Which players in your opinion got too many or too few senior international caps?

**bennocelt** · 09/04/2009, 2:10 PM

Originally Posted by Drumcondra 69er

I know what you mean but sometimes you have to build for the future, had we qualified for WC 98 it's unlikely McGarth would have been fit so the logic would have been to try and blood a sucessor. Harte wasn't that bad at that stage as is being made out, naive and inexperienced yes but he was doing alright when given a chance a Leeds and was up to the level of making the PFA team of the year a couple of years later (albeit at full back). Centre half was a problem position for us at the time, all our big hitters in that position had grown old together (McGrath, Moran, O'Leary and McCarthy himself) and bar Babb no one was really coming through (see Kerneghan's caps total for proof). You could argue that a group in which we weren't looking like getting close to winning but had 2nd pretty much nailed on would be the ideal time to blood younger players.

Dunno what relevance Tommy Coyne has to this discussion btw....

Tommy Coyne re title of thread!

yeah Harte was decent but no as CB - two costly errors = two goals in vital games

**tetsujin1979** · 09/04/2009, 2:23 PM

Originally Posted by bennocelt

By the way what about Tommy Coyne - he actually went to the WC Cup and palyed against ItalY!!!!!!!!!!!! - or did i dream that?

He scored against the Dutch in one of the pre world cup games, no one was complaining then!

**Denis The Red** · 10/04/2009, 11:42 PM

Originally Posted by fergalr

Back to Irwin.

As far as my faulty memory goes, his lowish cap total was not just down to McCarthy. He could have been brought into the senior squad earlier by Charlton and could/should haven been on the plane to Italia 90. Four years later and he could not get in the team for the 2nd round defeat to Holland. I was never of the opinion that Phelan was a better left back nor was Garry Kelly a better right back than Dennis.

One n!!!

It's Denis, not Dennis!!!