Tonight confirmed that Latvia are a poor team. We could easily have won 6 or 7-0 and they would have been relieved. We will learn an awful lot more in Poland.
Agreed, and being honest Poland could go and spank us now having lost tonight .... that said, O'Neill seems to have picked a very positive squad and i think getting the first game over with a three nil win is just what we needed, now they can get down to business (hoping we don't get tanked)Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin
The SFAI are the governing body for grassroots football in Ireland, not the FAI. Its success or the lack of is all down to them.
Last night meant little, Polska won't either, but be surprised if we took a good beating. Can see a reasonably tight game.
Yeah nothing would show Trap up more than getting a positive result away from home.
Latvia really were brutal, could tell after about 20 seconds that they had no interest in going out and playing. I thought Hoolahan was easily the best player on the pitch last night, he always wanted the ball and his touch was excellent when he got it. Wilson impressed me at centre back and Mcclean and Mccarthy were good to. Great to see us trying to play and hopefully we will continue in that way when put under a bit of pressure.
I do wonder what Trap's game was though. It's easy to call him lazy, senile, behind the times, etc but the guy is obviously no fool.
He must surely have realised that we had a better standard of player, in every way, to the likes of Andorra, Faroes, Kazaks, etc and that we would have been able to account for them more comfortably by keeping the ball.
I'd imagine he did know this but the thoughts of us trying to play any sort of possession football against teams of similar or better quality scared the bejaysus out of him. Therefore, he used all of the matches, minnows or otherwise, to perfect his 'system' and leave the players in no doubt as to their specific and unchangeable roles.
It's easily forgotten how much stability this bought initially, which was badly needed at the time. We went from playing suicidal football and getting ripped apart by Cyprus, to winning similar matches with a degree of competency. I'm sure Trap based his initial system on dvd's of games such as that Cyprus one.
His downfall was not adapting when the system was clearly no longer as effective. He neither gradually nor radically implemented any sort of plan that would ease the pressure on our midfield, and obviously paid the price.
We couldn't have done any better really last night. Nice intricate passing, great work-rate and high pressing. Some really strong individual displays also. It's not raining on anybody's parade to take the quality of opposition into account, or to remember the optimism surrounding Stan's first game in charge... that's just street-smart.
There was an argument for Traps style right up until the Euros, however after what happened there and seeing that any technical team were finding it relatively easy to pass straight through us it was obvious a change in philosophy needed to be made. Either he couldn't see that or he couldn't think of anything else to even try.
Did it become ineffective gradually or all of a sudden, or simply when we came up against top-calibre technical opposition (notably against Russia, although it was most severely exposed at the Euros), thereby causing the players and some of its adherents to lose faith in it? What was the cause of the staleness and regression, in your opinion?
Last edited by DannyInvincible; 16/11/2013 at 10:06 AM.
Yeah of course everyone is glad Trap is gone and a new era has dawned but its ridiculous the ill will some harbour towards the last set up, as if some luciferian regime of tyranny has been overthrown. I don't think in 10 years time people will be looking back at his reign with such hatred. It will stand up as a successful yet ultimately limited era.
Anyway, last night was decent. I am enthused. Down to the players now to gain and maintain some form at the clubs for the real stuff a year or so down the line.
The dude abides....
It's hard to know because I think we got a favourable group initially with regards the system. Italy, for all their strengths, are not a side that will cut you open at will. They also played almost the full game in Bari with ten men and a one goal lead. Bulgaria were in a state of disarray at the time and Montenegro were only finding their feet. The system may have been exposed earlier had we met a Germany or Russia at that point.
To be fair to the players, at least the majority who were getting a look in, I think they supported Trap and his system to the bitter end. To answer your question, it was exposed all of a sudden, that night against Russia, but went away again for a while until Moscow and, more dramatically, Croatia and Spain at the Euros. Whether it would have been exposed much earlier if we had played a side like those in the first campaign, I'm not sure.
Slightly facile win, but you can only beat what's in front of you.
I agree totally with Shakermaker and rebelmusic above.
I liked the way we played on the front foot throughout and put pressure on the ball. I liked the way we worked from the back. All 3 of these are departures from the Trap ethos already.
Big apologies to Glenn Whelan. He looks a different player to the one Trap didn't allow to go forward much. Very impressive. Hoolahan and McGeady were the standouts for me. McClean set a great tempo but is still a bit one-dimensional. Good showing though. The only disappointment for me was Ward who I thought struggled a bit on the ball. Wilson was barely in the game but once or twice lacked a bit of awareness I thought.
I liked the selection and I liked the attitude. Far bigger tests to come but no complaints at all. Will we finally see the real McGeady under O'Neill? He looked like he was in his element last night.
Last edited by Stuttgart88; 16/11/2013 at 11:33 AM.
I've only seen the rte highlights and it hard to see the pattern of the game though that helter skelter.
It's a relief to see that Kings groundwork with the squad was not in vain and the new management are moving forward from that base. It's a bit easier to do that in a non competitive game against a team who didn't look that interested, whilst everyone of our players are probably on a mission to make the impression. Good to read the positivity about the performance here.
Even the RTÉ panel were waxing lyrical! Albeit minus Dunphy.
Disagree with the lack of respect for Mr Trapattoni on here, yes it was a campaign too far, but lets not forget the earlier successes.
I agree that you can only beat what's in front of you (Thats what I say to the ladies!)
But to wax lyrical over such a performance is over the top.
A better side would of cut through us, our passing wasn't sharp enough and we gave the ball away in good positions.
Early days, so let's look forward with hope, not blind faith.
Big test against the Poles, but should we play our stronger line up it should be a good test.
In Trap we trusted, now cometh the hour cometh the MON.
Constructive criticism amounts to disrespect now? I didn't see anything in Stutts post to merit such an over-sensitive accusation. Trap's earlier successes haven't been forgotten "on here" despite your impression that some posters might be overlooking them; you'll find there's not an orthodoxy of opinion on this forum, thankfully.
I was being somewhat poetic in light of the usual negativity many have come to expect from the RTÉ panel.But to wax lyrical over such a performance is over the top.
But blind faith in Trap's method up until his final days in charge was all good? Do you seriously only post in insincere clichés? How about having a bit of respect for other forum users through refraining from pretending to speak for them?Early days, so let's look forward with hope, not blind faith.
Big test against the Poles, but should we play our stronger line up it should be a good test.
In Trap we trusted, now cometh the hour cometh the MON.
Video from Martin's post-match press conference:
Trpapattoni was a disgrace.
Now that's disrespect.
Even misspelling his name!
What is the name of that white haired man on the management team again? I see him with MON and Keane at the rugby aswell?
any way to watch it back? can't find it on RTE player
Folding my way into the big money!!!
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