Ian Harte

[CollegeTillIDie]

Ian Harte

Good at free-kicks?... without a doubt
Worth a risk at left midfield? perhaps
A good international left-back?......em NO ! :D

[Donal81]

Do football fans look for bandwagons? I never heard one good word uttered about Ian Harte in all the years that he played for Ireland - and he's been around the squad for a long time - apart from the mandatory bit at the end about his free kick ability. The bloke gets dropped when the manager who seemed to pride himself on getting poor players to raise their game slightly instead of just picking better ones gets sacked. Now people are calling for Harte's return. Unbelievable. Then again, there's no point having a mind if you don't change it but what has Harte done to merit inclusion? Very little. What had he done previously to merit being dropped? Well, his lack of defending skills for one thing. It's great when he scores the odd free kick but that will never compensate for his defensive failings. Surely a defender should be chosen primarily for his ability to defend? For our ability to change like the wind, football fans put politicians in the shade.

[Kevin77]

The recurring theme on this and similar message boards is that people love to have a cause. And the more the better. Harte in, Harte out, select Clarke, Miller is the next big thing, Miller is the antichrist etc. People love to be the one to say told you so. They love to be the first to alert their mates to a players potential hence the clamour for players inclusion prior to proving their credentials.

Basically a lot of it is ill informed and based on what people have heard or read often a long time ago. For example, some people are clamouring for Clarke’s inclusion as a left back in a senior squad. In my opinion, the reality is as follows. Clarke used to play at left back, but as far as I’m aware has been playing central midfield for the past 18 months. Clarke is also playing for Stoke City in the First Division! Stoke City! He hasn’t even played a Premier League match. He’s also 24 or 25. Not 19 or 20. Maybe he’s worth a look? But in all reality, O’Shea is the incumbent, Finnan can do a job there as can Maybury. So at best, he might be fourth choice…if he was playing regularly at club level as a left back. Personally, I’d probably still have Gary Kelly or Jeff Kenna above him purely based on their level of experience.

[dr_peepee]

Don't get me wrong lads!! I wasn't advocating the inclusion of Clive Clarke in senior squads, i was just saying that it's unfair to write him off as a future option just because he hasn't played at the top flight yet. He's just turned 25 (today in fact if the bio i just read is to be believed) Like I said, there's many a good servant to the Irish team that didn't mature until into their twenties.

[Kevin77]

Don't get me wrong lads!! I wasn't advocating the inclusion of Clive Clarke in senior squads, i was just saying that it's unfair to write him off as a future option just because he hasn't played at the top flight yet. He's just turned 25 (today in fact if the bio i just read is to be believed) Like I said, there's many a good servant to the Irish team that didn't mature until into their twenties.

I understand where you are coming from and it's good to keep the options open and discuss potential. I think the reality is though that players like Clarke won't get near starting a competitive international unless they are playing regularly in the Premier League (or top division in comparable League) or setting the world on fire in a lower division as long as we have enough players of the required standard.

We are in a very strong position at the moment in terms of strength in depth relative to our population

[Stuttgart88]

Clarke played 45 mins at LB in the Unity Cup and looked twice the player Maybury is.

I wouldn't write the guy off yet either and would like to see more of him.

[eirebhoy]

Clarke played 45 mins at LB in the Unity Cup and looked twice the player Maybury is.
And O'Shea for that matter. :) Its getting quite worrying tbh, Harte is the only player we have that is playing at left back for his club and we've only a few left backs playing in the lower ranks in the premiership. O'Shea is now playing at centre half for the cup side's, Clarke is playing the holding role in midfield and Maybury is switching from right back to left back all the time. I wonder where he'll be playing for Leicester.

[ken foree]

i found an unfortunate highlight demonstrating some woeful defeding by harte on beckham of all people. it's here towards the bottom (real 5 levante 0), it downloads a zip file which you then have to etc.

http://www.footballextra.com/index.php?idd=regular/superjari/2004_49

decent goals site incidentally but look just at harte, jaysis!! :(

[eirebhoy]

Clarke played at left back for Stoke last night and Kerr was at the match. Didn't see the match so don't know if he played well.

[eirebhoy]

Sunderland are said to be readying a January transfer move for Stoke City captain Clive Clarke.

Clarke, who made his senior international debut for Ireland against Jamaica last summer, has been playing in midfield for Stoke in recent times but made his name as a stylish left back.

He has graduated to the captaincy at the Britannia Stadium and is seen as a key player in Tony Pulis’s squad, which is bidding to challenge for a play-off place in the Coca-Cola Championship division this season.

According to tabloid newspaper reports over the past number of days, Sunderland manager Mick McCarthy is believed to be interested in making a £400,000 move for Clarke, who has missed just one game for the Potters this season.
http://www.eleven-a-side.com/acrossthewater/irish_soccer_detail.asp?newsid=15602

[JimmyP]

from rte.ie:

Kerr, meanwhile, has hit back at claims by Ian Harte that he is being deliberately frozen out of the international scene.

Left-back Harte has not played under Kerr since a surprise summer move to Primera Liga side Levante following Leeds' relegation from the Premier League.

The 27-year-old has spent the last seven weeks on the sidelines, recently undergoing a groin operation in Manchester as well as time at Leeds' Thorp Arch training complex last month in rehabilitation under the supervision of physio Dave Hancock.

It is expected Harte will be back in action for Levante before the end of the month, but whether he plays for Ireland again while Kerr is in charge remains to be seen.

Harte insisted Kerr was against him moving to Spain and that attempts to contact the Republic boss in a bid to ascertain why he has not been involved have all been in vain.

But Kerr today refuted the accusations, stating: "Ian Harte never counselled me before he went to Spain.

"When he told me he was going I was delighted for him because it was a good chance for him to play first-team football.

"As for him trying to contact me, any player who wants to speak to me knows they can ring me. I would be disappointed if I rang them and they didn't ring me back."

But that is not Harte's version of events as he told The Times: "I don't know what's been happening because I've not been able to get in touch with Brian. He doesn't return my calls.

"I spoke to Chris Hughton and asked him to see if he could get Brian to give me a call to find out what the problem is, but I've not heard anything. It's a joke.

"I am disappointed that after playing 58 caps for my country and scoring nine goals, he cannot pay me a bit of respect and give me a call."

On his move to Levante, where he was a first-team regular before the injury, he added: "When I first told him I was going to Spain, he didn't think it was a good move. What was I supposed to do? Stay in the First Division with Leeds?"

Harte maintains he will again play for Ireland, even if he has to wait for Kerr to leave, insisting: "I am still good enough, and whether he stays in the job or not, I will wait to get my chance.

Harte, though, may have burned his bridges after his outburst, with Kerr responding: "Ian Harte is injured at the moment and is therefore not under consideration.

"If he gets back into the Levante team and plays well, then he may get back in."

[Macy]

Harte maintains he will again play for Ireland, even if he has to wait for Kerr to leave, insisting: "I am still good enough, and whether he stays in the job or not, I will wait to get my chance.
Was he ever good enough, defensively?

[elroy]

still think he should be in the squad. always fancied playing him on the left in midfield but then again he's on the quickest

[sylvo]

Harte seems to like doing his talking in the papers, I guess maybe because he may not be able to do it on the pitch.


Like his press comments about how he was going to put Figo in his pocket at LR, and then after the game said how he done such a great job against him. :eek:

Also his comment about not really wanting to go to Iran because of the war in Afganastan. :confused:

Liked how he said also about after the Spain game the lads had a good night out in Suwon, Can't say any of us did. And now he's giving out because a manager has thank god decided he's not good enough. :D

Brian tell him to fcek off.

[Donal81]

Harte's behaviour is out of order. The accusation that Kerr hasn't returned his phonecalls is unusual but whether or not it's true, to vent your frustrations in the media instead of the traditional route - play better and get noticed - is bad form and not befitting an Irish international. If he wants to take the Bellamy route and try and build some campaign in the media, he can but I can't imagine him getting many supporters over here.

I think he's a poor player anyway but surely this puts an end to the Harte in-Harte out debate? A questionable player who has now started to moan through the press and, in a way, questioned Kerr's authority and ability as manager? From where I'm sitting, he can get stuffed.

[beautifulrock]

Well said Donal, surely he does not think that this is the way to get back into the squad. He must have the brains of a knat

[Bowsy]

Good comment Donal.

Harte's handled his exclusion very badly and it would be surprising to see him in an Ireland shirt anytime soon. You get the impression that he believes he has the right to a call and that Kerr has some explaining to do for not giving it to him. Their comments on the subject are entirely at odds so it comes down to who you believe. I believe Kerr as he has always seemed to have time for any Irish player in need of advice. Personally i think Harte is a better option than Maybury but that is for Kerr to decide and Harte should just shut up and prove Kerr wrong the appropriate way by playing well.

[barglee]

i agree with Harte , he's been ignored because he missed that stupid tournament in June while he had an operation. Kerr was quoted as saying the players who came in had done well and he was sticking with them,imagine he adopted the same approach with Roy "play whatever games he feels like" Keane.
I know Keane is a massive player for us but just think its double standards by Kerr.

Harte has over 50 caps for ireland and played in every qualifier for last world cup.
He is our only actual left back and deserves to be in the squad(barring injury of course) and if excluded deserves at the very least an explanation.

[Bowsy]

i agree with Harte , he's been ignored because he missed that stupid tournament in June while he had an operation. Kerr was quoted as saying the players who came in had done well and he was sticking with them,imagine he adopted the same approach with Roy "play whatever games he feels like" Keane.
I know Keane is a massive player for us but just think its double standards by Kerr.

Harte has over 50 caps for ireland and played in every qualifier for last world cup.
He is our only actual left back and deserves to be in the squad(barring injury of course) and if excluded deserves at the very least an explanation.

Again it comes back to who you believe. Kerr denies ignoring his calls. Harte said Kerr didn't like the idea of him going to Spain. Kerr said he wasn't asked for advice. If your not picked you talk to your manager not the press.

[Donal81]

i agree with Harte , he's been ignored because he missed that stupid tournament in June while he had an operation. Kerr was quoted as saying the players who came in had done well and he was sticking with them,imagine he adopted the same approach with Roy "play whatever games he feels like" Keane.
I know Keane is a massive player for us but just think its double standards by Kerr.

Harte has over 50 caps for ireland and played in every qualifier for last world cup.
He is our only actual left back and deserves to be in the squad(barring injury of course) and if excluded deserves at the very least an explanation.

I see what you mean Barglee but the difference between the two is important: Keane's reputation and skills as a player need no explanation here. The contentious Saipan-Retirement stuff aside, on his merits as a player, he has to be in the squad. Kerr's reasoning that those who came in have done ok might actually be true. We need Keane in the centre. We do not need Harte at left-back, IMO, certainly not as much as we need Keane in the middle.

What's crucial for me is also that he never exactly proved himself over those 56 caps. He turned up more than Keane and never flounced out of a World Cup but is just a poor player. Now, he's a poor player with an attitude problem.

[eirebhoy]

barglee - I don't believe Harte is not getting called up just because he missed the tournament as something like 15 players missed it. If he was good enough he'd be in the squad but Kerr prefers Maybury. People judge Maybury but Kerr knows best and from my little bit of research yesterday it looks like we were wrong about thinking Delap is good enough for the squad and I wouldn't be suprised if Harte wasn't good enough.

[Stuttgart88]

Regardless of whether he should be in the squad, his behaviour is totally unprofessional. He's injured anyway so I don't see what the point in complaining is.

Who's printing this stuff about Harte anyway? Anyone with an axe to grind against Kerr? The same people who said Kerr and Carr had fallen out?

I seem to recall Richard Dunne taking a more dignified stance a few months ago and look at him now.

[Éanna]

Harte is muck. Even the vastly over-rated John O'Shea is better than him. He can hit a good free kick, a good cross and a decent corner kick. Thats it. He can't tackle, he has no pace, his distribution is poor and his positioning is poor too. good riddance

[Macy]

i agree with Harte , he's been ignored because he missed that stupid tournament in June while he had an operation. Kerr was quoted as saying the players who came in had done well and he was sticking with them,imagine he adopted the same approach with Roy "play whatever games he feels like" Keane.
I know Keane is a massive player for us but just think its double standards by Kerr.

Harte has over 50 caps for ireland and played in every qualifier for last world cup.
He is our only actual left back and deserves to be in the squad(barring injury of course) and if excluded deserves at the very least an explanation.
Doubt it's anything to do with missing the tournament, especially as he was having an op. People are just reading too much into it (whilst giving them another chance to have a pop at Keane), Harte isn't in the squad because Kerr doesn't rate him. Imo Kerr is right with that assessment.

[Stuttgart88]

Harte is muck. Even the vastly over-rated John O'Shea is better than him. He can hit a good free kick, a good cross and a decent corner kick. Thats it. He can't tackle, he has no pace, his distribution is poor and his positioning is poor too. good riddance

It's a pity you can't do what they do in American football. Just bring him on for corners & frees and then take him off again. :)

[dr_peepee]

I dunno lads, I think yiz are being a little harsh on Ian Harte. Obviously there are better ways to go about these things, but at least he's showing a level of desire to play, and also a level of disapointment at not playing that hasn't been shown by any player I can recall.

He's obviously as bemused at his exclusion as most of us are. We've seen the posts on this board and others!! He's just venting it the wrong way, or being misquoted. Ye know yourself what the tabloids are like.

Fact is though he wants to play for Ireland. He could have easily done a Dean Keily or even a Gary Kelly and looked back at a decent enough career in green.

Brian Kerrs way seems to be it's for the man in possession to loose his place, not for the man on the outside to win it, which explains the Grahem Barrett situation. Wrightly or wrongly it seems to be working. Withdrawels from Friendlies have dramatically reduced and we're seeing a settled first eleven play almost every game, friendly or other wise.

It seems Harte will just have to wait on Maybury to slip up or get injured.

[Stuttgart88]

He'll be kicking himself next summer

Hopefully not with his right foot. Boom Boom.

[dr_peepee]

Heh Heh :)

[Closed Account 2]

He came on in the last 20 mins or so for Levante in their 4-0 win vs Osasuna last night, so hopefully his injury is on the mend.

[Hibs4Ever]

Maybe a poll on this????

After last night I for one have had enough of John O'Shea :mad:


BRING BACK IAN HARTE

[macdermesser]

You're having a laugh? Not this debate again .. Harte is crap. Doesn't track back etc etc

[concanta]

I think Harte should be in squad if only for his ability at free kicks
I dont know why Maybery is anywhere near the squad

[Hibs4Ever]

You're having a laugh? Not this debate again .. Harte is crap. Doesn't track back etc etc


So whats the difference between him and O'Shea :confused:

[Hibs4Ever]

Ian Harte is a left full back playing 1st team football in La Liga


O'Shea plays in centre midfield for Man Utd RESERVES

[Donal81]

Why bother doing this again? Harte is poor, he never impressed for Ireland (and he got a rake of caps), he can't defend, he can't mark, he can't track back...All the free-kicks in the world won't make up for this, ever, so let's not go down this road one more time.

Add that to a snotty attitude about being called up...

[OwlsFan]

Harte: defender, no pace, caught out of position a lot, poor passer, short, good free kick specialist.

O'Shea: defender, pace, an ok defender, couldn't pass to one of his team mates in a month of Sundays, tall, not a free kick specialist.

Not a great choice but I'd still go for O'Shea because the primary job of a defender is to defend and Harte is incapable of that.

[tetsujin1979]

Is there a list of recognised Irish left full backs anywhere?

Off the top of my head:
O'Shea
Harte
Maybury (sometimes)
Kennedy (sometimes)
Clarke (although I think he's central midfield now)
Heary?
Delaney at Hull

[Eire06]

O'Shae all they way..

He may not have been perfect last night but himself and Kavanagh played much better than the whole rest of the team last night..

He gets an awful lot of undeserved stick IMO..

He's a great player and deserves to be in the Irish first 11

[stojkovic]

Harte and O'Shea are both sh1te.

Play Finnan left full.

At least he can defend, has abit of pace, can pass a ball and looks reasonably intelligent.

O'Shea looks like he's on gear half the time.

[Stuttgart88]

In anticipation of another debate on the merits of O'Shea at left back I studied his game last night and as usual I came up with the same conclusion: he can defend well, gets forward well but his distribution is sometimes terrible.

I'd still have him as our no. 1.

Maybury was shown up badly last night I thought and I honestly think Harte is a better option as back-up.

I'm surprised Kerr hasn't called up Clarke for friendlies. He looked like a proper left-back in The Valley last year.

And given that Kilbane is looking more erratic in central midfield maybe he could do a job here.

As for the merits of otherwise of a friendly against China, if Kerr learns that Maybury isn't good enough then that's something.

[eirebhoy]

O'Shae all they way..

He may not have been perfect last night but himself and Kavanagh played much better than the whole rest of the team last night..
:D He couldn't pass the ball to one of the 10 other green shirts on the pitch 4 times out of 5.

[Eire06]

:D He couldn't pass the ball to one of the 10 other green shirts on the pitch 4 times out of 5.

:eek: he wasn't that bad I don't think, I actually thought he was playing ok..
but will watch the match tonight again and get back to you..
Still think he out played and worked harder than most of the rest of the team :o

[Aberdonian Stu]

O'Shea gets caught out far too often, better off playing Finnan on the wrong side to be honest. We have no decent quality out-and-out left back.

[Don Vito]

Just stick Richie Dunne in there.

[eirebhoy]

I definitely want to see Finnan at left back too. It may be his wring side but its also O'Shea's wrong side. Don Given always brings up the fact that O'Shea could never even hit a ball with his left foot before he trained day in day out.

[Stuttgart88]

O'Shea gets caught out far too often, better off playing Finnan on the wrong side to be honest. We have no decent quality out-and-out left back.

I actually think O'Shea right-back and Finnan left back would work. In due course I hope to see O'Shea playing in midfield. I think I said yesterday (if I did't I meant to) that if Maybury was to play he should play LB, where he always plays, and we could look at O'Shea RB.

Can the stattos among us tell me how often O'Shea has played right-back? All I can remember is Poland away (when he did well) and part of the Jamaica game.

[Stuttgart88]

I definitely want to see Finnan at left back too. It may be his wring side but its also O'Shea's wrong side. Don Given always brings up the fact that O'Shea could never even hit a ball with his left foot before he trained day in day out.

Speaking of Don Givens, his job must be on the line. Only a few months ago we were saying we had the best U21s ever, now look at the competitive results. Probably worth a separate thread but I'm too lazy.

[FarBeag]

Both of them are useless, i used to cringe everytime Harte got the ball but with o' shea i just close my eyes and hope for the best. Play Finnan there or quite posibally Kilbane.

[Colbert Report]

O'Shea played great on the left side of midfield all match in Israel. Everytime he got the ball he gave it to Duff, which is what more of our players should do.

[Dawn_Run]

O'Shea played great on the left side of midfield all match in Israel. Everytime he got the ball he gave it to Duff, which is what more of our players should do.

...then duff gave it back to Given :D