Republic of Ireland V Switzerland 25th March & Slovakia 29th March 2016 - Friendlies

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Goalkeepers
Rob Elliot (Newcastle United)	Started
Darren Randolph (West Ham United)	Unused Substitute
David Forde (Millwall)	Unused Substitute
Defenders
Shane Duffy (Blackburn Rovers)	Started	Goal, Clean Sheet	Yellow
Richard Keogh (Derby County)	Started	Clean Sheet	Yellow
Seamus Coleman (Everton)	Started
Ciaran Clark (Aston Villa)	Started
Paul McShane (Reading)	Started
Matt Doherty (Wolverhampton Wanderers)	Started
Stephen Ward (Burnley)	Started		Yellow
John O'Shea (Sunderland)	Sub (73)
Cyrus Christie (Derby County)	Sub (90)
Alex Pearce (Bristol City*)	Unused Substitute
Midfielders
Jonathan Walters (Stoke City)	Started	Goal, Assist	Yellow
Robbie Brady (Norwich City)	Started (76)	Goal
James McCarthy (Everton)	Started
Jeff Hendrick (Derby County)	Started
Glenn Whelan (Stoke City)	Started
Stephen Gleeson (Birmingham City)	Started
Alan Judge (Brentford)	Started
Jonathan Hayes (Aberdeen)	Started
Anthony Pilkington (Cardiff City)	Started		Yellow
Stephen Quinn (Reading)	Started (78)
Aiden McGeady (Sheffield Wednesday*)	Started (45)
Harry Arter (Bournemouth)	Started (45)
Eunan O'Kane (Bournemouth)	Sub (46)
James McClean (West Bromwich Albion)	Sub (59)
Wes Hoolahan (Norwich City)	Unused Substitute
David Meyler (Hull City)	Not in Squad	Illness
Forwards
Robbie Keane (LA Galaxy)	Started	Goal
Shane Long (Southampton)	Started	Assist
Daryl Murphy (Ipswich Town)	Started
Kevin Doyle (Colorado Rapids)	Sunday

Dropped
Keiren Westwood (Sheffield Wednesday)	Started	Clean Sheet
Greg Cunningham (Preston North End)	Started	Assist
Chris Forrester (Peterborough United)	Started
Paul Green (Rotherham United)	Unused Substitute
Darron Gibson (Everton)	Not in Squad
Anthony Stokes (Celtic)	Started	Goal
Simon Cox (Reading)	Sub (78)

Baffling that Alex Pearce is in there. He's played 180 minutes all season and conceded 5 goals. Couple that with a few ragged cameos for Ireland...

Thought Cunningham would have edged Doherty. Came back in from the cold for a match against Poland and didn't look like he missed a step.

Baffling that Westwood isn't in there. You need his experience if something were to happen to Randolph (Given really shouldn't be going to the tournament).

Perhaps rather than giving Cox and Stokes any more token call-ups, opportunities should be afforded to Eoin Doyle, Mason or Madden next time?

A 36 year old League One sub goalkeeper ahead of the Championship goalkeeper of the season. Absolutely bizarre, and Westwood is easily better than Elliot too.

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Originally Posted by TheOneWhoKnocks

Thought Cunningham would have edged Doherty. Came back in from the cold for a match against Poland and didn't look like he missed a step.

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I'm surprised Doherty got in ahead of Cunningham too.
Cunningham is a natural LB whereas Doherty as far as I know is mainly a RB and is filling a gap for Wolves at LB. Cunningham is also part of one the best defences in the Championship.
Might be my Galway bias though...

Think it's pretty clear the Forde over Westwood decision has nothing to do with form, league position or gametime, and simply a desire to have Forde around for a combination of:

a) Because he wants a third-choice goalie who will be an optimistic presence and contribute to the squad spirit.

b) Because Forde is a particularly good character more suited to the role above, rather than Westwood.

I can't comment on Westwood's character, but I wouldn't blame him if he was surly or hesitant about being a third-choice keeper in a squad/at a tournament while Forde has been used before in squads simply because he's highly professional, and almost mentor-like in his role as third choice.

You can argue Westwood is more likely to challenge, but I reckon O'Neill's made up his mind that it's Randolph followed by Elliott and the other keeper might as well be a good dirt-tracker.

I don't think that's bizarre at all, pretty common in squad building.

It is, however, much more bizarre that Westwood isn't closer to the team, for which he has legitimate beef. I can't help but feel there's some level of distrust between management and Westwood, for whatever reason.

Yep... all pretty sh!te and highly frustrating reasons though in my opinion. Maybe there's more to it that we'll find out in time. He'll probably drop Forde on his ass anyway when the other 'great lad to have around the place' regains fitness.

I remember reading what a great presence Forde was around the group. I think that's as much a part of it as any. O'Neill seems to understand group dynamics. Also a reason I believe he hasn't called up Delaney. It wouldn't help the dynamic of the group. An unhappy group will not go out and do the business on the pitch. And football teams and players can be very fickle

Clark has barely played all season. Wilson remains injured. Now O'Shea's rooted to the bench for Sunderland after a couple of high-profile gaffes.

I hope O'Neill knows what he is doing. I would be more comfortable with Delaney leading the team than anyone else in the event O'Shea were to become unavailable. And the fact that he is left-footed is a bonus.

Odd whatever way you put in when you consider he is our best PL performer in that position and Alex Pearce is ahead of him.

Total exaggeration to say Clark has barely played all season. He's been in almost as much as he's been out. Alex Pearce is ahead of Delaney because Alex Pearce isn't retired.

Clark has started 12 times and being an unused substitute 15 times so it was an exaggeration to say he's barely played, but it's still less than half of the games they have played (31).

And Delaney needs to come out and say if he is amenable to a come back instead of having Dann & Pardew do his talking but I think O'Neill should leave his pride aside and ask him if he would agree to come back with no guarantees.

Instead he's shut the door on the possibility.

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Originally Posted by TheOneWhoKnocks

Clark has started 12 times and being an unused substitute 15 times so it was an exaggeration to say he's barely played, but it's still less than half of the games they have played (31).

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He's also played five cup games and obviously the internationals for us. I make that twenty full games this season and he'll probably play some more before it finishes.

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Originally Posted by TheOneWhoKnocks

I think O'Neill should leave his pride aside and ask him if he would agree to come back with no guarantees.

Instead he's shut the door on the possibility.

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It's not about swallowing his pride. It's about consistency, team morale and the future. If you're going to take issue with O'Neill here, it should be on those points; not because you think he's being contrary. There's nothing to suggest he's just being stubborn. He has no reason to be that way, nor would there be any embarrassment for him in actually re-calling Delaney if he wanted to. There's a case to be made for Delaney's inclusion, sure, but O'Neill just doesn't favour it for a few reasons, which I think are perfectly valid.

Agree that Delaney should be in the Squad- but only if he approached it in the right manner. Firstly he should publicly withdraw his inferred criticism of O Neill given the success of the management team in securing qualification, Then he should not hide behind Scott Danns and Alan Pardew in testing the waters in relation to a possible return.

from https://twitter.com/SSEAirtricityLg/...24517539553280

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.@DundalkFC goalkeeper Gary Rogers has been invited to train with the @FAIreland senior team for the next two days.

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Attachment 2414

See who I saw on my flight from Heathrow yesterday: Messrs McShane and Judge.

The omission of Westwood from the squad is Trapesque. He is now in to his second excellent season and is generally regarded as the best Championship keeper and, but for injuries, would have been a regular Premiership player. Perhaps this goes back to issues between MON and Westwood from Sunderland days. I don't know but to leave out from the squad someone who arguably should be starting, let alone a squad player, is disappointing and this is not just my blue striped bias talking here. I was away for the past few days. Was MON queried on this at the Press Conference?

Trapesque? There was no such disquiet on your part with regards to Trap :P He was the best we had and we should have been very happy and lucky we had him... And now you say Trapesque :D

There was a post on the YBIG forum last year from a Sunderland fan theorising that Westwood blotted his copybook badly with Martin O'Neill when he was manager of Sunderland and he refused to play in a League Cup game because he was sick.

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Originally Posted by paul_oshea

Trapesque? There was no such disquiet on your part with regards to Trap :P He was the best we had and we should have been very happy and lucky we had him... And now you say Trapesque :D

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I don't think you'll ever find I used those words. Just about everyone agreed that Trap never picked his strongest squad and made some bizarre selections. What I did think was he got the best out of the squad and made us very competitive, away from home in particular and I didn't care about the style of football. I just hope MON isn't going to stick to the same players like Trap used to do (i.e. become Trapesque and select Forde/Given over Westwood and further down the road the likes of other established midfielders over Arter etc).

League of Ireland keeper trained with the squad today. That's gotta hurt Westwood

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Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

There was a post on the YBIG forum last year from a Sunderland fan theorising that Westwood blotted his copybook badly with Martin O'Neill when he was manager of Sunderland and he refused to play in a League Cup game because he was sick.

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The fact that he has played for Ireland under O'Neill kind of suggests it has little or nothing to do with his time at Sunderland though, doesn't it? I've a feeling he just got sick of him pulling out of Ireland squads.