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I agree, but the last time we beat them was largely down to a brilliant Andy Reid, Duff too played very well. If neither are available we will be very much blunter this time around, despite the addition of Doyle.Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
I was really referring to the boost they will carry from the 5-2 hammering.
That result should be egging us on to beat them even more so. If the players cant be motivated by getting a chance to get them back for that nighmare in Nicosia then id worry about themQuote:
Originally Posted by Paddy Garcia
It's a mentality thing. We play OK when we are behind. Go a goal up & our game changes, we become nervious, sit back, loose shape, play as if we are terrified. You can actually feel it. They need a hypnotist to make them believe they are chasing the game for the full 94 minutes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
That's the true reflection of where we are.
I would have more confidence, if we had something vaguely resembling a competent man running the team. But he isn't, and our run-in is very tough. I've no confidence in this team under his leadership, and won't have until he's gone. We play with fear, even against rubbish, and while we got away with it in March, the luck will run out in the autumn.
if you are wrong it will be interesting to see what you say mypost after the event.
What worries me is that to date we haven't got a better result than the Czechs against anyone else in the group. Most of our results have been worse to be honest. Yes we beat Wales and Slovakia at home but the Czechs also beat the Welsh in the same fixture with a better goal difference and they'll beat the Slovaks by more than 1-0 at home.
They've only drawn with Wales away so people are claiming they've slipped up but we'll struggle on current form for anything better from that game.
They probably will beat Cyprus away but even if they only draw that's still a point better off in the same two fixtures than we'll manage even if we get 3 points against Cyprus at home (which we should though it'll probably be painful to watch).
They beat Slovakia away which again would be a great result if we emulated but that'll be tough. I really believe we still need to beat the Czechs away to qualify as we'll drop too many points in the other fixtures. This is not impossible. IMO we are more likely to win that game than lose it if we go for the 3 points from the outset and a few of our injured players are back. A draw in Slovakia mightn't be such a disaster if it meant we instead went for a win in Prague instead of a draw.
My only hope is that traditonally we play best when we've got nothing to lose. We really need to win 4 of our 5 games to have any chance of qualifying. Five points from the games with Slovakia, Czech and Germany and it's the usual scenario of hoping others slip up. This could happen, but teams like the Czechs seem to have a nasty habit of doing just enough.
We simply can't settle for two draws. We need to beat the Slovaks and at least draw with the Czechs. Hopefully, the mentality of the lads will be to go for it.If it is, then we can do it.
After I said we were out of the World Cup following the 2 point surrender against Israel at home, they said I'd be wrong. I wasn't. We had a decent team, and someone qualified to coach them, unlike the unqualified, drinking buddy we currently have.Quote:
Originally Posted by paul_oshea
mypost , its easy to be a harbinger of doom and a pessimist but the fact is that after that isreal mess we were not out , we should have beaten the swiss in dublin , they really were a poor and limited team as their performance in germany proved , lots of organisation but no spark. The way the israel game swung away from us and then being put to the sword by thierry henry were blows to our confidence , roy keane not being available for the swiss game also killed us but in no way were we out until we failed to beat the swiss.
moving on to stan , i believe he is improving , we need to go to the east looking for two wins , if we play to the best of our ability then we can get 4-6 points , that would put down a marker to the other teams in the group.
We were out of the running, on the back foot, even before we kicked a ball in this group, after the Czechs won in a canter in Slovakia.
Stan is in an okay position.
Strangely enough I think all the pressure is now on Brukner. He doesn't sound too bothered, sorta laissez-faire attitude. The Czechs have capitulated before to the might of Malta in a last game must win.
At least it keeps my mind off sex for a few minutes each day.
That gives us 22 I think.Quote:
Originally Posted by gustavo
1 point behind Czechs if we win our "game in hand"? Not bad tbh.Quote:
Originally Posted by mypost
My mistake!Quote:
Originally Posted by eirebhoy
Mathematically of course you are right. But adding in factors like 1.reaping what you sow and 2.having to allow for the possibility that a team as good as you (Swiss) or better (French) might just get the rub of the green on the day ...we were screwed after Israel. I know nobody else beat them either but nor did anybody else chuck away a two goal lead against them or a last minute equaliser when anyone on here's non-football adherent girlfriend could have told them Israel are statistically odds-on to score in the last 10 minutes. They just do -winning, losing, drawing ...they just do.Quote:
Originally Posted by RogerMilla
It set us up to be knocked out of it by France ...a result we could've absorbed but for four points chucked away against Israel.
This is actually a good point. If we manage to get a result in Slovakia i really think it will put the ****s up the Czechs and we can take second place. This Czech team is finished IMO. Without Nedved, they are a pretty average team. For the first time a hell of a lot of pressure is mounting on Brukner and many Czechs want him out of the job. The Czechs looked extremly limp aganst a poorWales team last week. Their performance against Wales reminded me of ours against the Swiss in Brian Kerrs last game. We all know about the suppossed player unrest in the Irish camp before that game. I really have a feeling there is trouble in the Czech camp and the only way we can benefit from that is to get a result in Slovakia and put them under a little pressure for 2nd place.Quote:
Originally Posted by geysir
I'd like someone to send Stan a video of Sweden playing away from home over the last few years. Ok, Windsor Park wasn't a high point but they go out and engage teams in a match, always trying to win and frequently doing so. This attitude has been missing from our set up for almost years, pretty much since the "win at home, draw away" formula got us to Italia 90. Moral courage is what Giles would call it.
Remember the 3-3 draw away to Poland 1991 (was there). Forget the Phoenix park pitch 12 H sunday morning post hangover mistakes when 3-1 up. The amount of Ireland players getting into the Polish box was a joy to watch. We always looked like scoring goals. This is how we need to play in Slovakia. Forget the Czechs completely. Stan should ban the word "Czechs" when the squad meets up in September until after the Slovak game. Beat the Slovaks. Beat the Slovaks. Beat the Slovaks. 3 points in the bag and the Czech game won't come soon enough.Quote:
Originally Posted by Stuttgart88
We had a far better team back then though. A team that would have had a shot of the whole thing had they not thrown away qualification.Quote:
Originally Posted by Noelys Guitar
Bonner, Irwin, O'Leary, Moran, Stan, Morris!, McGrath, Townsend, Keane, Cas, Sheedy. That was some team. 4-5-1 but played like 2-7-1. I would have put the mortgage on us winning in 92 if Lineker hadn't scored late on in Poland.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marked Man
Article by Indo journalist today
http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...cy-695303.html
Some snips I found interesting.
"By default Steve Staunton's position looks stronger and the decision to sit out the summer fixtures seems a blessing now, even if Ireland teams have traditionally performed well at this time."
Ah the traditional fighting Irish in June, how could we have forgotten that? I wonder did the bold journalist have a good guffaw at Stan's take on the seasonal influence last winter.
on Germany v Slovakia
"The Slovaks gave Germany a better game than Ireland did last September"
Did they? not according to reports though.
"for the truth was that the victories over Wales and Slovakia were praised to excess."
I don't remember the Welsh post match athmosphere being peppered with champagne bottles popping
"but it is a slow, laboursome process and to try to sing a positive tune you have to shout to be heard over the nagging voices that are forever warning about another impending disaster"
It is indeed. It takes discipline, fortitude and "courage moral".
You just know O'Brien didn't watch the match on Wednesday. I saw most of the game and the Slovaks looked exactly liked they did in Dublin. Some useful players and some very poor players who kept passing directly to German players when under no pressure. Plus no real goalscoring threat. Germans looked OK (missing top players) and to their credit kept trying to get a third goal. As for praising to excess the home wins against Wales and the Slovaks? Both dullish games and we got the results. That seemed to be the consensus to me.Quote:
Originally Posted by geysir