Macedonia V Republic of Ireland - Saturday, 4th June 2011 - Euro 2012 Qualifier

[tetsujin1979]

Bearing in mind that we are quite good at the moment at playing shoite but still snaking results!

I hate seeing phrases like this, United play badly and win and it's the sign of Champions, Ireland play shoite and get a result and it's because of dumb luck and we'll be found out and Trapattoni is useless and his starting XI is a joke and will someone for the love of God replace Kevin Kilbane and every single goal Robbie Keane scores should be discounted because the opposition were terrible and there was another player in a better position and we should appoint an Irish manager because he would understand the mentality of the players and so on ad nauseum

[Murfinator]

Have listened to various pundits on the radio this evening (Eoin Hand, Mark Kinsella and Richard Sadlier) say a draw would be a great result. Really? A great result? If we draw tomorrow night, winning the group is out the window and coming second I would say is highly improbable.

Nonsense. A draw would be a disaster for our qualification hopes, we have to win.

[Noelys Guitar]

We've got to go for the win and the team and subs are good enough to get the three points. I expect the match to be a lot like the Armenia away game with possibly a similiar scoreline. This is not Russia away here. We are playing a team that has no chance of qualifying. It won't be easy by any means but we are good enough to win this game.

[backstothewall]

I think 22 goals more this season is a significant enough difference to seperate the two. Don't you?

This whole Cox situation reminds me of how Irish fans were lauding McShane as the next Paul McGrath after he made an impressive debut. Cox has no track record whereby Long does. Why take a chance like this in such a crucial qualifier?

Even tactically this makes no sense. Cox is the very same type player as Robbie Keane, so why wouldn't we play Long, a player who plays off the shoulder of the last defender and plays further forward. Particularly when our central midfield pairing offer us nothing creatively, it astounds me why we would not play Long.

There is of course an argument that goals in the English Second Division are easy compared to the EPL. Personally I would probably have gone with Long, but its a matter of opinion given the context of the last 2 weeks.

Jaysus. 2 Robbie Keanes. ****ing Disaster!

[ArdeeBhoy]

Nonsense. A draw would be a disaster for our qualification hopes, we have to win.

It isn't, as unless Russia do poorly in their remaining games, they're in the box seat anyway. And we're in the feck-offs. Great.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Only until you have a look at our world ranking. Anyone know what Jonathan Douglas is doing with himself these days? No? Exactly!

I give up. Is he still at Swindon?
Incidentally, someone told me he was their best player last season. Though that's not saying much.

[theworm2345]

I give up. Is he still at Swindon?
Incidentally, someone told me he was their best player last season. Though that's not saying much.

He is still there and I was talking to a Swindon fan and they said he was planning on sticking with them in League Two. Apparently Michael Timlin is a different story though.

[Stuttgart88]

Richard Sadlier...a draw would be a great result.

How can he square that with all the rubbish he comes out with about Trap? Or is he saying we are so crap, we'd be doing well to get a draw?

[Supreme feet]

I hate seeing phrases like this, United play badly and win and it's the sign of Champions, Ireland play shoite and get a result and it's because of dumb luck and we'll be found out and Trapattoni is useless and his starting XI is a joke and will someone for the love of God replace Kevin Kilbane and every single goal Robbie Keane scores should be discounted because the opposition were terrible and there was another player in a better position and we should appoint an Irish manager because he would understand the mentality of the players and so on ad nauseum

Excellent. Well said tets.

Don't know what to do with myself. Game kicks off at 4:30 am Korean time. Don't know if or when I should try to sleep!

[Stuttgart88]

It was a great post by Tets and there are naysayers like that, but in fairness BoT is saying we are quite good, but not playing good football. I think that's credit to everyone involved. I thought we were sh1te in the second half against Scotland and we have been in other games we have won (30-40 mins against Macedonia), and lost (Norway - after 20 mins to the end) too. We play well in spells, but only in spells. I think this team has it in them to play well for longer than that. Moral courage...

[Stuttgart88]

Typing from a train on my mobile. can someone please do the decent thing and address professional miserabilist david kelly's article in today's indo, his latest irish self-loathing instalment? if you don't like international football, don't write about it.

[Bottle of Tonic]

Cheers S88, I was going to pull up Tets on that one as it is definitely not how I feel about the current Ireland team.

Given the kind of nation we are I feel sacrificing the expansive, sexy football we'd all love to see for organisation, solidity, team-and-result uber alles is prudent. We are not Holland or Spain who can fling any 11 on the park and play great stuff. The way we play is probably the quickest route to 'relative success at int level, a totally different game to club football, so I'm happy to see Trap continue with this.

In light of that I find AB's and Tommy's negativity a little tiring though I will wholeheartedly agree AB that second is nothing, the play offs are indeed the 'feck offs' and world football is a sham (way before the current fifa/blatter nonsense). But that is another debate!

[ArdeeBhoy]

Or is he saying we are so crap, we'd be doing well to get a draw?

Pretty much.
As for the Indo' being a reliable source of info' or opinion, we should know better by now....

[ArdeeBhoy]

Given the kind of nation we are I feel sacrificing the expansive, sexy football we'd all love to see for organisation, solidity, team-and-result uber alles is prudent. We are not Holland or Spain who can fling any 11 on the park and play great stuff. The way we play is probably the quickest route to 'relative success at int level, a totally different game to club football, so I'm happy to see Trap continue with this.

In light of thatI find AB's and Tommy's negativity a little tiring though I will wholeheartedly agree AB that second is nothing, the play offs are indeed the 'feck offa' and world football is a sham (way before the current fifa/blatter nonsense). But that is another debate!

Except I don't think we are that organized. Or solid.
Effort, sometimes, is our greatest virtue.

And Holland;'great stuff'. Did you see last year's World Cup Final??

[DannyInvincible]

Given wants a win: http://www.independent.ie/breaking-n...t-2666494.html

Anything less, and he says the players will be "seething for the whole Summer".

[DannyInvincible]

Is David Kelly's article online yet? I can't seem to find it if it is.

Edit: Not to worry. geysir has just posted it in the eligibility thread.

[geysir]

To save a trawl because his article is not worth a trawl.
More Kelly muck

[Bottle of Tonic]

Except I don't think we are that organized. Or solid.
Effort, sometimes, is our greatest virtue.

And Holland;'great stuff'. Did you see last year's World Cup Final??

We are organised and solid. You being a hoops man I'll refernce Celtic and the change of management for Starchan to Mowbray. We were dull and often looked poor under Stracahan but in hindsight the organisation and solidity was the strong point.

And ya I saw Holland. That game was a one off I think where they tried anything to
defeat the possession football of Spain.

[geysir]

An expanded piece covering Robbie's trauma (his pain is our pain threefold) in the Examiner.

"I actually did it on Wednesday (the day before the team left Dublin)," he explained. "I was doing a bit of shooting practice after training and I felt my groin a small bit. Then I trained again on Thursday morning and it was gradually getting worse. But I’ve had treatment since it happened and it feels a lot better now.

"I think I’ll be okay. Look, I haven’t been 100% since I was about 17 (laughs) with various niggles and then these injuries the last few months but I’ve carried on through that. A little groin strain is not going to stop me now. Will I take a painkiller? If required. It’s not an injury that is going to put me out for months and months. It’s muscular. I’ll see how it is, obviously but, rest assured, I’ll be on that pitch."

[Lionel Ritchie]

nasty article alright -calls to mind the 'letter sent' warrior in the Daily Mail last summer complaining about the bbcs televising of tedious group games involving 'bongo-bongo-land' countries.

link