Man arrives early for work!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/24916323
Dunno if this has been posted already.
New assistant boss Roy Keane was the first to arrive at Republic of Ireland training in Malahide on Tuesday as preparations for Friday's friendly against Latvia got under way.
Keane, 42, turned up 90 minutes before Martin O'Neill and his players were scheduled to begin work at Gannon Park.
The Cork man checked out the training pitch before inspecting the nearby gym facilities at the north Dublin venue.
Keane returned to the training pitch well before the first players arrived.
The former Republic of Ireland and Manchester United captain, who was wearing full training kit, had time to sign autographs and pose for photographs with fans who had turned out to witness the start of the new regime.
I guess it would not be too clever if the pitch was rock hard and all the equipment had gone AWOL
To be fair Keane shrugged this off in the press conference himself. He said it would obviously be part of his job to get things organised before the players arrive. He was then asked if he is going to expect the same from the players, that they should be punctual... he just gave one of his squinty-eyed looks and replied with something along the lines of "Obviously.... do I expect them to be on time for work??? Hardly looking for miracles is it?"
" I wish to God that someone would be able to block out the voices in my head for five minutes, the voices that scream, over and over again: "Why do they come to me to die?"
Not a plug for the FAI but brings it home...
Nah, from the FAI Fbk.page...
It reminds me of the below link:
http://www.impawards.com/2003/poster...ys_two_xlg.jpg
Or in this case "Bad Cop, Bad Bad Cop 2"
Journalists do not decide "the channel of thought" on football teams for the genuine supporters, most of whom are on here. Dunphy (and Giles for that matter) ranted for years against Charlton and yet he left when he decided the time was right and the supporters were loyal to him. Do you think people on here will pay any more heed to O'Donoghue's view that the view of the fans on here. The likes of Miriam Lord who did a piece in the Irish Times http://www.irishtimes.com/news/irela...ined-1.1594050 about "the glamorous Roy Keane" will interest the celeb followers or event junkies, many of whom will go to the Aviva tomorrow, but will it shape the opinion of the fans, I doubt it. Take Trap also: the media was 95% against him even going in to the qualification campaign but I doubt if it changed attitutes. Fans are well capable of making up their own minds whether pro or anti..
I wouldn't worry either about the huge hype that is surrounding the appointment of an out of work Corkman as an assistant manager. I will never like Keane following on Saipan but if O'Neill brings success, he can have Dunphy as his assistant for all I care. The team the team the team. As for the rest of it, I'll bite my lip and remember the latin phrase I learned at school: "Optimum est pati quod emendare non possis."
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
I thanked OF's post despite not understanding the Latin bit at the end.
I was firmly on Mick's side in Saipan but at the same time, when I think back on some of the personal rows I've had in my life where I have been wholly consumed by pride and no small level of innate aggression and self-preservation instinct, and where I have maintained an irrational stance believing it to be right at the time, I'd be a hypocrite not to see a bit of him in what I have done -albeit on a less public scale!
I'm happy to see a great Irish football figure there to inspire and motivate our players. I take him in face value when he says he's not a monster and can actually be a good influence on lesser players. In fact, I reckon Keane's outward alpha-ness betrays some insecurities. No shame in that whatsoever. I can't see why anyone would object to him being in part-charge of our team. We'd be mad not to consider him.
Last edited by Stuttgart88; 14/11/2013 at 7:39 PM.
I want the contrary whiny f'ecker to succeed. I don't expect (or want) him to have changed, but a bit of maturity wont go amiss and will go a long way in this job.
Talking about Keane .... just in case a line got crossed.
think Stutts asked what Irish players have played under Keane and O'Neill at club level
also Shane Lowry played at Villa under O'Neill before changing allegiances to Australia, and Alex Bruce played for Keane at Ipswich before changing allegiance to the NorthCode:Manager Name Club Player Martin O'Neill Celtic Aiden McGeady Liam Miller Colin Healy Aston Villa Richard Dunne Roy Keane Sunderland Liam Miller Anthony Stokes Daryl Murphy David Connolly Stephen Elliott Clive Clarke Graham Kavanagh Liam Lawrence Kenny Cunningham Paul McShane Ian Harte Roy O'Donovan Andy Reid Nicky Colgan David Meyler Ipswich Owen Garvan Alan Quinn Colin Healy Damien Delaney Jonathan Walters Shane Supple Ian McLoughlin Daryl Murphy Brian Murphy Shane O'Connor Ronan Murray Conor Hourihane Darren O'Dea Mark Kennedy
Has anybody noticed that Martin O'Neill's jokes are really, really bad? Like I know my posts aren't the best, but... has a manager ever been sacked for killing everyone's buzz?
He's no Patrick Kielty.
I like high energy football. A little bit rock and roll. Many finishes instead of waiting for the perfect one.
Is that a compliment or an insult?
Too-good Di Canio's got beef with Martin: http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/inter...6837-di-canio/
Paolo Di Canio has hit back at Martin O'Neill as the war of words between the former Sunderland managers continued.
Di Canio succeeded O'Neill at the Stadium of Light in March and, on his arrival, criticised the fitness levels in the squad.
O'Neill took his time to respond but following his appointment as Republic of Ireland boss earlier this week, he dismissed Di Canio's barbs and labelled the Italian a "managerial charlatan".
Di Canio, who led Sunderland to Premier League survival last season before being sacked after five games of the current campaign, told Sky Sports News: "I don't know if he knows the meaning of this word charlatan. Probably I can teach him, even if I am not English.
"I respect the opinion of manager Martin O'Neill but the fact that he spoke after six months, not straight away, that proves what kind of level he is. He is not very big.
"A charlatan is a manager who spends £40m to be a top ten club and then sees the club sink into the relegation zone."
Di Canio stood by his claim that the Black Cats players were not in peak condition when he arrived on Wearside.
"The fitness levels were pathetic," he said.
"I had players who told me they had cramps from driving the car.
"I had three players with injuries in the calf after 20 minutes of a game. Six different players with problems means they were not fit."
Di Canio was dismissed after a 3-0 defeat at West Brom, a result which was reportedly followed a day later by a training ground bust-up with senior players which led them to ask the board to take action.
Di Canio insisted, however, that no argument took place.
"It never happened," he said.
"There was a typical meeting, as there was after every game to see the clips and analyse the game.
"Maybe there was opinion but this happens in every good family."
Even though his first foray into top-flight management ended in acrimonious fashion, it has not quelled Di Canio's confidence and he remains hopeful of finding another job in England.
"I was too good, my level was too high," he said of his experience at Sunderland.
"What doesn't kill me makes me stronger. I can't wait to have another chance with the right people. I feel a better manager than before.
"Even if I have requests from around Europe I say no.
"There is no space for me in England at the moment but I will wait.
"It would be stupid for a chairman not to call me. Even if it's at a Championship club with a project."
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