Rovers fans discuss the merits of Michael O'Neill

[SligoBrewer]

All this anti-MON stuff started because he gave an honest account of the last game between the sides. It's clear you don't like that level of honesty, and prefer the politically correct soundbites from coaches in all sports these days. Fair enough.

My gripe with that **** started well before then.

[Jicked]

Erm, what exactly did MON do during the year, aside from saying it shouldn't have been a penalty in Sligo and that game, that has you all so ticked off and apparently had you so annoyed before that last game with Sligo?

From what I can remember he never really said anything controversial at all, constantly batting off any potentially dodgy questions with a straight bat and always refusing to bring up the fact he was in a title race until after the Bohs game.
I can't even think of a game where he criticised another player or manager, nor any Mourinho-esque runs down the pitch that could clearly wind up opposition fans, he was very gracious to Bohs when they beat us the one time at the start of the season, and at the end of the season was just so towards them. Everyone at Rovers admitted that Bohs were deserving champions and played the best football in the league last year, sure we were dissapointed not to have hung on for an extra few weeks but we were punching way above our weight for the previous 22 games.

The club congratulated Bohs and MON never mentioned anything about the bad taste was left in the mouth of many fans from the fact they had put together a squad from a budget that clearly was paying way above what they could, as even Bohs fans will admit.

Do you expect Rovers fans not to have a bit of a lingering feeling about what might have been had we overpaid our first team squad? MON never aired those views or dissapointments at all during the campaign and kept things focused on the pitch.
At the end of the day though all Rovers fans are delighted with the progress made by the board, manager and team and considered it a successful season, not worrying about gambling long term security for short term success.
I could mention the fact Fenlon/Bohs were having a go at the FAI, Rovers, MNS, Salzburg...but I don't want to drag this off topic.

It's fairly obvious that the Sligo posters here (I've no idea if that's a fair representation of Sligo fans) have big issues with Shamrock Rovers. They seem to be amongst Sligo's biggest rivals. Fair enough. But to say that Michael O'Neill was grossly offensive by saying he thought it was a penalty in one of the four games with Sligo seems a little odd. Do you have that reaction to all managers who think they deserve a decision against Sligo, or have you got over examples of MON's behaviour that is offensive? Because he seems to have come across as one of the best educated, in-offensive, agreeable and managers in the league in his 12 months in the LoI.

I'd love to hear any argument against that, which isn't based around the fact that he manages that shower of barstewards from Tallaght that Sligo fans seem to hate, or perhaps the possibility he referred to Shamrock Rovers as SRFC "and shure dont he know that ye arnt the real SRFC at all boy, only Sligo are..."

[CarrickFan]

Im repeating myself here...you made a lot of good points Jicked but as i said ive nothing against Shamrock Rovers,it's fans or anything...i dont like the guy and im entitled to my opinion...im sure you dont like every single opposition player or manager?...and its not soley based on that Game in Sligo....i also only represent my own opinions and not of Sligo Rovers or our fans in General...so it's not an anti Shams thing or bitterness from the match changing decisions of THAT game...as a follower of the domestic game who goes to games and reads interviews etc i have formed the opinion that i dont like him...simple as that..no big anti Shams conspiracy.

[SligoBrewer]

It's fairly obvious that the Sligo posters here (I've no idea if that's a fair representation of Sligo fans) have big issues with Shamrock Rovers. They seem to be amongst Sligo's biggest rivals. Fair enough. But to say that Michael O'Neill was grossly offensive by saying he thought it was a penalty in one of the four games with Sligo seems a little odd. Do you have that reaction to all managers who think they deserve a decision against Sligo, or have you got over examples of MON's behaviour that is offensive? Because he seems to have come across as one of the best educated, in-offensive, agreeable and managers in the league in his 12 months in the LoI.

I know for me, it's got nothing to do with Shams, I have no gripe with you. TBH, I'm rather new to the LOI scene so the whole Shams are our rivals/number one club in the land has bypassed me.

I just hate him.

[dfx-]

You little Sligo Rovers upstarts, how dare you? Don't you know that Shams fans know literally everything to do with every League of Ireland clun since they moved to Tallaght.

You really ought to know better than to question them, or worse, remind them that are as much cheats as any other club going because they had a lot of debt written off too.

Oh but "that was the previous board" Ask me hole.

Roughly what year will Shels fans get over that relegation?

[SligoBrewer]

Roughly what year will Shels fans get over that relegation?

The same year that ye stop living in the past.

[mypost]

i said ive nothing against Shamrock Rovers,it's fans or anything...i dont like the guy and im entitled to my opinion...as a follower of the domestic game who goes to games and reads interviews etc i dont like him

They just can't help themselves, can they??

[CarrickFan]

They just can't help themselves, can they??

are you not familiar with Newspapers etc??

[sligoman]

I don't like O'Neill cos he's associated with Shams...I'd have thought that's a fair enough reason.

[weecountyman]

I've only met MO'N once but he came across as a pretty decent guy, friendly, intelligent and someone who knows the value of a euro. As for how he's viewed in other quarters of the league everyone is entitled to a dislike or two. I've met Dermot Keely a bunch of times and like the man because he has a decent brain above all else. Pat Fenlon is disliked in many quarters but I never found him (as player or manager) as anything other than polite and well mannered. Damien Richardson I found a bit stand-offish, Pat Dolan engaging but not very funny, and Rod, well, full of bluster the couple of times I actually spoke with him but largely inoffensive (never played for him though, or hired him). Sean Connor I found was extremely funny and quick witted, but his persona on the sideline I really find objectionable.

[bingoballs]

We were unbeaten for 22 games, they lost almost double as many as we did. That's not rocket science either.

All this anti-MON stuff started because he gave an honest account of the last game between the sides. It's clear you don't like that level of honesty, and prefer the politically correct soundbites from coaches in all sports these days. Fair enough.

He didn't give an honest account of the game, thats the problem. We should have been well ahead at half time, i think ye had two attempts on target, one of them not being Peers og. There was a handball by a Shams player leading to the penalty, which was a dodgey decision anyway, and the corner that even mr O Niell himself knew wasn't that resulted in the winner. Instead of admitting that ye were lucky on the night, he accused us of being overly physical and more or less gave our club, players and fans two fingers by not giving us the due respect we deserved for our performance on the night. It was bad enough being robbed without having that indignant little man rubbing salt into the wound. I may be wrong about this but I think the side he put out for your last game of the season showed his ability to hold a grudge also after the side we put out against Bohs previously. No class, no integrity, not a nice man as far as I'm concerned. Hope we meet him next season.

[mypost]

We should have been well ahead at half time

You were ahead.

There was a handball by a Shams player leading to the penalty, which was a dodgey decision anyway,

Nobody could prove there was a handball.

the corner that even mr O Niell himself knew wasn't that resulted in the winner.

Corners are given in error all the time. He said you "didn't defend the corner", which you didn't.

Instead of admitting that ye were lucky on the night, he accused us of being overly physical

You were overly physical, not that it should offend anyone.

more or less gave our club, players and fans two fingers by not giving us the due respect we deserved for our performance

What respect did you want? We had an hour to comeback in the game, which we did. You had the ball for 25 minutes to get an equaliser, failed and lost. Problem?

having that indignant little man rubbing salt into the wound.

You wanted him to come out with the usual pc claptrap and got a shock when he was honest. As I said, you don't like it. Fair enough.

I may be wrong about this but I think the side he put out for your last game of the season showed his ability to hold a grudge also after the side we put out against Bohs previously.

The side put out reflected what was at stake. You put out a side at Connaught Street and you could have been relegated because of it. The situations weren't exactly like-for-like.

It's Sligo fans rather than MON holding a grudge here.

[bingoballs]

You were ahead.



Nobody could prove there was a handball.



Corners are given in error all the time. He said you "didn't defend the corner", which you didn't.



You were overly physical, not that it should offend anyone.



What respect did you want? We had an hour to comeback in the game, which we did. You had the ball for 25 minutes to get an equaliser, failed and lost. Problem?



You wanted him to come out with the usual pc claptrap and got a shock when he was honest. As I said, you don't like it. Fair enough.



The side put out reflected what was at stake. You put out a side at Connaught Street and you could have been relegated because of it. The situations weren't exactly like-for-like.

It's Sligo fans rather than MON holding a grudge here.

We never deserved to loose that game, we were robbed against a dublin side by dubious refereeing decisions, surprise surprise. If your manager was honest he would have admitted ye were lucky but he had to get the dig in. I do think he did a great job with ye last season and it would be great for the league if he stays, but he didn't endear himself to me with his dismissive arrogant attitude after that match. Hopefully, we will take six points off ye in the Showgrounds next season and we will see how honest he is then.

[Jicked]

I may be wrong about this but I think the side he put out for your last game of the season showed his ability to hold a grudge also after the side we put out against Bohs previously.

You are wrong, Rovers named a full strength side despite having nothing to play for. (Mannus, Sullivan, Price, Sives, Cahill, Robinson, Chisholm, Bradley, Kavanagh, Twigg, Barrett).

It was Sligo who bizarrely named a second string side against Bohs for no real reason. Your post just shows what I expected, Sligo fans were hugely wound up for no big reason on the back of one game and fifteen seconds of after match coverage. It's really quite odd.

[CarrickFan]

You are wrong, Rovers named a full strength side despite having nothing to play for. (Mannus, Sullivan, Price, Sives, Cahill, Robinson, Chisholm, Bradley, Kavanagh, Twigg, Barrett).

It was Sligo who bizarrely named a second string side against Bohs for no real reason. Your post just shows what I expected, Sligo fans were hugely wound up for no big reason on the back of one game and fifteen seconds of after match coverage. It's really quite odd.

Not much for research are you?...Cook named a less than full strenght team v Bohs because we had a home game v Drogheda next up which would more or less guarentee safety and i think you'll admit Drogs at home is the more winnable game...also we had a cup final coming up..so resting players who had played many games in a few weeks and trying to avoid injury and suspensions is a valid reason..to say anything else is disingenuous.....
kind of going off topic here but had to challenge your assertion that the changes were for "no real reason".

[SligoBrewer]

blah blah blah claptrap.

Oh will you please go and stick this up your jumper.

You won that game despite not getting a shot on target penalty excluded.
The penalty was as said before never a penalty.
The corner from which Gavin scored the OG from was never a corner and carefully omitted from SRFCTV footage.

When MO'N ****s off, (which is only a matter of time) you'll realise what an arrogant person he is.

And as for the fact that noone could prove it was a handball, is this taken out of the "Monkey chants, what monkey chants?" book of reactions.

[SligoBrewer]

Get over it

No, why should I? MO'N is being paraded as the saviour of Irish football when he's in way that.

[Hairy Bowsie]

Roughly what year will Shels fans get over that relegation?

All Shels fans are over it. We broke the rules and got justly punished for it. I challange you to find me one Shels fan who thinks we were treated harshly.

[brianw82]

Paraded as the saviour of Irish football? Tell me where that is evident?

Wow he gave one bad interview, where he was more than likely wrong but apart from that I think he has seems a decent enough fella. I've nothing against him anyway.

Sense being spoken by one of our fans? Good thing I was already sitting down!

[MMVIII]

Have Shams fans forgotten about the second string team, which may I add was worse than the one we had out against Bohs IMO, we had out against yous in the game in Tolka.

Anyways, this hatred of MON is a bit ott. There's far worse than him.