Positives & negatives from last 4 friendlies

They were only friendlies so you can't read too much into them but I think from these last 4 friendlies we have some real positives. We know what the regulars like Given, Cunningham, Finnan, Keane etc can do.

Positives:

Roy Keane is back. ooraahh!

Liam Miller and Andy Reid continue their progress though Reid needs to improve fitness.

Alan Quinn, Graham Barrett have been pleasant surprises and will improve further.

McGeady is committed to Ireland and will hopefully be an option by WC2006.

Andy O'Brien looks good alongside Cunningham and may have done enough to move ahead of Breen.

Paddy Kenny really didn't do anything great but its good to have an option besides Colgan who makes me nervous.

Managemnet: again very organized and committed performance, I think the Nigeria result can be excused due to timing though the odd loss is a useful motivator. Kerr & Co are doing a good job.



Disappointments:

Alan Lee didn't taken his chance particularly against Jamica so Clinton remains the best partner for Robbie. Duff, Docherty and Connolly have all really failed to convince, this was Lee's chance and I don't think he took it.

Colgan doesn't convince me though he wasn't lucky in the game he played in.

Delap, OK so he was injured but he always seems to be injured so I think he has moved down the peking order even further. I only mention him as he seems to be on everyone's list of midfield options. I think Kerr has been trying to take a look at him since he got the job.

Matt Holland, Matt Holland.

It is a pity Stephen Elliott hadn't moved to Sunderland earlier as he could have been given a run.



Neutral:

The jury is still out on Clarke & Rowlands. I would have liked for both players to have been given more playing time.

McGeady & Doyle given caps rather than an opportunity to impress.

Maybury wasn't a disappoinment because I didn't expect much but he got better with each game.

Docherty falls into the same category, he looks limited wherever he plays but I don't feel so nervous when he plays up front. His aerial ability is his only saving grace. A useful battering ram sprung from the bench when we need a goal very badly.

Positives:

We can actually win games in the white jersey

Andy Reid

Can we now agree that Clinton Morrisson is not international standard

Re: Holland match - there's only one Keano

Negatives:

Never, ever organise a match in London again

A certain former captain will play one match and miss the next

have to include thompson and douglas with clarke and rowlands

more good than bad certainly and the added bonus that the experienced squad is slightly larger

reid is paractically a vetern now having taken on brazil, poland, czechs, holland,

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Originally Posted by Declan_Michael

Positives:

We can actually win games in the white jersey

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I must agree there. I never thought Id see the day! :eek:

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Originally Posted by adamcarr

I must agree there. I never thought Id see the day! :eek:

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Major Kudos to Brian Kerr though. With a skeleton squad, hes managed to get a great performance(team and individual) and regardless of wethar it was a friendly or not, the Dutch didnt have any answers. Well done Buttercup (or Bluebell)

If you watch the game again, watch the organisation of the Irish back 4 and midfield. Great Stuff. Carry that through to when it matters and it will reap results. Just hope we dont get arrogant.

Give me Paris in the Autumn...

The biggest positive has to be the expansion of our squad. Say what you like about the Unity Cup, but without it we'd never have put Barrett on the right against the Dutch, or played Alan Quinn in the middle.

There is now genuine competition for almost every position on the park, apart from the strikers and goalkeeper (although Kenny looks a very able number 2). With Elliott moving to Sunderland and McGeady looking to make the breakthrough at Celtic, who knows what might happen next season?

Burgess and Walters will be playing in the 2nd division. While previously I'd have balked at the idea of a manager looking at 2nd div players, Quinn and Rowlands have shown that there are a few diamonds in the rough there. A few friendlies, one or two caps and a goal, who knows who might push their way into the team?

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Originally Posted by 1MickCollins

Disappointments:

Matt Holland, Matt Holland.

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Yeah.......his goal against Romania was a real downer!!

holland- a disapointment?

absolutely - and thats why every newspaper and review is going out of their way to say he's a shoe in as keano's partner come september

oh dear!
ffs get over it- he has more experience than miller and will more thna likely start against france

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Originally Posted by Emmet

Yeah.......his goal against Romania was a real downer!!

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He does a lot of unseen work and has scored some vital goals; Portugal & Cameroon. I just feel he has never quite seized a game by the scruff of the neck and dominated, when Keane was expelled it was a great chance for him to really step up and play, I think did he did that to a point during the WC but in the EC qualifiers he was poor. In short he is a good player but could do much better...

That's a fair point......when held up against Roy Keane, Matt Holland is certainly found wanting in quite a few departments (but then who isn't!). If you were to compare him with the rest of Ireland's first choice starting eleven though, I don't think he fares too badly - he is certainly not as good as Robbie Keane or Duff but he is a better player than the likes of Finnan and Morrison. He's a hard worker though and he does the simple things well. At this point in time Holland and Keane are our best bet in the centre of midfield I think.

You have to wonder how many of the positives mentioned in this thread would have occured if we qualified for Euro 2004.

Roy probably woudn't be back, yet anyway. Although we can't be sure.

Reid and Miller probably wouldn't have been given as much of a chance because managers usually prefer to go with the players that got you there in the first place.

Barrett and Quinn certainly wouldn't have got a chance as the 20 players who were 'injured' for the four friendlies would have miraculously been available for friendlies if we qualified.

McGeady wouldn't have been capped.

Maybe Kerr would have went with Breen instead of O'Brien.

Also, players like Duff and Kilbane probably would have prosponed their op's until they got home. The rebuilding proccess wouldn't have even started yet. I could go on and on about the positives of not qualifying for the EC TBH.

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Originally Posted by eirebhoy

I could go on and on about the positives of not qualifying for the EC TBH.

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Fair play EB. Every cloud has a sliver lining and all that, and you're a good man for playing up the positives. I still can't help feeling like the only child in the class not invited to the birthday party of the year, though. Maybe it's just living here among the Anglos that does it... :(

;) PP

After the Holland game I couldnt help feeling a bit ****ed off that we arent going to the Euro 2004 Finals, because it has to be said were now looking like one of the better sides around.

However on the bright side, there is going to be some nice futty to watch and its all going to be over in a few months time and its straight into the qualifiers, maybe some of the older french players wont be so hot after competeting in the finals. We would probably found it hard to play against the french and maybe the swiss if we didnt have all these friendlies

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Originally Posted by Plastic Paddy

Maybe it's just living here among the Anglos that does it... :(

;) PP

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I have to say that living in a country that qualified when when we didn't would wreck my head.

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Originally Posted by Paulie

I have to say that living in a country that qualified when when we didn't would wreck my head.

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It certainly does....flags everywhere and everyone talking about how great England are going to do. I keep reminding them it's Henry against Carragher. I'm going down the sports shop later to see if I can get a French, Swiss and Croatian jersey.

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Originally Posted by finlma

I'm going down the sports shop later to see if I can get a French, Swiss and Croatian jersey.

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Might cost a bit but definitely worth it. By the way if you're not a fast runner yourself it might be wise to invest in a pair of roller blades.

The emergence of Barratt and Quinn is a huge bonus. Peter Reid has just taken over at Coventry and hopefully he will play Barratt a lot more this coming season enabling him to develop. Hopefully Quinn can get a decent club. O'Brien is a very capable defender and will now become a regular in the team. I think Colgan is a liability especially now that he cannot get a club. Wonder now what the future holds for Breen and McAteer.

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Originally Posted by drummerboy

Wonder now what the future holds for Breen and McAteer.

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Well, first of all, Breen is still at Sunderland.;) McAteer will get a club, there's plenty of interest for him.

I wouldn't be going mad about Quinn, but I do genuinely believe that Barrett is a premiership class player.

The real positives to take from the frendlies though are that King Roy is back, Andy Ried and Liam Miller are potentially World Class players and that we did it all without the man who is probably now our best player, Duffer.

It's also great to see O'Brien getting his game at centre back as that disaster area Breen will finally be shown the door.

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Originally Posted by carnstien

It's also great to see O'Brien getting his game at centre back as that disaster area Breen will finally be shown the door.

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I hope not. Breen is a great player for Ireland and is certainly good to have as backup.

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Originally Posted by eirebhoy

I hope not. Breen is a great player for Ireland and is certainly good to have as backup.

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I disagree, I think Breen always was and always will be a disaster. He is nowhere near Premiership class, as proven by his spell at West Ham and there is no way he should be making the national side.

If O'Brien or Cunningham were injured I'd move O'Shea to centre back and slot Finnan in at left back.

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Originally Posted by carnstien

I disagree, I think Breen always was and always will be a disaster. He is nowhere near Premiership class, as proven by his spell at West Ham and there is no way he should be making the national side.

If O'Brien or Cunningham were injured I'd move O'Shea to centre back and slot Finnan in at left back.

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Agree with the above post, Breen looks very good against lesser quality players(Div1) but in the premiership has looked poor.

Either Finnan or Carr has to give way, one should bugger off to the other flank.

Breen has always done well for us valuable member of the squad. A lot of our players are first division class but seem to rise to the occasion when they put on the green shirt. Id have Breen ahead of ginger pele any day !

Breen is a much better defender than 'The ginger pele' who is useful to throw on up front if all else fails.

I think the positive that stands out there the most is that KEANO is back in buisness but i have also noticed in the game against Jamaica that we werent fit enough.. i have a greek friend who thinks if ireland were avery fit team they could beat almost anyone in the world i mean, WE DREW WITH BRAZIL!!

I think the problem is that many of the players who played in the Unity Cup especially aren't used to anything like the pace of an international football match - they've gone from playing in the 1st division in England or the 2nd division in some cases up to what was classed as a full international.

The mixture of youth, experience, semi competant FAI setup and decent manager is uplifting