Do ye honestly think GT cares about what the Irish think and that he only wants to pick players that have come up through the Irish underage set up?
At the end of the day GT is a money grabber and if he can get a player that qualifies for Ireland that he thinks is good enough for the squad (regardless of where he was born) he will pick him....end of.
There are many "Irish" players that were born or were eligible to play for England (or another country) over the years that would have chosen England over Ireland if they had been asked...............but as the call didn't come, they went on to choose Ireland..................Fact.
Last edited by abbeyvale; 09/03/2011 at 4:51 PM.
68, 99, 08
Our prisons are already at breaking point, we have no room left, sorry not this time Jermaine.
I don't think Trapattoni would have much time for a guy like this. He claims he's a reformed man since the birth of his child last year though...
Stephen Carr and Steven Reid are retired from international football, so not really a case of them being dismissed surely. Fair enough regarding the others, in Trapattoni's mind anyway. Many fans wouldn't dismiss them, however, as potential options at least.
Of course, I'm against this chancer pulling on the green jersey. He is the epitome of everything you don't want in an international player. In saying that however - as mentioned above - Clinton Morrisson, whose situation was not dissimilar, did become a mainstay in our side for nearly two campaigns IIRC and something of cult hero. Maybe the latter was because he was such a likeable chap! Also remember Paul Butler?! Now that was a laugh!
Last edited by Scooby Doo; 09/03/2011 at 9:53 PM.
Morrison's situation was very very different to Pennant's.
Morrison declared at 22/23 and at the height of his scoring exploits in fairness.
Should Trap entertain Pennant's case, hopefully he'll take his (many) disciplinary indiscretions into account and that'l at least contribute to the sinking of this possibility. Another factor being this guy's ability in comparison to what we already have.
It was similar in that he waited for an England call up until was certain his best prospects lay with Ireland. I recall Paul Howard writing about how McCarthy apparently lost it with him when he left Mick waiting an hour before a meeting regarding a possible Ireland call-up. Mick's reaction was 'Would you keep Sven Goran Eriksson waiting for an hour?', an attitude which as far as he was concerned, spoke volumes, it seems.
Don't get me wrong, I was a big fan of Clint when he played for us. Definately put his heart and soul into it and on several occassions publically refered to Ireland as 'my country'.![]()
Last edited by Scooby Doo; 09/03/2011 at 11:18 PM.
how is he illiterate? he has to sign his name on the contract,unless his agent reads it to him. you dont have to be smart to play football. he must be able to write his name or at least count to 10!!!!! this really bothers me that another mercenary want to opt for eire. we are england b team!!!!!!!!!!
For me, if Pennant was 18-21, I would probably turn the other cheek & give the fella the benefit of the doubt. "Ok, perhaps he has an stronger affinity to Ireland, not unlike a McGeady, McCarthy or Kilbane. Maybe his grandmother was more of a maternal figure than his parents, who knows". I'd wish him well and hope he grows into the role. He's young enough that to stake a claim like that he's probably making a bold statement either way
But Pennant's 28 and, let's face it, a Premiership washout. His career has not exactly taken off & knows England will never come beckoning. Ireland to him is just a convenient club that will let him get a little piece of International football. This is a cynical, mercenary manoeuvre & and it doesn't matter how good he is, we should have a little more self-respect than this.
Doubly so when we're blatantly ignoring genuine Irish midfield prospects.
It's clear Pennant doesn't feel Irish and never met his grandad by the sounds of things. "My mum told me my grandad was Irish".
The "granny rule" is great for genuine cases like McGeady, McCarthy etc but not only would a Pennant appearance cheapen the green shirt, it wouldn't offer us anything better than what we've already got.
Last edited by boovidge; 10/03/2011 at 1:43 PM.
If you attack me with stupidity, I'll be forced to defend myself with sarcasm.
True, but surely equally when he is looking to that man as his angle for declaring for us, he should have been a big influence on the guy, and given him his sense of the Irishness we look for in eligibility cases like this. And with good reason.
He should at least have mentioned this at some stage before the age of 28 if it were of anything other than tactical last chance saloon material to Pennant.
That 'Green and Red' rte programme from 10 years ago?
Ray wouldn't have to look for the Irish result as he would already know how Ireland fared.
Anyway it's natural that he would look for Scotland's results.
He never made any secret out of, or tried to revise, how much he had wanted to play for Scotland before declaring for Ireland by invitation. He is a proud dual national and very much at ease with both aspects.
I haven't heard your perception, of what Ray said or meant, corroborated by anybody and not by Ray himself in all the years listening to him.
That's fair enough, but the point is would that be enough to pass this new Stutts gut test, if it had been applicable at the time? I'm not trying to make it about individual past players - it's just the same standard isn't being applied to Pennant imo now he says he's interested in representing "the republic".
If you attack me with stupidity, I'll be forced to defend myself with sarcasm.
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