Doyle's looks a bit off form so far this season, needs a goal to get goingQuote:
Originally Posted by cavan_fan
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Doyle's looks a bit off form so far this season, needs a goal to get goingQuote:
Originally Posted by cavan_fan
I thought:
McGeady was excellent, as was Reid
Long was calm in front of goal
Gibson did very well
Not much confidence in Henderson - makes me think he will make the hard saves and then miss a cross etc & concede.
Hunt was very poor - though I was really hoping he would prove my worst fears wrong. Hurry back Duffer.
Potter - ok -but we did not dominate the CM area, so not sure yet!
Have to say I'm not convinced by Henderson in goal either. Would prefer to see Doyle in there in Given's absence.
It'll be interesting to see if Carsley is back in the team for the matches in a couple of weeks now. I certainly think he should play but I actually think Stan will stick with Potter.
The biggest question after that is 2 players from Ireland, Hunt and McGeady. After tonight and going by previous team selections I think Hunt will be the player left out. Thankfully I'm not picking the team as I don't know what I'd do.
btw, people said our midfield was too light weight in Cyprus which is why we were destroyed. Tonight's midfield was just as light weight imo. What we did have was a tactical awareness though. Reid is just a bloody genius.
with the forwards we now have competing, I think Ireland could do a tour of Notre dame university, and Joe wou'd'nt be invited to team up with the squad.......Quote:
Originally Posted by Tuff Paddy
There is good news about Given's recuperation.
There is no option, without Given we are fecked.
You can have a bit of fun rating the players here
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/foot...ls/6447361.stm
The Danes hardly registered over 4/10
We scored goals! 4 of them! Away from home!
All through this campaign and the last, the two main problems have been the strikers not scoring (so many of our goals coming from midfield) and a general inability to score a couple outside of Dublin. If that particular hurdle is being overcome, we're heading in the right direction.
First half I wasn't impressed with our shape and organisation, the lack of men committed forward was also a concern, but in the second half we really started to take control for a while and finished them off (which we have always failed to do). No question they were poor but they're not THAT poor.
McGeady impressive, very quick feet and after a shaky start began to give us an end product, crossing for Robbie's 2nd. I've been itching to see him get more game time, hopefully he can push on from here.
I thought Hunt did alright, he looked the most willing to get forward and take people on in the first half, I think the lack of support up front (the central midfield players did not get far enough forward and this shortened his options) maybe made him slightly predictable, although his skill level left a bit to be desired.
Gibson, obviously ignored absolutely everything and just got on with it. Confident, assured, a class act. Has to be in the squad for Slovak/Czech games.
I'd bring McShane in and move Finnan to RB and O'Shea to LB, Carr did alright but I just don't trust him defensively.
Henderson...tough to say, lets just hope Shay's fit. Certainly 2nd in line for the keepers jersey but thats not saying much.
Potter looked good, but too early to think about starting him competitively imo. Should be in the squad though.
Doyle looks off the pace and frustrated, it doesn't help him that Robbie keeps dropping so deep looking for the ball, leaving him on his own, which is why the CM players need to take a bit more responsibility and bring the ball higher up the pitch more often (Reid struck me as looking a bit lazy first half although he did improve), Gibson seemed to be dying to take the ball forward which meant we had 2 men to aim for instead of 1 in attack, which is part of the reason we got our two second half goals.
Long proved me all wrong, I didn't rate him but I do now.
All in all, very satisfying, confidence for the side and now I do believe 6 points can be a real possibility.
This is from the Danish Football Associations site (I think), translated by machine into English. The translation is very good compared to the standards of other machine translations I have seen! Probably better than the French and German translations I did when I was at school ;) although I am not to sure what "juice in" means:-
Weak national team was humiliated
The national football team was dressed off on Wednesday evening to the skin in the friendly match against Ireland on Århus Stadion.
By and large nothing worked, and especially the Danish defence with goalkeeper Jesper Christiansen in the point was staggering and U-fokuseret.
The FCK-goalkeeper looked more or less unlucky at three out of the four Irish scourings.
Neither the building up Danish game or the conclusions was juice in.
Keane put out
The depression started seriously after 29 minutes, when the Tottenham-attacker Robbie Keane got a stitching into left side of the Danish penalty kick field and smart lifted the ball over Jesper Christiansen, when however didn't yield much resistance.
11 minutes later Robbie Keane was again taken down name for a scoring.
A contribution from the Irishes' right-sided was by Jesper Christiansen boxed directly into the rushing on Keane and ended in the Danish goal.
0-2 stood on the scoreboard, and coach for the national team Morten Olsen's boys went till break accompanied by booh-shouts from the dissatisfied århusianic home audience.
The breakdown totally
The same audience went in other half from being boohingly and whistlingly to remain downright gaping and rather shocked.
The Danish fighter spirit was still non-existent, the game worked far from, and the army was open like the gate to a plane-hangar.
Also even though Morten Olsen put four cheerful players at the track immediately after the break.
After nine minutes Jesper Christiansen parried a long shot back middle for his goal, Shane Long activated had lightly by scoring on the riposte.
12 minutes later the same Shane Long secured the Irish firemålsføring, when he passed Christiansen just through the army.
Historically rings
the 0-0-4-defeat to Ireland is the national team's largest home arena humiliation for 48 years.
In August 2007 it's difficult to see how Morten Olsen has to be able to combine an effective crew to the important EM-qualifying match against Sweden in Stockholm on September September.
Nice to read some enthousiasm Shanekerins.
Just Denmark were possibly the worst team we have ever played in a friendly and we have played some bad teams, mistakes all over the place.
That bit sounds spot on if you take a certain meaning out of itQuote:
Originally Posted by tricky_colour
Don't get me wrong, we've had false dawns before in friendly matches, but we've not hit 4 away from home against a side not ranked in Europe's dustbin for a very long time, and I think that is important.
If we play as well as we did tonight in the two games, we'll probably get 4 points. However, with players to come back (McShane and Carsley will both add something I feel) and maybe a 10% boost in performance, I think we can get 6 points. Slovakia aren't that good, and the Czech team is short on matchwinners (nobody of Nedved's quality anymore; although he's dangerous, Rosicky is overrated).
I'm not expecting 6, I'm expecting 4, but there is certainly hope. Also, Germany B looked ****e tonight against England, and while they have big-game players to come back, we should be looking for a point off them also.
I was so skeptical I didn't buy EURO 2008 tickets as I was so sure we wouldn't qualify, now I'm not so sure. Which is nice!
shanekerins, I watched most of the England v Germany match and I though Ireland will do well to get a draw with them in Dublin in October. Kuranyi looked very good throughout...Quote:
Originally Posted by shanekerins
I wouldn't get too over excited by the Denmark result its a friendly, we usually do well in friendlies, then crap in the competetive matches!!
All I'm saying is that scoring goals is good. I'm not an idiot and I've seen enough Ireland games to become deeply, deeply cynical about it but the young players seem to finally developing a character and team of their own, and winning friendlies 4-0 away from home is very positive.
Chances are you'll be proved right and we won't qualify (its still more likely that we'll be at home next year watching on the telly) but a result like this can only be of benefit.
Time will tell - I just hope that we don't have to spend another bloody tournament sat on the sidelines.
I saw the post match interview with Kevin McDonald. He was not getting carried away. 'Kept losing the ball, we scored 4, another day we'd score none', as if to say without the goals we were below par.
It won't do us any harm, important playing time for 6 or 7 new players.
They only know about an Ireland that doesn't lose. A good boost for the new players and for Stan.
It clearly was against the run of play. Denmark had hit the bar, had a scramble from a corner which could easily have resulted in a peno and had a couple of other (admittedly wild) chances from good areas before we scored with our first shot.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hither green
Excellent result, but it's a friendly, so no point reading much into it. Wouldn't mind being in an Aarhus pub now though! Still, a bit more confident heading off to Bratislava in 16 days' time!
[quote=cavan_fan;752880]Amazing that no-one is acknowledging Keane's performance. I now he is not flavour of the month but 2 goals is what I want from a striker.
Everyone has slated keane for so long, that it'll be a few matches before they can praise him with integrity. Same with Stan. Give them time to get over their embarrasment! After the Welsh game someone behind me in the crowd said and I quote "keane should go and die". I was fuming at the time (see my blog) and now he's coming back, so fair play to him.
It was a great performance, and I'm over the moon. Its just a friendly, and its true that we took our chances and Denmark didnt, but still Staunton continues to progress slowly and I'm delighted for him.
You dont get 100 caps for your country, and not be a survivor you know. I've said it before but I think he'll come through this, and the team is very exciting with all the youth in it....
Without wanting to sound too negative we shouldn't get carried away with that performance. Denmark were poor and I thought they made us look better than we actually were. Our first three goals could have been prevented if it wasn't for mistakes by the keeper and the defending was poor for the fourth. We won't have it this easy next month but at least the result will give us confidence going into the upcoming qualifiers.
I think some of the criticism for Henderson is unfair- I thought he had a pretty good game. He didn't let his early fumble affect his confidence and pulled off a couple of good saves. The rest of the defence were pretty solid.
Andy Reid was excellent in midfield- controlled the game and provided us with what we have been missing recently. Superb pass for Keane's first goal (very similar to Gerrard's at the weekend, which left Andy Gray drooling). McGeady had a good game also, as did Potter and Gibson when he came on. Hunt was a bit quiet but I don't think he should be dropped like some people have been saying because of one poor game.
Upfront Keane and Long were clinical, Doyle a bit quiet and Keogh showed promising signs despite being on the right wing.
Also I think Stan deserves a chunck of the credit. He seems to be improving as he is gaining experience, and despite the damage he did earlier in the qualifiers he has a chance to cancel them out in the next few months.:)
Well said that man!....I concur...lets be happy with what we did last night and use the positive energy to keep smiling ahead of a couple of stressful games.Quote:
Originally Posted by baileban
Blimey, it could be worse, ..........Engerrrland!;)
Very encouraging team performance with some very strong individual performances from Reid and McGeady particularly.
Just to reiterate, the Danes were poor and the goalkeeper had a poor performance. That said, you need to be doing the right things and committing the opposition in order to force such mistakes and punish the mistakes.
Reid has staked a huge claim for a starting spot against the Slovaks. I was hoping he'd step up and take his chance and he certainly impressed for the 45 he was on the pitch. Precision through ball for the first goal and a another great ball to McGeady to cross for the second.
What's encouraging also is the confidence in their ability that the young players exhibit - Keogh, Long, Potter, Gibson - all of these lads were confident on the ball.
Can't get carried away as it only really matters in September - but that win should boost confidence and bond the team.
Didn't realise Denmark were that rubbish...
Seems Scandinavian football as a whole is in a bit of a decline
"Everyone" hasn't slated Keane. Some people with negative attitudes have but by and large most genuine football people know what a class act we have in Robbie (if he could cut out the annoying hand waving). See the Robbie Keane thread elsewhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by craig7042
Players that did well were Reid, Keane, Long, Keogh, Dunne, Finnan and Carr. Ok were McGeady (still gets knocked off the ball too easily), Hunt, Kelly and Potter. Worried for O'Shea (it was always Dunne getting in the last foot or the last covering tackle), Henderson, Kilbane (who just gave the ball away when he came on).
In the beginning we couldn't keep the ball and were fortunate not to go behind. If we start like that in Bratislava and Prague, we'll be toast. Based on history we'll be doing very well to take 4 points from the 2 away games but confidence is priceless so fingers crossed. In those games I'd start with the same team except for McShane for O'Shea and Carsley for Potter. Not sure about Henderson though. Do we have any other option?
Baileban - dig up a video of Holland's demolition of us in Lansdowne and compare it to last nights match...no comparison. The Dutch completely and utterly destroyed us and probably had 70-80% of the possession whereas I think in all fairness, last night's scoreline flattered us (their keeper gifted us 3 for God sake!)
Saying that there's some major positives to be taken from the match - Andy Reid is starting to live up to our hype and should be a definite starter alongside Carsley in September. Robbie showed some good touches, granted his goals were fairly jammy but I think he's starting to realise that there's some pretty decent youngsters breathing down his neck. McGeady, Gibson, Potter all acquitted themselves well which is really encouraging for the future.
My only fear now is that Stan completely ignores the positives from this match and reverts to type with KK at the centre of midfield with Carsley which would be a disaster...
And Stephen Carr...what a useless pile of £"£$"^£!"!
I don't really agree with Scadinavian football being in decline. Sweden are currently top of Group D, 2 points ahead of Northern Ireland, and 3 points ahead of Spain.Quote:
Originally Posted by Réiteoir
Denmark's last competitive game was a 2-0 away win in Latvia, a result a believe we may struggle to acheive. They have also recently acheived a 1-0 away win in Germany, a result we almost certainly would not acheive, and a commendable 3-1 win against Australia, also away from home turf.
I feel theres damn all wrong with Scandinavian football and Irish football could learn a hell of a lot from it. They manage to hold onto their best players untill their early to mid 20's, something the Eircom League has consistantly failed to do over the last few years.
Colin Doyle is a very good keeper. Made a couple of mistakes in the premiership this season but then again so has Edwin Van Der Sar and Jens Lehmann.Quote:
Originally Posted by OwlsFan
If Given isn't fit, an astute decision by Staunton may be in persuading Dean Kiely to help us out for a couple of games; I'm sure he'd relish the chance to represent Ireland again and would let nobody down.
Paddy Kenny is also a very good goalkeeper, made an error against Cyprus but has shown time and again that he is reliable.
there is too much here to read, but lads please dont get carried away, Denmark were not at the races and didnt seem to care at all.
A few things I noticed though, as soon as kilbane was moved into midfield, we looked like we always do, flat, and moving backwards. Its like we have played for the last few years, slow build up play in the hope that we score from a cross or set-piece, whereas when kilbane was not in the centre we were moving forward far more and passing the ball forward rather than remaining stagnant and giving denmark the chance to re-group.
What is it with left-foot maestros? Is it because most players expect or are more comfortable defending onto their right shoulder than left, whatever it is I dont know, but that ball by reid with the outside of his foot to mcgeady was UNREAL. It was cross-field inch ( and height ) perfect. Genius.
Keane on MOnday touched on the fact that he and reid have a great understanding and reading of the game, it showed again here, like it did against israel. Reid should start in the centre ahead of Ireland ( if we need to substitute then fire ahead ) for this reason alone, it takes as much inclination and incisiveness of a striker to make those runs as it does the player making those passes and keane deserves credit for this too.
Ye gotta love oshea, wasn't happy with not getting in the action so trys to lob his own keeper with a header and then makes out he was clearing it out for a corner :D
Potter looked decent, but was a little over-ran at times. Mcgeady looked better, wasn't shoved off the ball as easily and that pass to Long was vintage, hopefully this gives him the confidence that EB reckons he requires.
Keogh has some greeat touches and really held up the ball well, hunt reminds me of kilbane breaking through, we all loved kilbanes darting runs and taking the man on, and holding onto the ball, but he does look limited just kilbane too.
Dunne again proved he is the same, savage game against City, great game last night, but he still mis-hit a ball and it went straight across the defence.
Terrible shaky start. The only real thing that I think we can take from this, is that the players showed they can hold onto the ball when away from home and this shouldnt change. We should have a great support in slovakia so heres hoping that spurs them on as well. Denmark were very poor.
agree with all of the above. time to let the likes of oshea and kilbane sit on the bench. kilbane is not and never was a centre midfielder. he is a limited player who gives it his all but when he is in the centre he loses the ball too much and we then have to win it back.
reid and keane seem to have an understanding alrite. only problem is we need everyone else to play well. cuter teams will just man mark reid out of the game. and if thats all we have then we will need a plan b.
i suppose the only thing to take from the result is that its better wining freindlies 4 nil than losing them 4 nil.
with the right team selection we will have a chance in the next two games and thats all we can ask for. to see lads that have never performed come back into the team tho would be a step backwards.
Ya, cant agree more, but I think staunton is the only manager of the last two who is NOW picking the players that the majority of posters on here feel should be picked ( finnan ) and in the right positions when fully fit and available. Thing is though, do you want a great full back playing out of his preferred position or an average left back playing in that position?! Or is it a case of not wanting carr anywhere near the team?Quote:
to see lads that have never performed come back into the team tho would be a step backwards
My head hurts. Great night in Aarhus. Danish fans were a good laugh. Well worth the trip just to see Andy Reid ping the ball out to Mc Geady and his ball for Keane was great too. Mc Gead had a great game i thought too. And O Shea and Dunne were great and they really wanted to keep a clean ****e. Dunnes attitude was shown when he made a great tackle even when the whistle had gone. Good night all round.
Christ......didn't think you would be back so soon!:eek:You and the rest of our fans ( although not great in number ) could be heard and outsung the home fans.....of course the display helped your enthusiasm.:)Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilMcD
There are a lot of people on this thread that need to sit down , pull out the knife and fork and then tuck in to some humble pie.
It might have been a friendly but it was still 4-0 away to Denmark ! Its a terrific result and hpoefully gives the team and the fans a real shot in the arm going into the toughest week of the euro campaign.
The argument that this was just a friendly and doesnt matter is total garbage. If we had been on the receiving end of a 4-0 defeat , fans and journos would be sharpening the knives yet again demanding Stauntons head. Its not a fair balance to come away after such a great result and shrug it off as a meaningless match - you cant have it both ways.
The facts are that it was a terrific win despite the negatives of losing possession too often. We have learnt a few more things about our new boys (Long, Henderson etc) and we got confirmation that we still have one of the best strikers in the business in Keane. For the first time in a long while we even seem to have some backup options in the centre forward and midfield positions.
We have nothing to fear from the double header and four points from the next two away games looks like the least we are capable off. Bring it on.
Made it much easier to make the tv too.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sligo Hornet
Quote:
The argument that this was just a friendly and doesnt matter is total garbage. If we had been on the receiving end of a 4-0 defeat , fans and journos would be sharpening the knives yet again demanding Stauntons head. Its not a fair balance to come away after such a great result and shrug it off as a meaningless match - you cant have it both ways.
To do, what you are saying is to do what the ENGLISH do and we are not English, we are realistic. We have always been moderate but there is still no excuse for the results against cyprus and san marino, even if you and I were managers.
We are being level-headed as anyone SHOULD be, it was a MEANINGLESS friendly that had the added benefit of being played away from home, for far too long we have been the world beaters of friendlies. When we start performing and drumming up score lines like that in competitive matches come back and gloat wallis, until then we will all just sit back relax, take a long hard look and realise we are nowhere yet. :)
Clips from RTE's analysis of the game: http://www.rte.ie/sport/2007/0822/soccer_av.html
Too true. If we beat the Czechs next month 4-0 then I'll give Stan the credit he deserves.Quote:
Originally Posted by paul_oshea
Lads there will always be disputes between the pessimists and the optomists. Some people like to see the glass half full and others half empty. In the wise words of Paul McCartney, Let it be.
what are they are they like people that do stuff to your eyes?Quote:
optomists
Quote:
Some people like to see the glass half full and others half empty. In the wise words of Paul McCartney, Let it be.
Ya, but I can see a little of what he is saying, a lot of people on here ( the less regular posters i might add ) are yoyo men, yoyo to the extreme, in actual fact they are like Manic depressives in that they can go from one extreme to the other when it comes to slating/gyrating etc.....but i think the more frequent of us here are more grounded etc.
But there was huge criticism of Stan after the Chile and Holland games so you have to treat this the sameQuote:
Originally Posted by paul_oshea
cavan_man read my last post!
Our posts seem to have crossed each other. Can't beat the day after a match for high activity on the boards, after a summer of the Ian Harte thread I'm glad we have something real to talk aboutQuote:
Originally Posted by paul_oshea
We always have stuff to talk about :DQuote:
I'm glad we have something real to talk about