Took 4mins for the lads to take the lead but Poland have equalised after 12mins after some poor defending.
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Took 4mins for the lads to take the lead but Poland have equalised after 12mins after some poor defending.
Great start and took the lead in fifth minute but since scoring the defensive frailties have surfaced and Poland have just equalised in the 13th minute.
Poland seem to be bigger, faster, and better organised.
Our defence seem to be all marking the same player
There has been some nice touches from the Irish midfield
2-1 to Poland at HT, and they are worth it.
3-1 Poland. Getting a bit of a lesson here ATM
& there is number four. Ouchies. This is a tough watch, a mis match.
With an almost entirely home based squad it's fair to say that this game is putting to bed any notions that our young players are somehow better off having to stay in Ireland longer and not having access to the academy setup of the wealthiest and strongest league in world football...
What was being compared was senior first-team experience at 18 versus them all skipping home to join a lower-league academy at the same age. Looking at a group of 14-17 year-olds is a different matter. There's a huge amount of work to be done on the LoI academy setup for sure, and of course a bankrupt association not really in a position to help.
Even without Brexit, that work had to be done as the English clubs had long stopped being interested in any half-competent junior from here, which is why we've been sliding down the rankings the past 20 years.
One game is not putting anything to bed either way. It's a very poor performance, but lets not forget they qualified ahead of Italy to get to this stage. They're learning some harsh lessons, but would expect much better from the next two games.Quote:
Originally Posted by Eirambler
Don't agree with that eirambler, we qualified with an almost entirely home based squad, see the first post in the thread, so clearly doing something rightQuote:
Originally Posted by Eirambler
According to the lineups on uefa.com - https://www.uefa.com/under17/match/2...ic-of-ireland/ - we're playing 5-3-2 and Poland have been playing 3-2-3-2
Not sure if Harnett and O'Sullivan have been playing full backs, as listed on uefa.com, or wing backs, but we've been clearly outnumbered in midfield, ceding possession and territory to the Polish midfield.
After concededing seven goals in six qualifying games, I can't believe we've conceded five in the opening game of the tournament
Cawley calling it correctly on commentary - we have to develop our own game now. Can't rely on sending players abroad any more. And that's a good thing, if we take advantage properly. But Brexit isn't a surprise and we've done very little since it was announced really. The new national underage league is a good start - though I think to an extent UEFA forced it on us - but was it here someone said Luton have more full-time academy staff than across the entire LoI?
(And again, the LoI can offer these guys full-time senior football at 18, and I think that's better than going abroad to an academy at the same age)
It's straight up not true though - our lads still have access to high level European clubs all across the continent at 16. If we wait for domestic investment we'll lose generations worth of players and become also rans. I've been waiting 40 years for progress in domestic football and it hasn't come, it's naive to suggest that it's going to happen now.
See a tweet there from Stephen Finn that we've more 15 yr olds in our squad than all the other teams combined at four and one 14 yr old.Quote:
Originally Posted by ontheotherhand
We have eight 17 year olds, Poland has 15 in their squad! We’ve four lads aged 15 & one 14 year old the other seven are 16. Polish squad has six 16 year olds. Time will tell if having a younger squad will stand to our lads. Poland have been very impressive
In fact, there are more 15 year olds on our squad than all the other nations in the tournament combined! This has been a poor performance against a very good Poland team but being so young has obvious challenges in underage international football.
The above tweet, and you could see it, they were bigger, stronger, faster. I'm not holding it up as an excuse or the only reason we lost so heavily, but surely a factor & time will tell if today stands to them down the line or if it scars them at the level.
What today is not, is a reason to argue that our only good option is to push all our youth to mainland Europe.
Personally I thought we looked physically weaker and didn't think our fitness was at the level required. Seemed we were out of breath early doors for whatever reason, sweating heavily, and taking our time with free kicks, corners. But it's one game, they came through two qualification groups to get to the finals. No need to go armageddon.
If only we could send all our players to develop in Italy instead of at home.... an Italy who we qualified ahead of.
Of course we need to improve our structures at home, but anyone who doesnt see progress in that in the last 5 years doesnt want to see it. All through our underage groups we are far better than we have been in a long time and for the most part these players are being developed domestically. It is far from perfect and needs enormously more investment, but it is a start. It took Brexit happening for some people to sit up and take notice that we have to develop our own game so we have started on the back foot but the likes of Shamrock Rovers, Bohs, Pats and some others are doing great work given the lack of investment in place.
:D:D shhh there will you, that wont fit the baby out with the bathwater one size untested fix fits all narrative one little bit.Quote:
Originally Posted by Razors left peg
Just qualifying for these tournaments is a mega achievement. We dont do it regularly because the qualification process is so difficult. Obviously we want to be able to go there an compete, and beating the likes of Italy along the way shows we can compete at this level. Today is a bad day, that can happen with young fellas, but using this as example of why we cant keep our players at home is just stupid
It should be odd that an Irish footballer supporter sees a home based u17 team qualifying for a tournament as indicative of a problem rather than something to be praised.
Hungary 1-0 up at half time against Wales: https://www.uefa.com/under17/match/2037821/
Wales' keeper is Kit Margetson, wonder if he's related to former Man City keeper Martyn Margetson?
Direct descendant of Kit Marget I think. Half Norwegian.Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
Hungary won 3-0.
Game against Wales on Saturday is a shoot out to stay in the tournament
I see that Poland team has put five goals past Uzbekistan, England, Andorra (6), Belgium, Sweden and Slovakia inside the last eight months. I suspect they're not a bad team at all.
And thats the thing about under age football. Sometimes squads from usually unheralded countries like ourselves can make a short term impact at that age group with an unusually gifted age group. Just a weird thing that some took yesterday as a sign of doom.Quote:
Originally Posted by pineapple stu
- Why do you not look at the age profile of our squad, which appears to be the youngest at the tournament?
Our squad is the youngest we’ve ever had at u17s, by a mile. That’s the problem. The fact we have a 2008 player playing is crazy. Evan Ferguson was a 14 year old phenom and he was kept out of the comparative underage side by the likes of Conor Carty. There should always be a better player available at age 17 than his 14 year old counterpart (in this case Ade Solanke). Normally we have 1* player who’s underage for the level - this year we have 7 players out of 20, and Niall McAndrew would have made it 8. So the question is, what happened to 2006. Why are there only 12 or 13 players considered to be of the level to play in the championships, when every other country has much much more? Maybe it’s the manager’s selection that’s at fault, maybe it’s something gone wrong in development.
*
2022: 1 Kone Doherty used in quals
2021: none
2020: 1 Ferguson used in quals
2019: 1 (McNulty)
2018: 2 (Corcoran, Parrott)
2017: 6 (Idah, Collins, Ledwidge, K Clarke, Wright, Thompson)
2016: didn’t qualify, not sure re quals
2015: 2 (McGuane who we lost, Scully)
One up against Wales here. Bit of madness around penalty though. First penalty saved, linesman flags for retake (correctly). Second penalty is saved, linesman flags again, but rebound is scored and goal stands.
I know there's been controversy about these before, but should the goalkeeper not have been booked?
game is on RTE News Now and RTE Player
Live stream on uefa.tv for anyone outside Ireland
https://www.uefa.tv/match/live/240027/2037830
2-0 nice strike Orazi
Super finish from Orazi.
They have been excellent in 1st half. Razi looks a star in the making
The 3rd goal as good as any Irish team has scored ever, absolutely brilliant
Came after a long period of Welsh possession, although it didn't result in any serious chances for the Welsh
Just noticed Portugal won their second group game last night against Scotland 2-1, after losing their first game 4-0 against Germany
Portugal won six out of six in qualifying, scoring 16 and conceding only once, a penalty against Kazakhstan. Offers a little perspective on the loss in the opening game against Poland
Hungary standing up to Poland better than we did, so it looks like a draw won't be enough in the last game to progress, we'll need to beat them.
Poland through after winning 5-3
Hungary had their keeper sent off at the end, and is obviously suspended for the game against Ireland on Tuesday
https://www.uefa.com/under17/match/2...ary-vs-poland/
<EDIT>
Sorry, it was their goalkeeper coach that was shown the red card
The graph on this tweet tells its own story. Poland with an average of more than 10 dedicated youth coaches per top flight club. Ireland with less than one. And Poland aren't even the outlier here, we are. We need to put an end to this "Brexit is the best thing to happen" nonsense - it's the exact opposite.