Fields of Athenry - Ireland v Spain, Gdansk

[tricky_colour]

Being utterly depressed with our showing at this tournament and belting out a proud and emotional rendition of 'The Fields of Athenry' in defeat need not be incompatible. Nobody wants to see Ireland continually fail and nobody wants to celebrate that when it happens. We all want what is best for Irish football, but I just don't know if most Irish people see it. The players certainly didn't head off to Poland in holiday mode, whether Keane wants to imply they did or not. I thought the singing was admirable and dignified and it did give me a lump in my throat. It still does when I re-watch the video. However, there were 25,000 Irish fans in Gdansk the other night. The League of Ireland, on the other hand, would be lucky to get such a figure attending a full series of games over one weekend. It's just a pity that so many Irish fans valiant in defeat fail to make a connection between the defeat and the inept development infrastructure we have in place in Ireland.

What was Keane's solution, other than changing our mentality as players and supporters? We didn't lose on Sunday night simply because of mentality. We'd already lost the game years ago. The final result was just a wake-up call.

I already posted it in the league forum, but thought this was an interesting piece:

'Inferior tactics, inferior technique, inferior attitude - Euro 2012 embarrassment must bring forth a new Ireland': http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/3284/...-attitude-euro

Unfortunately Ireland are right next to the Premier league a league which like a leech sucks the life out of smaller leagues
Ireland being the closest gets sucked dry.
It would perhaps be tether if Ireland had regional football clubs as in Rugby, ie Munster Leinster etc...
Let's face it there would be no interest in the Rugby if the clubs were on the same scale as the soccor clubs.

[tricky_colour]

[QUOTE=sullanefc;1604490] Is that what he will be known as from now on?
I just copied the quote from a paper, one of the UK tabloids I think.
Actually the Daily Telegraph uses the same expression

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education...niversity.html

Liam Stacey, a student jailed for using Twitter to mock heart attack football star Fabrice Muamba, has been banned from his university for the remainder of the year, officials have confirmed

So yea he will indeed be remembered for his heart attack more than his football.

[DannyInvincible]

Unfortunately Ireland are right next to the Premier league a league which like a leech sucks the life out of smaller leagues
Ireland being the closest gets sucked dry.
It would perhaps be tether if Ireland had regional football clubs as in Rugby, ie Munster Leinster etc...
Let's face it there would be no interest in the Rugby if the clubs were on the same scale as the soccor clubs.

Not sure what geographical proximity has to do with it. The SPL is much-better supported than the LOI, despite Scotland sharing a border with England.

[tricky_colour]

Roy is talking about how the media are always going on about our great fans and how good craic we are. He agrees with this, but finds it all a bit patronising. Frankly, so do I. The paddies are great fun but can't play football. That's how we're viewed around Europe and he knows it from being in contact with football people around Europe. He wants us to be great fun AND to play great football.

It was him as captain who drove us to the World Cup in 2002 remember. We were drawn in a group with two of the best teams in Europe, and he refused to "hold the hands up and acknowledge that the other team is better." We didn't just heroically resist attacks of the other teams like previous Ireland teams did. No, we went out and owned their midfields. It's that winning mentality that brought him success and it's that winning mentality that makes him angry when he sees his country getting battered 3-1 and 4-0 at a finals. I admit that they way he said it didn't sound great, but in general I agree with him and you must understand that this man wants only the best for Ireland. He is essentially saying that the fans deserve better.

We did pretty well without Roy at the Finals. We were far from a one man side.

This was the team V Spain

Rep of Ireland: Given, Gary Kelly (Quinn 55), Staunton (Cunningham 50), Breen, Harte (Connolly 82), Finnan, Kinsella, Holland, Kilbane, Duff, Keane.

Subs Not Used: Carsley, Dunne, Kiely, McAteer, Morrison, O'Brien, Reid, Alan Kelly.


Several of the player there are now 10 years older, and 10 seconds slower!!

What annoyed me most was I thought we had a genuine chance of winning it, but Roy decided otherwise!! (Thanks Roy!!).

[tricky_colour]

cringing

Great to see us winning something after all these years.

[Stuttgart88]

Good jaysus

[osarusan]

But it is it is precisely the definition of a fair weather supporter, for you to say otherwise is disingenuous.
The weather is the result and the support is the singing if you won't sing after a defeat you are the very epitome of a
fair weather supporter whether you realise it or not. (which you apparently don't)

This is absolute horsesh!t.

If you don't sing after a defeat, you're not a real fan, just a fairweather fan? What utterly ignorant patronising nonsense.

I've supported Limerick FC since 1989 - we were last in the premier division 17 years ago. A season ticket holder too, I've been to hundreds and hundreds of games, home and away, from Donegal to Wexford. I would say that I've followed them through thick and thin, except there has been nothing other than thin in the last 17 years. Yet because I've never sung after one of our very many defeats, by your retarded definition, I'm not a real fan.

[Crosby87]

Tricky VS Osarusan, with Stutts in the jam.

I for one, which is meaningless, want the two of you to just agree to disagree.

Fudging fantastic it is, BTW, you both make great points.

[tricky_colour]

This is absolute norsesh!t.

If you don't sing after a defeat, you're not a real fan, just a fairweather fan? What utterly ignorant patronising nonsense.

I've supported Limerick FC since 1989 - we were last in the premier division 17 years ago. A season ticket holder too, I've been to hundreds and hundreds of games, home and away, from Donegal to Wexford. I would say that I've followed them through thick and thin, except there has been nothing other than thin in the last 17 years. Yet because I've never sung after one of our very many defeats, by your retarded definition, I'm not a real fan.

But have you considered if you had sang after a defeat the results might have pick up and Limerick could have gone on to win the Champions league?


Anyway, reminded me a bit of the 1991 FA cup semi final when Forest won 4-0, my abiding memory of that (I was there) was the incessant chanting of "Billy Bonds claret and blue army" (and stomping of feet) even thought they had lost, they seemed to do it for the whole of the second half. Kind of took the shine off the victory for me, but I thought it showed great support even though they had lost.

I found a video of it but the chanting does not really come across on it, however one of the comment does sum it up nicely

"Hope you remember the West Ham fans singing non stop throughout the match putting the Forest fans to shame."

Indeed you do hear the chant at the start, and their fans did put Forests fans to shame, despite losing.

However it is an interesting video as it features a young 19 year old Roy Keane!! He got an assist for the first and scores the second (~2.25). (Forest lost the final).

Anyhow I see the singing in part as a "thanks for qualifying" something we have not done for a long time.

[Predator]

But it is it is precisely the definition of a fair weather supporter, for you to say otherwise is disingenuous.
The weather is the result and the support is the singing if you won't sing after a defeat you are the very epitome of a
fair weather supporter whether you realise it or not. (which you apparently don't)

You're talking nonsense, I'm afraid.

[bennocelt]

E Sweeney's take on it

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...s-3140399.html

[barney]

E Sweeney's take on it

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...s-3140399.html

I agree with the sentiment behind the article but the writer does himself no favours with some of the uncalled for bias that peppers it.

Armenia are much better than their ranking at the beginning of the qualification suggested.
Paul Green was not at fault for the 4th goal. Ronnie Whelan suggested it in commentary and the nation was happy to jump on it because it was Green and it fit an agenda.
Paul Green had an offer at Derby as I understand it but rejected it and they let him go. He wasn’t just f**ked out because they didn’t want him.
Darron Gibson is a decent ballplayer but he has been mediocre for us (and Man U – I haven’t seen much of him for Everton)

That said, as much as I like Trap, Sweeney is basically right in much of what he says.

[Lionel Ritchie]

E Sweeney's take on it

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...s-3140399.html

Mildly entertaining article but the real side splitter is that picture of Roxette in the competition on the right hand column. Yer wan looks 20 years younger than she looked 20 years ago ...or have they been making the kind of radical changes up front that Trap would shirk?

[Stuttgart88]

Well said Barney but I think Gibson has only played once for us since going to Everton and has done well. Sweeney's argument would have been better made if it had appreciated the nuances you introduced above. I think the Marc Wilson discipline thing mentioned by sweeney doesn't hold much water either btw.

[bennocelt]

http://backpagefootball.com/best-fan...t-quite/42808/

[Murfinator]

cringing

Pathetic.

[eekers]

I thought this was spot on http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...e-3140410.html

Also the exact same behaviour back at home a few months ago caused all sorts of outrage and controversy, but out in Poland we're the best fans in the world etc.
Remember this? how is this different than how we're behaving in Poland?

[geysir]

I thought this was spot on http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...e-3140410.html

Also the exact same behaviour back at home a few months ago caused all sorts of outrage and controversy, but out in Poland we're the best fans in the world etc.
Remember this? how is this different than how we're behaving in Poland?

I don't know eekers, you were there in Poland to see for yourself, that you thought Dion Fanning was spot on, you tell us how different it was in Poznan from that you tube thing?

[Stuttgart88]

I'm not sure that's a fair comparison. Crowd behaviour expectations at a football festival are very different to what local public / police / bar owners expect during normal periods.

I'd have been horrified if some of the behaviour of some Irish in my train carriage on the way to Sopot was repaeted outside a football tournament. In the context of a football tournament or any football game what would be considered yobbish in other circumstances is part of the event. But in a football tournament you expect singing and boisterousness and it's actually to be welcomed as long as a line isn't crossed over into threatening, rude or violent behaviour. I saw a lot of very drunken but equally harmless behaviour over in Poland.

According to the Indo here's what the locals thought of us:

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...s-3140886.html

Edit: just read the Fanning article. I have to say it did strike me that my time has come and gone. I would have no appetite whatsoever to do the amount of drinking some lads got up to and though I like my drink I don't like drinking more just for the sake of it.

[tricky_colour]

You're talking nonsense, I'm afraid.

I'm trying to speak to you on your own your level.