Mark Kennedy

I dunno, look at David James on Saturday - still easily the best keeper England have got, and he's 40. If Kennedy can come in and do a job for 2 years, he'd be well worth a go.

There is absolutely no point in bringing Mark Kennedy back a this stage IMO. Much rather see us blood Greg Cunningham or whoever instead.

Always though he was vastly over rated to be honest. Probably the fault of the Sunday World, which described him as a cross between Kenny Dalglish, John Barnes and Ian Rush whilst he was on Liverpools radar at Millwall. Some doing if he goes up with Cardiff, given he went up with City and Wolves previously also.

weren't both those teams relegated the following season?

Ha!! Yes.. The Championship's about his level it seems..

There should be a button on the forum you can click to bring up "The Championship's about his level." It would save an awful lot of typing.

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Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

I dunno, look at David James on Saturday - still easily the best keeper England have got, and he's 40. If Kennedy can come in and do a job for 2 years, he'd be well worth a go.

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You can't compare the two as the keepers position is a whole different ball game so to speak. Kennedy was way over-rated and hyped up by his agent to get an inflated price for him.

In your haste you appear to have missed the point. If Mark Kennedy is our best performing left-back, he should be considered for selection. If he's not, it's a moot point. In either case, we're not so blessed with talent that we can afford to discount players based on age.

Ask yourself the question is MK at least as good an option for left back as KK??

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Originally Posted by elroy

Ask yourself the question is MK at least as good an option for left back as KK??

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Let's put it this way -- if there was an injury to Kilbane and the choices for left back were a very raw Greg Cunningham or an experienced player like Kennedy for a crunch Euro qualifier, who would you go with?

I see no harm bringing him into the squad. As we've seen with Carr at Birmingham this season, players well into their 30s can make big contributions to a team.

Not saying Cunningham is no good, but he has only played 1 or 2 first team matches in his life. I think it's too early for him to be involved in the senior squad personally...

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Originally Posted by TrapAPony

There is absolutely no point in bringing Mark Kennedy back a this stage IMO. Much rather see us blood Greg Cunningham or whoever instead.

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I'd much rather see us field our strongest XI and qualify for the European Championships, I've had enough of this "building for the future" garbage over the last few seasons. Let the clubs do that, International sides should be picking the best available players in the here and now. And right now Mark Kennedy is the best left back we have playing consistently well and regularly at a high level. Cunningham is just some guy on a reserve team who might be good some day. :rolleyes:

Mark Kennedy is signing for Ipswich for a fee believed to be £75,000 - he is 34 years old now.

Good signing for Ipswich and will help shore their defense as Damien Delaney is out injured for the next 3 months.

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Originally Posted by SunnySweeney

Mark Kennedy is signing for Ipswich for a fee believed to be £75,000 - he is 34 years old now.

Good signing for Ipswich and will help shore their defense as Damien Delaney is out injured for the next 3 months.

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Keane and Kennedy always seemed to have a decent relationship in the Irish squad but it was always quite surprising because, in his International days, Kennedy's attitude was invariably terrible. One of the most disappointing players of my time as he had so much ability but didn't bother his arse most of the time. He has played better as a defender in recent years but can't help thinking this will be another Irish signing for Ipswich who will be on his way again in January.

It's getting kind of ridiculous now with Roy, isn't it? He's picking up Kennedy now, and he's being linked with Fulop.....every manager brings in a few players from their past, but it seems like with Roy, every signing he's either played with or managed previously...sure every manager has their favourites they bring along with them, but he shows a complete lack of imagination in the transfer market.

To be fair, Kennedy's been playing at a higher level than Ipswich for the past few years - it's not like Healy who was always going to be a bit of a punt.

Just looked at Ipswich's squad on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ipswich_town#Current_squad

There are LOI teams with less tricolours than that!

Don't know why anyone is complaining that we have a manager over in England who's giving irish players a good chance :P

The problem is he gives them a chance for about 20 minutes, substitutes them and then uses the post-match press conference to put them on the transfer list.

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Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

The problem is he gives them a chance for about 20 minutes, substitutes them and then uses the post-match press conference to put them on the transfer list.

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I'm sure you can post some links to back up your claims.

To save Charlie the trouble i´ll give you one :)
Hyperbole, getting your point across with humour

To save Charlie the trouble i´ll give you one :)
Hyperbole, getting your point across with humour

Killer interviewing Mark Kennedy on OTB tonight.

You can listen again to a section of the 'Off the Ball' interview with Kilbane here: https://goo.gl/ys0fvj

Kennedy revealed that he doesn't take an interest in the national team and that he had had a previously-undisclosed falling out with Brian Kerr in early 2003. He didn't play for Kerr or Ireland after that. Some of what Kennedy said in the interview is quoted here: http://www.newstalk.com/mark-kennedy...-kevin-kilbane

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Originally Posted by Newstalk

"I couldn't tell you the last time I watched an Ireland game, not because I don't care about my country. I'm very, very passionate about my country. But I've no interest in the national team. None whatsoever," Kennedy said, before expanding on what happened.

"I vividly remember when - and I cannot be any more honest in this - Brian Kerr's first game in charge was against Scotland and I played for Wolves on the Saturday and I had a groin injury ironically.

"And I personally rang Brian Kerr, and said to him - a physio had spoke to him. I rang him that night on the Saturday and I'll never forget it.

"I personally said to him, 'Brian, I've got a groin injury. I'm struggling, and I promise you one thing, I'll play for Wolves next Saturday, because I'm not dying. I've got a tight, whatever it is... bit of a problem. I will play for Wolves next Saturday'. But I said, 'I'm not going to be one of these players that just says I'm injured. If you want me to play against Scotland I'll come up and I'll play, but I could do without that game'.

"And then he left a message on my phone, which was absolutely bizarre, that night, basically moaning 'I don't like hearing things third hand' and stuff like that. I was thinking, 'I've rang you, I've spoke to you, you're deluded, I've spoke to you'.

"And then the next trip, we played Georgia and Albania away. He put me on standby. I thought, 'You cheeky b*stard'. He called me up, and I told him, 'I'm not going'.

"I'll never forget it: we played Gillingham at home, we won 6-0, I banged in two. Dave [Jones] took me off, and I as I walked off I said, 'I'm injured'. He went, 'What?' And I said 'I'm not going to Georgia and Albania'.

"That was the day my Ireland career [ended] and I just refused to play for them after that."

He did add that Kerr did attempt to bring him back for a "Mickey Mouse tournament in London" some time later.

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Balls.ie have also transcribed some of Kennedy's subsequent words: https://www.balls.ie/football/mark-kennedy-359523

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Originally Posted by Mark Kennedy

He left me out for a long time after that, and he tried to call me up to some mickey mouse tournament in London. I remember speaking to Robbie [Keane], who was playing with Tottenham in the Premier League. There was this Tri-Nations tournament in Fulham, and I said to Robbie, 'What are you doing for your summer holidays'. Robbie said 'oh, I've spoken to so and so, and we've got this tournament'.

Brian Kerr never phoned me, never told me to do this, and do that, and then he called me up right near the end. And do you know what really annoyed me Kev? I just said, I'm not going. I'm injured, I have no interest. I always remember a headline in the paper, and it went 'Sicknote Injured Again', and I thought....you cheeky b*stards. That's nowhere near, I just don't want to play.

I don't want to play for people who I don't respect. And if that means I don't play for my country...then it doesn't bother me.

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Strange story all round. It sounds like there must have been some communication mix-up or mistake - surely - but Kennedy had perhaps already made his mind up and taken a huff. He never struck me as having the most professional or ideal of attitudes. In fact, he admitted he was "really stubborn" and was a "black-and-white person" in the interview. I'd love to hear Kerr's version of events in order to make a proper judgment.

What a sad bitter self interested jerk

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Originally Posted by Stuttgart88

What a sad bitter self interested jerk

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I was wondering how I would sum up my response but that pretty much covers it.

The most interesingt insight was "That was the day my Ireland career [ended] and I just refused to play for THEM after that." "Them" - obviously didn't get that your country is not THEM.

It's never good when you look like a dick giving your own side of the story.

Kennedy on being arrested with Phil Babb on Harcourt Street in Dublin a few days before our World Cup qualifier away to Holland in September of 2000 after Babb damaged the parked personal car of the garda doing security at the Harcourt Street garda station (as transcribed by Balls.ie): https://www.balls.ie/football/mark-k...il-babb-359539

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Originally Posted by OTB

Mark Kennedy: For once in my life, I tried to do something positive. We'd gone out, and myself and Babbsy were in this bar just off Grafton Street. Just the two of us, I wasn't sure where everybody was, as you said Kev, everyone was out. And I was drinking a drink that will remain nameless.

Kevin Kilbane: Oh go on, what was the drink?

Mark Kennedy: Oh it was a girl's drink...Smirnoff Ice. Babbsy had said that, 'What's that you're drinking? I've never had one'. And he actually said, ' I'll have one of them, what's the worst that can happen!?' Then, about three hours later, I'm cuffed in the back of a car.

But anyway, the night carried on, and as you'll well remember Kev, curfew was 12 o'clock. Now managers aren't stupid, some lads come in at twelve, so if you're going to stay out late, make sure and come back at six, when nobody is up. But I had actually said to Babbsy 'come on, let's go back, and we left everybody in Coppers.

Babbsy used to do this, it was called Death Stuntman. He would roll over the bonnet of a stationary car, but demonstrate a stuntman getting hit at sixty miles an hour. you had to see this to believe it, but it was really good!

But basically, Babb did Death Stuntman, and he damaged the bonnet of the car. Now bizarrely, and stupidly, he did this on Harcourt Street, which is probably the biggest police station in Dublin, and the car that was damaged was the Bangarda's, who was on security.

Kevin Kilbane: Of all the cars in Dublin...

Mark Kennedy: So that happened, she came out to see what was all the commotion, and a few lads who knew who we were, said 'oh, these were jumping on your car'. So, in my ignorance, and stubborness, my attitude was, which I'd never do again obviously, 'I haven't done anything wrong, so there's nothing you can do to me'. But before I know it, I'm cuffed in the back of the car again, and Babbsy is outside the car talking to the woman.

I was saying, 'I haven't done anything, what am I doing here'.

Next thing I know, I'm sure they put us in Mountjoy, in a holding cell. But the next day, we are taken to a courthouse, and before hand, we were put in a holding cell, and I remember there was a load of lads saying 'Jaysis lads, Mick isn't going to like this', and 'you're not going to get your game on Saturday when he sees ye'. Then when we walk up through the steps into the courthouse, it was absolutely rammed. And I'm thinking '...oh ****'.

This is big. This is really big. We didn't know, it was on the radio. So we then go back to the hotel after that, and naturally the gaffer wants to speak to us. I said 'Look gaffer, I haven't done anything', and the gaffer said 'you're out of the squad'.

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I've not listened to this section of the interview, but Balls.ie added that "Kennedy later said that he didn't appreciate how big the incident had become, while he pleaded his case to McCarthy, he accepted that being arrested on international duty wasn't good enough".

the segment they broadcasted last night is online here, along with the rest of last night's football show: http://cdn.radiocms.net/media/001/au...audio_file.mp3
There's more tonight, and the entire interview is going out on Thursday

Many thought he was the next big thing when as a teenager he went from Millwall to Liverpool for over a million at the time. I can't remember who said it about him, but it was something along the lines that he shone as a bright light for about five minutes before dimming down to a 15 watt bulb for the remainder of his career. I remember him as a languid player who could turn it on occasionally with some excellent crosses and shots. Can't recall where he went after Wimbledon and couldn't be ars*d looking it up.

He moved to Manchester City after Wimbledon and then Wolves after that.

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Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

the segment they broadcasted last night is online here, along with the rest of last night's football show: http://cdn.radiocms.net/media/001/au...audio_file.mp3
There's more tonight, and the entire interview is going out on Thursday

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Interesting that Kilbane describes Kennedy as being "a very good character" and says that "people have got the wrong perception of him over the years" when asked if Kennedy is "spiky". Kilbane adds that Kennedy was a "very, very popular lad within the dressing room", was "good fun" and "enjoyed his life".

Kilbane does admit that Kennedy acknowledges having made a few errors in his life and could definitely have been more dedicated, particularly at Liverpool.

I'd either completely forgotten or simply not been aware that Kennedy was also arrested, aged 20, whilst on international duty for us in the US in 1996 after knocking over a plant pot outside a restaurant (seemingly by mistake) and getting himself into an argument with the owner who demanded $1,000 for the damage. Kennedy refused to pay, the police got involved (because "they're everywhere in America") and asked him to accept the damages, but Kennedy stubbornly refused again and was cuffed "before [he] knew it" and put in the back of their car.

I never really had anything negative in my mind about him before reading the Newstalk quotes above. I remember the car thing with himself and Babb alright but that was harmless really.

Kilbane's an incredibly nice fella, I couldn't imagine him saying anything but nice things about any former teammate unless he had serious reasons not to. That's not to say Kennedy isn't a good character, but he doesn't come off too well in that interview.

Outside of moving from Millwall to Liverpool, I can only really remember him playing for Wolves with any real clarity, although I can picture him in the Manchester City jersey now that you say it.

I remember him having a brilliant shot off the bar for Liverpool at Anfield (Kop end I'm sure), a shame it didn't go in seeing as he never scored for them. He'll be forever remembered by the Millwall fans at least, most notably for this.

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Originally Posted by DeLorean

It's never good when you look like a dick giving your own side of the story.

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"I'm a black or white type person" i.e., a knob

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Originally Posted by DeLorean

. He'll be forever remembered by the Millwall fans at least, most notably for this.

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Seems like Stutts can't forget that one.

Came across a Muppet in that interview. Never to blame for his own actions - the original Steven Ireland. If I remember correctly there was a conversation between Dunphy and his former manager Kinnear on the premiership on rte along time ago where Kinnear alluded to Kennedy's attitude "Thinks the world owes him a living". He was no great loss during that era either way, we had regular premier league players that couldn't get a game for us at that time, all willing to turn up home and away for the green. Couldn't make it top level because of his attitude, championship player at best.

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Originally Posted by Stuttgart88

"I'm a black or white type person" i.e., a knob

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True. A strange pet hate too maybe, but I also find it gratingly condescending when somebody calls a fellow grown-up "cheeky". Kennedy does it twice in that short piece when referring to Kerr and whatever journalists called him sicknote as "cheeky b*stards". Comes across as smug or something.

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Originally Posted by geysir

Seems like Stutts can't forget that one.

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I had forgotten it until now. Great goal versus Yugoslavia but still a knob.

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Originally Posted by DeLorean

True. A strange pet hate too maybe, but I also find it gratingly condescending when somebody calls a fellow grown-up "cheeky". Kennedy does it twice in that short piece when referring to Kerr and whatever journalists called him sicknote as "cheeky b*stards". Comes across as smug or something.

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It's especially rich for him to complain about being dubbed "sicknote" when he actually admits - in the very passage before having a go at the so-called "cheeky b*stards" - to having (falsely) used the excuse that he was injured in order to avoid the call-up in question.

He comes across as a Gobs***e even with a friendly interviewer (Kevin Kilbane)..Its safe to say he is a Gobs**e.....

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Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

It's especially rich for him to complain about being dubbed "sicknote" when he actually admits - in the very passage before having a go at the so-called "cheeky b*stards" - to having (falsely) used the excuse that he was injured in order to avoid the call-up in question.

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I heard it differently, he was just trying to remember the conversation he had.
Kerr called him late in day for that mini tournament and Kennedy said "I just wasn't going, i'm injured, not injured........." He more or less said he wasn't interested.
From what I gather, Kerr leaked it to the press that 'sick note was injured again', in order to deliberately show Kennedy in a bad light. Kerr abused his position.
Up to then, Kennedy had not said anything to the press about their previous falling out, not even to the other players like Kilbane.
When Kennedy said he was a black and white type guy he was referring to his stubbornness in such situations, it's either or.

Kennedy bad, everybody else good and honest?? I doubt it. But I don't really care, Kennedy had a long and very good club career, for us he might have just about made it into the squad on his good days.

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Originally Posted by geysir

I heard it differently, he was just trying to remember the conversation he had.
Kerr called him late in day for that mini tournament and Kennedy said "I just wasn't going, i'm injured, not injured........." He more or less said he wasn't interested.

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You've misheard/misquoted the passage. In the interview with Kilbane, Kennedy says: "I just said [to Brian Kerr], 'I'm not going. I'm injured, I have no interest.'"

I suppose it is still possible though that he mis-remembered or got his words mixed up and corrected himself. Hard to tell.

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Originally Posted by DannyInvincible

You've misheard/misquoted the passage. In the interview with Kilbane, Kennedy says: "I just said [to Brian Kerr], 'I'm not going. I'm injured, I have no interest.'"

I suppose it is still possible though that he mis-remembered or got his words mixed up and corrected himself. Hard to tell.

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"I have no interest" is actually more indicative of Kennedy's low regard for Kerr. Kennedy wasn't even peddling the injury excuse, just openly mocking Kerr by mentioning a phantom injury as a faux excuse.
"I just said [to Brian Kerr], 'I'm not going. I'm injured, I have no interest.'" He had no interest in playing, but Kerr choose to select the sick note thing to inform the press.
Kerr was just as much as a bóllix as Kennedy was over that little event maybe more so Kerr as he was the elder, Kerr had no such scruples in bending over backwards to get the rebel Keane back into the team.