Was anyone at the Romania game in Genoa? 60 mins or so before KO Brady's mug game up on the big screens at the corners of the ground, with headphones and a mike as he was working for Italian TV. The Irish started singing "Liamo" or "One Liam Brady" and he couldn't stop smirking. Special moment.
I'll say it again for the millionth time. We need a big guy up front. Every set piece, cross and long ball we had no chance. How many crosses went in yesterday and how many did we actually win?
Keane and Doyle has never looked like it would work, especially with a crap central midfield.
was it not the BBC?! "Go on Dave, knock it in"Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
EDIT: yes it was : http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/forums/s...=394220&page=2
Was at the game. I thought we were poor. Atmosphere was shocking as well. Has anyone ever noticed the amount of movement there is with people. I never saw that at Lansdowne. I know it was a significantly lower capacity but it seems quite bizarre. Almost boredom ;). I think Croke Park is our bandwagon home, a lot of supporters may not get tickets in the New Lansdowne (that could be good or bad), but the atmosphere should improve. Although I've noticed a downward change in atmosphere since the 4-0 Holland game, Slovakia being the exception to that.
Before everyone goes blaming the stadium for the bad atmosphere, people must also remember that the team is sh*te and it hard to get excited about a sh*te team.
When or If we ever improve and play well then I'm sure the supporters will change their tune.
Would anyone have the line-ups of both teams last night with squad numbers? Cheers, it's for my young lad- wants to fill in his programme at this stage!
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=235247&cc=5901Quote:
Originally Posted by Seagull
ESPN has the players with their squad numbers but doesn't have a diagram of their exact position on the pitch.
It seems impossible to create any kind of atmosphere at Croke park unless the game is really important and we're winning (Slovakia last year was electric).I stood on the North Terrace when we played Brazil the last time and there was constant noise; sure there was no jacks and you couldn't wander off to buy hot dogs or popcorn but it was still so much better than last night. It doesn't help that everyones miles from the pitch and the Irish songs they usually play before the game got relaced by Take That and Euromillions and Eircom ads played at earsplitting volume. It would also be nice if the country we love wasn't referred to as "the Republic of Ireland sponsored by Eircom" at every opportunity. Sell the name of the new stadium if you like but not the name of the f***ing country!
what your just after saying is what i think is the major problem with our fans. Its not over-expectation or that the team is sh!te. we're all great fans, best in the world and all that sh!te when we're winning but when its not going well the atmosphere at games is crap. our squad has alot of talent - all fit and on form - one of the top ten in europe, easily! the problem is the lack of decent manager and and the incompetant freeloaders at the FAI. Our supporters should be focusing their frustration and anger at the FAI which is a farce, instead of complaining that our team is sh!te. SA 2010 should be our teams peak, but our best chance of doing well in a competition for what could be a long time to come is being seriously hampered by those who claim to have Irish footballs best interest at heart. Its not the Irish team thats sh!te, just everything else!Quote:
Originally Posted by Torn-Ado
Those ads are getting more and more annoying. They're actually distracting during the game. At least American football has the decency to stop the game first.Quote:
Originally Posted by lilywhite stu
I see this has turned into a bit of a 'McGeady no end product' thread.
Sure you could say that about anyone. Keane had a good game but didn't score - no end product. Doyle was brutal and had no end product. The midfielders created nothing - no end product. Given let in a goal - no end product. McGeady beats a man to the byline and puts in a poor ball. A nation collectively sighs - ''ahhh, ol McGeady - no end product". Forget about everything else he does. Skill, touch, throughballs, little slipped passes, driving runs......
honestly its like reading a Celtic forum from a couple of years ago.
As EB says, the analysis on him is written before a ball is kicked.
Shock horror. Headline news:
ATMOSPHERE AT FRIENDLY CR*P
In all my years of following Ireland, with the exception of friendlies against England, the atmosphere at friendlies has been dead. It is the nature of the beast. There is nothing at stake. Nothing to get the adrenalin flowing.
Put some meaningful points to contest for and it's a different ballgame. Such is life and I am amazed that anyone is surprised . It has always been like that. And we also didn't boo our team unlike the English fans when they started playing it around at the back :rolleyes:
:confused:Quote:
Originally Posted by Bottle of Tonic
Has paranoia taken you over. There is no pleasing some people until the whole world agrees with them.
Have you read the thread or just focussed on the 2 or 3 posters who were negative about McGeady?
The vast majority of posters on this thread thought that McGeady had from a good game to MOM.
'And we also didn't boo our team unlike the English fans when they started playing it around at the back ':rolleyes:
To be honest i was cringing, waiting for the boos at the final whistle. i was surprised and relieved when they didnt come.
As some have said the atmosphere was crap, but every friendly I've been at has been terrible, this was no different to the Brazil game 4 years ago. Yet again it took less than 20 minutes for the mexican wave to get going, really ****es me off and it always starts where I sit (Cusack/Canal corner).
On a more serious note, I think the stewarding needs to be improved drastically. The amount of bottles flying around the place was unreal, and it's getting worse with every game. But the stewards are busy watching the game. There was a row of young lads in front of me throwing stuff (toffees, brocken sticks from flag poles, t-shirts :rolleyes:) the whole first half and 3 of us told them to stop at different times and we eventually had to call a steward over to get them to stop.
Then a fight broke out down in front, with 2 young scumbags punching the heads off each other - they were dragged out by the guards.
at the end of the match in the concourse behind section 311 (I think) there was a lad shouting for anyone to fight him. Someone eventually stood up to him and your man's scumbag friend comes in from the side and head-butts the lad who had done nothing. They all leg it down the steps and off home. Scumbags :mad: People are talking on another thread about a scumbag element in the away support, but it's in the home suport too.
Its the kids that start it.
I know, young lad behind me every two minutes "let's do the mexican wave". and then of course they boo and shout "who arreeee ya" when it doesn't take off :rolleyes:Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilMcD
Ta for that.Quote:
Originally Posted by danonion
I wish people would just understand the atmosphere was crap because it was a friendly its the same as any other country, England,Wales,Scotland,France,Spain etc all these countries have ****e atmospheres.
In any of the other stands were the aisles full with people sitting in them? I was in the Davin and the whole place was choked up because of lads sitting in the aisles all the way up. Not sure whether there was a problem with tickets or they just had seats away from their mates and wanted to sit beside them. Bloody nuisance though.
The row at the corner of the canal and Cusack was nearly in the exact same spot as the one during the Cypress game. Saw the schooligans pulling their scarves over their faces after the game at back of stand and heading for Jones' Rd. Went back into Cusack and out onto Clonliffe Road. The Gardai were preventing people from the Canal end getting out onto Clonliffe Road. The poxy Mexican Wave is becoming a nonsense. Ruining anyones chance of enjoying the game.
As for the game, I thought Brazil played within themselves, while we seemed to be content to let them play it around in front of us. Surprised Brazil didn't test Given with some shots from outside the box, they seemed to be obsessed with getting around the back of us. Thought McGeady should have been delegated to pick up the right back when he was bombing forward on the opposite side to the play. Kilbanes job has to be to tuck in behind the centre halves on the cover.
As for the goal, Carsley just got squared up to much with Robinho.
The centre of midfield never got going and we were relying on Duff and McGeady to create openings. But if we're going to rely on these two then we need a big centre forward to get on the end of crosses.
Finally thought Givens might have been a bit generous and given a few more subs a few minutes near the end.
What was he expecting?? :confused:Quote:
Originally Posted by Billsthoughts
If you're looking for technical ability and sexy football, you don't watch us. You watch games like Portugal v Italy, or Spain v France.
Quote:
Originally Posted by geysir
Yeah, probably. I was hungover to hell today and typed that with Mr. Paranoia sitting on the couch here beside me. Major uncertainty and his mate the fear are still hanging around the kitchen. They're up to no good.
I think you need to go and lie down.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bottle of Tonic
Can anyone identify Given's assistants?
Mo and Curly, I believe.Quote:
Originally Posted by DeNiro
Ok you have me. He was defintiely a 9 then........Quote:
Originally Posted by tricky_colour
because he nearly created a goal. to use your words "net effect zero".
I didnt comment on any of the other players, positive or negative, I just found your grading of Hunt ridiculous. As I said he did put in two decent crosses but that was it.
Paul Clement I believeQuote:
Originally Posted by DeNiro
Sounds more like a dose of the DeeTees :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Bottle of Tonic
Atmosphere was rubbish, and has been for a long time now, qualifiers included. We have no songs, apart from the incredibly annoying and almost retarded 'stand up for the boys in green'. And we seem to have made the huge mistake of seating every annoying little bol**x in the corner between the Davin and Cusack as that's where the pathetic Mexican waves are emanating from. Who are the crowd in that corner?
Does anyone have this game on tape? I was wondering where I could get a copy of it.
oh alrite...glad ya cleared that up...:rolleyes:Quote:
Originally Posted by mypost
Watch those games and 50% of the games will be players rolling round in agony pretending they're injured and lots of diving.Quote:
Originally Posted by mypost
Perhaps you find that sexy ;) ?
Seems to be the schoolkids' section though it seems to be much more full of skangers than in Lansdowne.Quote:
Originally Posted by 4tothefloor
On this point, and especially in the context of the possibility of us getting an Italian manager, it's interesting to read some of the UK press dissecting Capello's first match in charge of England, whose players play in the same league as ours by and large. Powell in the daily Mail was his usual xenophobic self and Simon Barnes in The Times was surprisingly so as well ("pah, what's wrong with up and at 'em? We invented the game" type shyte).Quote:
Originally Posted by Billsthoughts
This piece from the Independent says it all though:
Fabio Capello's right-hand man, Franco Baldini, has criticised the lack of "technical skill" in the England squad – and said that the players have to get used to double training sessions while on international duty so that they can improve their passing.
Baldini, who holds the title of England's general manager under the new regime and is a major influence on Capello, acknowledged that the tougher approach, working the players harder before games, might not go down well with Premier League managers.
"We need more technical skill," Baldini said. "We have to practise, practise, practise. Unfortunately, we have the players just for a few days every two months and so, on this occasion, we made four training sessions [instead of two]. Maybe some managers here [in England] will not approve of this, but we have to try at all times so that we can do that."
Baldini's ideas are certainly a reflection of what Capello truly thinks and he added that the English game needed to change drastically. "We are trying to play more with the ball because the English culture is after two, three horizontal passes the crowd is asking for the ball [gestures through the air[," he said in the wake of the 2-1 friendly victory over Switzerland on Wednesday evening.
"We have to try and play more. We have to play with more confidence because it's easier to play when the ball is at your feet. So we have to try and incorporate this confidence in our game, in our self, to give us more chances. Some things were good in this game, some things not. But it was good enough from my point of view."
Funny thing is that Ireland actually has some technically good players who do like to pass the ball. Carsley's distribution was shocking but the rest of our shortarse midfield options are all good ball players but lack presence. McCaffrey's U21s (me going into broken record mode again here) played crisp passing football so we do have this type of player coming through. Even in 2002 without Keane we passed the ball well. We can do it.
However, with the futures of our young players so entangled in the English game I really hope that the FAI's technical develoment plan is bringing up our kids to play the way they do in Europe.
I saw a great programme the other day comparing football in this era to the fifties in england and basically saying not much has changed. Best part of it were the clips of the Hungarians 6-3 win at Wembley. Has anyone ever seen these? amazing play. Deffo think we need to set up a few academies in Ireland and take control of our own youth development. But who do we have that would have any experience of youth development.....????:)
Brian Kerr ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by Billsthoughts
Other national sides were looking to learn from us at one stage. But not anymore :D
When I think of technical ability I think of purely a players ability with their feet. Nothing more. imo what British and Irish players lack is the movement, quick decision making, basic tactical awareness and intelligence. One touch football would usually be basic 10 yard passes. You don't need to be especially technically gifted to play that kind of pass. The brain is the most important thing. Ambrosino and Gattuso are not great technically but they can play very quick one touch football with Milan and Italy.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
I'm sure it goes back to the fact that our younger players play on huge pitches. Being fast and fit is a lot more important for our players at that age than to be techincally gifted. It's completely different in Brazil where they play in tiny area's.
Yep, and also the courage to make yourself available for that easy pass, having the confidence to look for the ball even if you're not in loads of space. I used to prentend I wanted the ball but never really did!Quote:
Originally Posted by eirebhoy
I read an ex-Celtic player after they lost in Benfica this year, citing ball retention as an alien factor in Celtic's away performances. He said Benfica would get the ball, work it wide and if a good option wasn't available they'd work it back into the middle again and go to the other side and keep the cycle going. Celtic would get the ball, work it wide and if nothing was on it'd go back to the centre back who'd hoof it!
This season in the CL I thought Celtic were outclassed in every single match. All it takes is Nakamura being in the team for home games against the likes of Benfica and Shakhtar to change that though.
Anyway, our brainless one dimensional play is the main reason why I'd love Trapattoni to get the job. A proper coach who'd change that.