David Connolly

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Originally Posted by pete

I can't speak for other clubs but he might get on the bench for us.

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Either your joking or deluded. He would stand out like a sore thumb and you must know that. Do you have ideas of grandeur? Cork City have just signed Colin Healy and Gareth Farrelly. Yes thats the Colin Healy recently released by Barnsley, and the Gareth Farrelly recently released by Blackpool. Both of these sides are playing in the division below where Connolly is currently plying his trade, yet a man obviously rated by someone with the football knowledge of Roy Keane may make your bench!

O Dear

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Originally Posted by livehead1

Either your joking or deluded. He would stand out like a sore thumb and you must know that. Do you have ideas of grandeur? Cork City have just signed Colin Healy and Gareth Farrelly. Yes thats the Colin Healy recently released by Barnsley, and the Gareth Farrelly recently released by Blackpool. Both of these sides are playing in the division below where Connolly is currently plying his trade, yet a man obviously rated by someone with the football knowledge of Roy Keane may make your bench!

O Dear

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Barnsley are in the same league but I agree with your overall sentiment.

Connolly had his day and proved time and time again that he wasn't up to the challenge set before him. He's too lightweight and not fast or skillful enough for International football. He also misses too many chances. Let him ride off into the sunset and not prevent younger, infinitely more talented prospects from getting into the squad/team.

Begone Connolly I set thee free.

how people are slagging off connolly when he is our most inform striker yet andy keogh who moves from the heights of s****horpe to wolves where he has not scored yet gets in the squad is beyond me .. would have loved to see connolly ahead of keane in san marino. Keane has not done **** all for ireland for a while yet and needs a good kick up the hole and bringing back an inform striker like connolly would be the best option .. Connollys all round play has been excellent this season and we should play our on form players at the mo.

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Originally Posted by youngirish

Yeah like when? He was rubbish even before Keane came into the senior team. He's a terrible player. Always the same cr*p comes around when he scores a few goals in the Championship regarding a recall. Leave him be. He's found his level and it's not International standard.

He'll be one of the first Sunderland players off loaded by Keane when they get promoted.

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obviously your knowledge of sunderland is severely limited as connolly has been our best player this season and why keane would get rid of him would be beyond me. Stokes has not got into his stride yet at sund yet the whole of ireland seemed to be gagging to call him up .. He will be one of the first people keane will secure on a better contract if we get promoted this season

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Originally Posted by Leeza

LOL

The problem with Connoly is that the English Championship is where he plays best, against mediocre opposition at best.

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Pity Stan rated San Marino as "fairly handy" and not "mediocre" then, cos on current form , if he'd been called up, I reckon Connolly could have increased the tally from the strikers on the day (a big fat zero, fact fans!) by at least 3.....


In hindsight, what would we have preferred against the Sammarinese?

A - A petulant sulky Keane, falling too deep to be effective, Shouting & flapping his arms like a fraggle after every wasted half chance, and dropping like a hot shyte whenever an SM defender looked threateningly at him.

or

B - a striker in red hot (albeit championship) form with a point to prove, against the weakest team in Europe?

Im kinda heading towards "B".

Many people here know that I always defend Connolly, and I wont stop that, but I don't think its right to rip in to Robbie Keane either. People have too high expectations of him. He is a great striker (as is Connolly) but hes not a robot that will score in every (or even every other) international match. Give both him (and, for some here, Connolly) a break...its not as if they're not trying out there.
Next year, if Sunderland get promoted or Connolly is transfered to an EPL team, give him a fair chance there, which he has still not had. He was there last year and was either hurt or was often behind Roberts and Camara most of the time (Paul Jewell's decision). I remember during his last match (when Camara got hurt) he played great...I think that match was against Arsenal, so dont automatically assume he can't get it done there. He was tearing it up in preseason for the Latics this year and if Roy Keane hadn't joined Sunderland, who knows what could have happened (though Sunderland has been a good fit).

Just straying off the topic slightly, but this lark of calling people into a squad to either a) secure their declaration ala Dixon, or b) because of form shown 25 yrs ago is bollax. We should be picking players who are on form. I mean the talent at our disposal is limited enough anyway, yet people are slating players for something they did 10 years ago, while in the same breath dismissing their chances because they were deemed to play well for us 10 yrs ago.

While I understand the purpose of having a squad I reckon there is very little competition for places in our first 11 all being fit, yet the common concencus is that of the regular 11 maybe 3 deserve to be starting on current form.

Our regular 11:

Given*
Finnan
Dunne*
McShane
Harte/O'Shea`
Duff
Carsley*
Andy Reid*/Ireland
Kilbane`
Keane `
Doyle*

*deserve to be starting on current form
`on recent form shouldn't be starting.

As for the topic of Connolly, I can't understand the abuse he is getting here. It cannot be as a result of form, because i can't remember him getting any sort of run of games starting for Ireland in the last 7 yrs. In fact the one game I do remember him starting was the game against Turkey, and as pointed out by others, he had a super game.
It seems people have the hump for him because of the red card against Belgium (he was 19 ffs - and arguably McAteers red card earlier in the campaign was more fcuking stoopid yet nobody went stir crazy over that), and his alleged comments over being dropped from the Ireland Greece squad. Now while I'm not sure 100%, I think it was Don Givens who quoted the alleged comments Connolly supposedly made. And having seen what that cnut has done with the U21's the last 10 yrs none of what he says has any credibility afaic.

i can get with all your points kingdon except for one, i feel mcateer more than redeemed himself in the green jersey in the intervening period after that red card , connolly has not.
and macca also was at fault for declaring himself fit during WC2002 when he patently wasn't but still i'd forgive him!

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Originally Posted by Kingdom

his alleged comments over being dropped from the Ireland Greece squad. Now while I'm not sure 100%, I think it was Don Givens who quoted the alleged comments Connolly supposedly made. And having seen what that cnut has done with the U21's the last 10 yrs none of what he says has any credibility afaic.

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Yeah, that was Givens. Called Connolly up after some players pulled out of the Greece game, Connolly was alleged to have said he should be the first choice striker for ireland, not waiting on a call up.

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Originally Posted by zinedineontour

obviously your knowledge of sunderland is severely limited as connolly has been our best player this season and why keane would get rid of him would be beyond me. Stokes has not got into his stride yet at sund yet the whole of ireland seemed to be gagging to call him up .. He will be one of the first people keane will secure on a better contract if we get promoted this season

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We'll see who's right when Sunderland are in the Premiership next season. Connolly won't get a look in. He's a Championship player. You wouldn't even be bothered defending him if he was still playing for Wigan so I'll take your opinion with a pinch of salt.

Connolly me bo**ox. Let's go the whole hog and bring back Gary's Breen and Doherty while we're talking about dragging up dead wood.

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Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

Yeah, that was Givens. Called Connolly up after some players pulled out of the Greece game, Connolly was alleged to have said he should be the first choice striker for ireland, not waiting on a call up.

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I read Connolly's counter to that and he said that when he wasn't in the Squad he booked to have something done with his ankle (or heel) so when Given called him Connolly explained that had he been called up to the original squad he'd have been in a position to postpone the op but he couldn't now, at which point Given hung up on him.... Or something to that effect

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Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

Yeah, that was Givens. Called Connolly up after some players pulled out of the Greece game, Connolly was alleged to have said he should be the first choice striker for ireland, not waiting on a call up.

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Thats my point Tets. Givens is the one who alleged it. Therefore I'm not believing it. Incidently wasn't Connolly injured anyway? What forwards were in the squad below? He should have been picked for the game and then released due to injury. Givens is a cnut.

From: http://www.rte.ie/sport/2002/1118/ireland.html

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Givens reckons Connolly rejected the chance to play against Greece because he was not selected in the original squad, but Connolly has denied this: "Don has said I've refused to play for my country and I find that terrible because I never would do that," Connolly said. "It has taken me by surprise and I'm very disappointed. I came off near the end of Saturday's game suffering from a sore heel. I've had stitches in it and some of the stitches have been coming out. After the game it was decided if I was selected I would not be going and the club said that is what they would tell the FAI if they rang. As it turned out Don rang me on Saturday night and asked me `are you fit?'. I asked him why he wanted to know and he said he wanted to call me into the squad. I asked him why I wasn't in the original squad and he said `I choose the squad'. I said I felt I should have been in the original squad. Don said, `do you want to play or not?' and, before I could explain - `no, I'm injured' - he heard the word `no' and ended the conversation. If it wasn't for the stitches in my heel I would have been there like a shot and if they (the FAI) had spoken to my club none of this would have happened."

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and

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Givens said he made a written note of the conversation after he got off the phone. His version of events is: "The conversation on the phone on Saturday evening went: 'Hello David, it's Don Givens. Are you fit?' He said: 'To what do I owe the honour of this phone call?' I said: 'I would like you to join the squad tomorrow?' He said: 'Why was I not selected in the original squad?' I said: 'David, that was the choice I made.' He said: 'I should be the number one striker for Ireland, not number five.' At that point I said to him: 'David, do you want to come tomorrow?' He said 'no' and I said: 'Right David, good luck' and put the phone down. That is all I have to say on the David Connolly issue and I don't want it to become a negative force for Wednesday for the boys here. I'd prefer to talk about the boys who are looking forward to being involved."

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Originally Posted by youngirish

We'll see who's right when Sunderland are in the Premiership next season. Connolly won't get a look in. He's a Championship player. You wouldn't even be bothered defending him if he was still playing for Wigan so I'll take your opinion with a pinch of salt.

Connolly me bo**ox. Let's go the whole hog and bring back Gary's Breen and Doherty while we're talking about dragging up dead wood.

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we sure will .. by all reckoning stokes will be the first one to go in the summer if he keeps up with his indiscretions since he joined the club. He has already been dropped earlier in the season for an incident and has been left out of the squad this weekend for another. Keane will not stand for his off the field antics and though the lad is hugely talented he really needs to buck up his ideas quick smart.

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Originally Posted by zinedineontour

we sure will .. by all reckoning stokes will be the first one to go in the summer if he keeps up with his indiscretions since he joined the club. He has already been dropped earlier in the season for an incident and has been left out of the squad this weekend for another. Keane will not stand for his off the field antics and though the lad is hugely talented he really needs to buck up his ideas quick smart.

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Would injury not be the obvious reason?

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Originally Posted by eirebhoy

Would injury not be the obvious reason?

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the reason touted for the first incident officially by the club was injury but he was 100% not injured for the sheff wed game. Secondly he has been dropped from the squad tmow again for not footballing issues and again is not injured. Lad needs to stop believing the unbelievable hype surrounding him and get down to concentrating on his football or he wont last very long at sunderland.

You're being a bit vague. :) How do you know he wasn't injured for the Wednesday game? How do you know he isn't injured now? You're probably right but you've given no reason for us to believe you. You said you're 100% sure he wasn't injured against Wednesday, at least tell us how you know. :)

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Originally Posted by eirebhoy

You're being a bit vague. :) How do you know he wasn't injured for the Wednesday game? How do you know he isn't injured now? You're probably right but you've given no reason for us to believe you. You said you're 100% sure he wasn't injured against Wednesday, at least tell us how you know. :)

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been a bit vague for obvious reasons and no not cause its bull****. It has not come into the public eye and i dont intend been the one to do that but believe what you like about this but its all true. Keane had a meeting with the team this morning about indiscretions involving players and players missing training. Just hope the lads cops on soon enough cause he could be a great talent.

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Originally Posted by zinedineontour

been a bit vague for obvious reasons and no not cause its bull****. It has not come into the public eye and i dont intend been the one to do that but believe what you like about this but its all true. Keane had a meeting with the team this morning about indiscretions involving players and players missing training. Just hope the lads cops on soon enough cause he could be a great talent.

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As soon as you said it I went onto the RTG forum. Could you at least say if you know whether irishmackem has a source in Sunderland? I'm not going to take the word on a forum as gospel. If you got your info elsewhere then fair enough.