Good end to the year 2004! :ball:
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Good end to the year 2004! :ball:
what a rubbish game though. keane should've had 2 or 3 at least. poor display, and were very lucky not to concede in the second.
well the great teams can win without trying. A win is a win. Wont be a match that is remembered though.
Yes it was a poor game over all the only real highlight was
Duff leaving his two defenders for dead.
It is almost comical how Duff manages to make the last defender
jump out of his way! I would love to see it from another angle as it
some of his footwork is obscured by Croat defenders in the footage
I saw.
A moment of magic in a scrappy game.
Another highlight was watching Paddy Kenny's ''Bold Child'' grin on video after his scissor kick clearance / attempted decapitation escapade. Top class.
Unlucky not to score though in the second. we played very well in the conditions and elliott had a great game setting up robbie a couple of times. AT least we got in the positions to score. Croatia are top of there group in the qualifiers so we should be happy with the terrible wind we did well to play any decent ballQuote:
Originally Posted by seagulls4ever
I was really impressed with Stephen Elliott. He looks the real deal. He is quick, direct and incisive. He doesn't mind passing when a teammate is in a better position. He doesn't indulge in the fancy-day stuff that Robbie repeated attempts. I reckon he is a better striker than Robbie already and had he played in his natural position, he would have put away some of the chances Keane missed.
also true, we did have our chances. it wasn't the worst performance, but finishing like that, combined with some sloppy defending will really hurt us against the bigger and better teams.Quote:
Originally Posted by zinedineontour
aye, elliot was quite strong, pity about miller though.
Elliot better striker after one game than Robbie is after 50 something games, and our record striker with 24 goals, get a grip. He had a decent debut and showed some nice touches and passess and awareness of the players around him and calmness on the ball, but a better striker my arse. Also the amount of sloppyness on these Boards is unreal, Croatia are not top of the group, they are third, but are unbeaten on 7 points after 3 gamesl but are behind Bulgaria and Sweden.
Sweden 4 9
Bulgaria 3 7
Croatia 3 7
Hungary 3 3
Iceland 4 1
Malta 3 1
pity about miller ? I thought there was improvement there last night !! Some great passes and of course that clearance!
Good to see kenny between the sticks....looked like he enjoyed himself out there.
Reckon Breen has seen his last game in a irish shirt. Dunne was solid and the two boys O'Shea and Finnan didn't put a foot wrong all night.
Miller was bombing it around like a headless chicken in the opening 45, but put in a decent display second half, could have scored with the 'Ronald Koeman' effort towards the end. Don't rate him for the qualifiers. Both Kev and Kav played stromers in the middle. Zilbane sure has improved over the last year. Defo first choice along-side RMK for the WCQ.
Duff's a genius.....nuff said :D
Robbie missed a hatfull as usual....but the lad's a legend.
Shame Elliot was played out of position, he has a nice first touch and reckon could do the business if given another chance.
A nice piece on the Everton Website quoting Kilbane regarding his first match as Irish Captain last night ....
http://www.evertonfc.com/news/index.php?page_id=5067
He states...
"Without a doubt, it was the proudest moment of my career so far, it means a lot for me and my family are delighted aswell"
He has to be one of the most improved players over the past year or so, still shaky at times, but a different player to the old one trick winger ! ;)
Paddy Kenny: Did ok, in what he had to do. For the shots that were going wide, he did take a while to dive for them. That decapitation attempt/clearance will live long in the memory!
Steve Finnan: Definately giving Carr a run for his money on current form, and this performance. Crossed, passed, ran, tackled, sublime. It'll be a sin if he can't get onto the Liverpool starting XI
Richard Dunne: Recovered from an early mistimed pass (some might blame the wind) for a solid enough performance and saving tackle at the death to prevent a draw
Gary Breen: Still Breen, still at guaranteed one bad mistake a game, still probably 3rd choice behind Cunningham and O'Brienn. But the gap to Dunne in 4th is getting smaller..
John O’Shea: Come in, your time is up. Looking worse and worse with every game on the left.
Liam Miller: Awful first half, improved dramatically in the second with accurate passing and found time to make a shot
Graham Kavanagh: Adapted well to the defensive job he was given on the night.
Kevin Kilbane: MOTM for me (seriously) I've never seen a better performance from sKilbane, tackled, passed, did everything a captain should do. Achill should be proud!
Damien Duff: Made the opposing full back and midfielder's night a misery when he reverted to his best position on the wing. With any luck we'll never have to see him up front again.
Stephen Elliott: Didn't disappoint in his first senior start. Showed good close control and a willingness to play well with others. Hard to call if he's moved ahead of Clinton in the ranks but probably ahead of Connolly.
Robbie Keane: Sweet merciful Jebus, how can one player p!ss you off and elate you so much?? Could have had a hat trick, that one-on-one miss said it all about Robbie, needs to do the simple thing, there's a time and place for amazing goals, it's not when you're just starting to get a grip on the game!
Subs:
Kenny Cunningham: Took a little too long to get to grips with the game, but improved rapidly. Will probably still be first choice come Germany.
Shay Given: Again, took a while to get going. Still number 1, I'm a little surprised he played at all to be honest.
Alan Quinn: Did he touch the ball?
Graham Barrett: Needs to improve at club level to improve at senior
Aiden McGeady: Came on, won a header, full time ???
David Connolly scored 7 or 8 goals in his first 15 caps for Ireland at a younger age. Lets not get ahead of ourselves.Quote:
Originally Posted by drummerboy
How many has he scored since in how many caps??Quote:
Originally Posted by eirebhoy
Just checked it up, he scored 6 goals in his first 15 games. He has a total of 9 goals in 40 caps. To be fair though, he only started around 15-20 of those.Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979