole issue of eligibility has become politicised, which is never a good thing for any sport in any context.

Gerry Armstrong is living proof (as well as a Living Legend!) that it is possible for someone to play Gaelic Football at Croke Park, then International Soccer for NI at Windsor Park, without either making him more or less "Irish" or more or less "British" - in the end, he can be whatever he wants to be.

Quite simply, there are two Irish Football Associations and therefore two Irish International Football Teams on this island, each equally valid as the other.

And I believe that if you are born within the juridiction of one, you should represent them but if born within the jurisdiction of the other, that is who you should represent (unless you have valid connections such as parent/grandparent/residence with both, in which case you may choose).


IFA should act on the advice they pay good money for (well, probably Tony or Bertie pay for) .... Too late now anyway ....

Ban for UK anthem demanded
Monday December 12 2005

THE singing of 'God Save the Queen' should be banned at international soccer matches in the North and replaced with a more "neutral" anthem, according to a report commissioned by the Irish Football Association, writes Allison Bray.
The current ban on playing soccer matches on Sundays in the North should also be scrapped, says a 39-page report on the future of Northern Ireland football by the Belfast-based charity Democratic Dialogue.

"The IFA should consider a public competition to see if a more widely acceptable anthem can be found," the report says.

http://www.independent.ie/world-news/europe/ban-for-uk-anthem-demanded-225499.html

------

Gerry Armstrong grew up in different times ... people put up with a lot more sh*t* (both North & South of the Border) when he was growing up. People are much better educated and have higher expectations now ...

Both jurisdictions are very valid, but what is more valid is in a person's right to choose how to express their heritage/culture/nationality.

Interesting research here EG on identity in NI.

http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/dd/papers/flags.htm

[Not Brazil]

Never mind. Still great to see that David McDaid and Seamus Sharkey are inthe U 19 squad.

Ruairi Harkin is also in the squad.

And, great to see two kids on Derry City's books off on tour with the Northern Ireland Under 18 squad next week.