Euro 2012 draw

[Acornvilla]

yep we could easily come second with a points total of 22-25 or so and probably be the best runner up

[keenanboy]

Quite happy with the draw,
got caught up in the romantic notion of getting the French again and avenging Paris but in hindsight I'm happy that it didn't happen,

Need to get Slovakia and Russia away put to bed this September/October. I fancy Slovakia as an away trip but I heard some nasty stuff about what happened our fans over in Russia in 2002.
I think England fans got a similar dose on their visit recently. Might do Armenia or Macedonia away for the experience too.

Obvious challenges are in Russia and slovakia but for once I didn't wince as the draw unfolded.
Here's to a favourable fixture schedule on the 20th and the usual scramble foor flights/tickets and accommodation.
Do we dare to dream again?

[Acornvilla]

if it wasnt for dreaming i'd kill myself

[Drumcondra 69er]

In fairness to who? All the groups are of roughly the same quality, that's the whole point of a seeded draw. Your 18 points would only have managed third place in the Slovakia and NI group, hardly a breeze. You couldn't score a single goal against the group minnow, everyone else in ours got at least seven.

Anyone else find this statement priceless following that draw??

You still think all groups ared roughly the same quality? Because I wouldn't swap ours with yours for all the tea in China.....

[sheao]

Not a bad draw overall. If we play to the same level as we did against France and Italy last year then we may have a great chance to win the group. But can we reach that level every game against weaker oppisition, we have in the past played poorly against the so called weaker nations.

[stojkovic]

Delighted with the draw and think we could easily win it with abit of luck and hard work and an attacking philosphy.
Terrible draw for the travelling support though.
Probably just do Macedonia and Barcelona. Armenia could be an adventure.
Wont be going anywhere near Moscow or Bratislava.

[tricky_colour]

Seems, a decent draw, the only negative is last time we had Russia in the group we got beat home and away,
but that was then and this is now, so to speak.

Russia are FIFA ranked 13, unlucky for some, hopefully not us
Slovakia are ranked 36, just one point above us.

In the last group I think we had two in the top 10, in cluding the number one?

And it toolk a cheating Frenchman to stop is that time

[mypost]

Seems, a decent draw, the only negative is last time we had Russia in the group we got beat home and away,
but that was then and this is now, so to speak.

We took 1 point from 6 against Russia last time, they went on to the finals, while we as top seeds, stayed at home.

To get the best runner-up, we'll need 23 points or so from 10 games, -6 from Andorra, which would leave us with 17. Then it's down to goal difference, head-to-heads, and all manner of other complicated criteria to determine who qualifies, and who faces a play-off.

[ifk101]

I'm happy with the draw. There are some tricky away ties there but they are still games I feel we should be relatively confident of winning. On paper it is a much easier group than our WC group so a strong second place finish in the group should be the minimum of our expectations levels for the campaign.

[Gather round]

Anyone else find this statement priceless following that draw??

You still think all groups ared roughly the same quality? Because I wouldn't swap ours with yours for all the tea in China.....

Aye, roughly. Of course I realise with three in-form World Cup finalists in our group it'll be difficult. I reckon we'll finish third or fourth, you'll be second or third.

But you never know, see you for a coffee in Wroclaw or Dnepropetrovsk

[eaststand85]

Think this was about as good a draw as we could have dared hope for and while it gives us a chance of topping the group, what could prove even more important is that it also gives us a chance of qualifying automatically as the best second placed team (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Euro_2012_qualifying).

The fixtures meeting has provisionally been arranged for Feb 20th in Bratislava (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...263953535.html).

Now talk of fixtures meeting being held in Moscow on 22nd instead (http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...264029421.html).

[Girl in Green]

Roll on the 22nd and we can get booking......would like to do them all, but the feedback on Moscow is bad....would we really be Hotel bound for the duration of our stay?

[pineapple stu]

Was talking to a UCD fan who went to Moscow - a more mature fan, shall we say! - and I asked him that exact question. Reply I got was that Moscow's grand if you have common sense. That's not always a trait you associate with drunken Irish fans. Don't get ****ed, don't bring random birds back to the hostel (friend of mine got drugged and robbed doing that), don't get into fights.

[Closed Account 2]

I've been to Russia on several occasions and seen a fair few matches in the ex-USSR. On the whole you should be fine, but this isnt a place to get drunk. There are several reasons for this, first the police are likely to stop you if you're wasted, secondly pickpockets and thieves are more likely to have a go, thirdly you could easily get lost (esp if you dont speak Russian or understand Cyrillic) and freeze to death if it is in October, and forth you might end up buying some knock-off vodka which could be toxic...

If you go there you need to carry a passport or colour copy of it (inc photo page and visa page) at all times - I've never actually been stopped for this in Russia but never the less legally if stopped you need to present this. If you're going to the stadium as an away fan I would advise you to take the metro (stadium has it's own station, and buses or taxis would take forver in Moscow's traffic) cover shirts / colours etc during the journey and you will be fine. You would probably be fine even in shirts but there is a chance some of the local chavs / gangs might try and have a pop, unlikely but not unheard of - in the same way there are gangs / youths in major cities in Ireland (e.g. Dublin, Limerick) there are also some in Moscow.

There are lots of museums and sights to see in the city and the greater Moscow area, it's the biggest city in Europe.

[briancool21]

I resent that Limerick comment...why did you pick limerick why not cork or galway, anyway why would you be coming to limerick for a football match not like we have a decent team anyway haha, I'm sure the russian mafia will be alot more dangerous than anything we've got down here. Anyway on the draw it's going to be very tough i think, a lot of the away games will be draws again, that'll be okay as long as actually beat russia and slovakia at home unlike the last group where we seemed to draw nearly every game

[Closed Account 2]

I think the tourist areas and central parts of Limerick are fine, but for instance if you wandered up towards Moyross, well you would need your wits about you there. To be honest I don't think areas of Galway are suffer the same level of social depravation / poverty as Moyross, and similarly I don't think areas of Cork are as bad as Moyross - I've not been to Cork (aside from passing through) for a few years, so it may have changed. The reason I mentioned Limerick in the context of Moscow is that there are some areas of the town you could end up wandering into (if you were unfamiliar with the language and got lost) and in these areas you would need to be cautious due to youth / gang activity. In the same way people unfamiliar with Moscow and Russian language could have problems if they for instance took elektricha (trains) down to some of the southern / south-eastern suburbs.

[Supreme feet]

I think the tourist areas and central parts of Limerick are fine, but for instance if you wandered up towards Moyross, well you would need your wits about you there. To be honest I don't think areas of Galway are suffer the same level of social depravation / poverty as Moyross, and similarly I don't think areas of Cork are as bad as Moyross - I've not been to Cork (aside from passing through) for a few years, so it may have changed. The reason I mentioned Limerick in the context of Moscow is that there are some areas of the town you could end up wandering into (if you were unfamiliar with the language and got lost) and in these areas you would need to be cautious due to youth / gang activity. In the same way people unfamiliar with Moscow and Russian language could have problems if they for instance took elektricha (trains) down to some of the southern / south-eastern suburbs.

Would tend to agree... An American bird I know accidentally got on a bus from the city centre in Limerick to O'Malley Park, thinking it was going to the university. It was only when a crowd of scumbags started throwing bottles at her that she realised her mistake and got off the bus. She was incredibly stupid though. I think in most places, common-sense should see you away from any trouble, and with Moscow being so vast, extra care and prudence would be obviously needed.

[twoenz]

There's large areas of Belfast and Derry that I'd not go to, and not just for religious reasons. I don't think many scumbags actually care which version of the Bible you were brought up with. Every major city has an economic underbelly and there's places that need to be avoided. Even in Berlin, I wouldn't recommend walking around areas of Kreuzberg at night, and it's renowned as being one of the safest European cities.

[Closed Account 2]

Don't forget the language barrier as well. In terms of America - Limerick the languages are the same, but in Russia the language and alphabet are different - it's not even a case of being able to look stuff up on a metro map... (e.g. Спортивная - Sportivnaya is the main metro station for Luzhniki stadium and Красная площадь is Red Square...) so unless you have a degree of familiarity with the language you could easily end up lost.

[mypost]

Was talking to a UCD fan who went to Moscow - a more mature fan, shall we say! - and I asked him that exact question. Reply I got was that Moscow's grand if you have common sense. That's not always a trait you associate with drunken Irish fans. Don't get ****ed, don't bring random birds back to the hostel (friend of mine got drugged and robbed doing that), don't get into fights.

Was there the last time, and managed to steer clear of any trouble. It's the same as everywhere else. Keep yourself to yourself, and you'll be fine. Attract trouble and you'll find it.