Republic of Ireland V Turkey, Italy, Costa Rica & Portugal - May/June 2014

[tricky_colour]

You should have kept quiet Tricky, let this one run out and then pretend you didn't know what Danny was on about..
Just remember, if you fly out at midday from to Dublin to NY, you arrive about midday local time. That means we are 5 hours ahead.

KO times are 5 hours ahead in Ireland

Do you have to travel at the speed of light for that to happen?

[DannyInvincible]

Then there is the question of if he would accept a move to a foreign club if he was offered one. Irish players seem reticent to make a leap like that. Probably because of their wives and settling their children in foreign schools.

There could be a multitude of reasons as to why Irish players either seem generally reluctant or lack a realistic opportunity to move beyond the possible comfort zone of these isles. There might be cultural-linguistic obstacles or they may have a fear of having to adapt to a new all-round footballing style or tradition. The already-existing links between Ireland and English clubs (and their scouts) make it more likely that English clubs will get the "first pick" of developing Irish players in Ireland and so these players become embedded into the English footballing culture from an early age. Their whole careers, they'll have had it drilled into them that "moving across the water to the best league in the world" is the ultimate aspiration. Being under the impression that making it in England equates to playing at the pinnacle level of football globally, the notion of moving further afield might never even have crossed their minds. There's no real tradition of Irish players moving to clubs in continental Europe or beyond; it's an almost alien concept, bar a few rare exceptions. Scouts with links to continental European clubs aren't even common in Ireland, are they?

So, I'm sure it's not just those nagging wives and kids holding our poor lads back in every case... What a terribly sexist comment to make.

[SolitudeRed]

I'd say Darren O'Dea's current situation is something that might explain why some players would be reluctant to move away although this is an extreme case of course but I am sure nobody really envisaged Donetsk becoming the centre point of what is looking like a civil war.

Ian Lawlor and Joe Murphy have been called into the squad as cover for Elliot who is getting married and the injured Randolph.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/inter...irelands-call/

[gastric]

24 years ago was one of the greatest summers ever. Wasn't sure where best to put this, but this is a look at where these heroes are now!
Nice to reminisce!

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...-30308444.html

[Crosby87]

It was an interesting time for music. All the hair bands were going out kicking and screaming to be replaced by crap like nirvana which I loved at the time. Many eventual foot.ie members were caught in the middle. Stutts headed to Seattle and was mortified to learn his denim jacket was no longer in fashion. A stunned POSH watched as Motley Crue broke up and tried to figure out what this alice in chains thing was. Dr Peepee was covered in raw eggs for suggesting that the lads from posion were hotter than L7.

[Charlie Darwin]

I could almost swear there was a time when I could vaguely understand Crosby's posts on this forum. But maybe I was just drunk.

[tricky_colour]

Crosby's post are like Quantum Mechanics.

"If you think you understand quantum mechanics, you don't understand quantum mechanics." - Richard Feynman

[ArdeeBhoy]

24 years ago was one of the greatest summers ever. Wasn't sure where best to put this, but this is a look at where these heroes are now!
Nice to reminisce!

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...-30308444.html

Thanks, but as at least one of the comments on the piece says, a bit light on detail. And they were involved in some brutal football, at times...

[Stuttgart88]

Funnily enough, I had the grunge look down to a tee, but in 1988 before it became such a big thing in the pacific NW and beyond. New York chicks loved it, Boston less so

I did pick up my chitrali hat in an afghan shop in Boston though. They became an essential grunge item a couple of years later when the Pearl Jam bassist wore won. I was a visionary. Only Crosby realises it.

Crafty and I still reminisce about the Sub Pop golden era. I loved it.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Sub Pop era? Think missed that one...maybe.

[gastric]

Jeez, I thought I had derailed this thread. Crosby has sent it into outer space!
Ardee, would agree that it lacks detail, but it was nice to read, in particular about Morris and McLoughlin, I didn't know what became of them. Chris is now a pastie maker, that's a bit different!

[geysir]

Post punk+post rock = sub pop.
No doubt, hedonistic.

In football terms, now we are going through a tongue twister, post hoof, pre free form era.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Hmm, fair play. Never heard that term!

[Stuttgart88]

Sub Pop was a Seattle record label that had bands like Mudhoney & Screaming Trees on the roster, the latter being criminally underrated.

[ArdeeBhoy]

Know the bands, but grunge? No thanks, in the main...

[Stuttgart88]

There was a super documentary on The Late Show (BBC2) in 1992 or thereabouts.

No Nirvana: Nevermind

http://reinspired.wordpress.com/2011...-show-special/

It's on youtube. Live performances from

Screaming Trees
RATM
REM (strange - as they were already famous)
Dinosaur Jr
Belly
Sonic Youth
Smashing Pumpkins
Pearl Jam
Sugar
and others

So, not necessarily grunge but good US alternative / rock. All at a time when dance was all the rage in UK and Brit Pop was about to emerge.

The best US acts of that era were miles better, as the above documentary proved!

[bennocelt]

Stone Temple Pilots?
In Ireland some of those bands were popular, didnt know they were not so hot in the Uk

[paul_oshea]

It was an interesting time for music. All the hair bands were going out kicking and screaming to be replaced by crap like nirvana which I loved at the time. Many eventual foot.ie members were caught in the middle. Stutts headed to Seattle and was mortified to learn his denim jacket was no longer in fashion. A stunned POSH watched as Motley Crue broke up and tried to figure out what this alice in chains thing was. Dr Peepee was covered in raw eggs for suggesting that the lads from posion were hotter than L7.

I had a great laugh at this. I also lived nirvana at the time, well a bit later.

A sobering thought coming back from Colombia was Stutts first post after the Turkey game. I saw a lot of me in it, not as much of TWOK in stutts, or vice versa mind...

[paul_oshea]

Indeed you are correct, I am complete inept at such things.
For example I automatically think left is right, if it says click the icon on the bottom left I instinctively look to the right.

It is a good job I found out actually because otherwise I would be searching for a link for the game
at 1 am in the morning, indeed I am pretty sure I have done similar before.

I am fine with complicated stuff but useless with simple things!

Sorry my lord I followed instinct when i turned into those those toilets and proceeded to...

[TheOneWhoKnocks]

There could be a multitude of reasons as to why Irish players either seem generally reluctant or lack a realistic opportunity to move beyond the possible comfort zone of these isles. There might be cultural-linguistic obstacles or they may have a fear of having to adapt to a new all-round footballing style or tradition. The already-existing links between Ireland and English clubs (and their scouts) make it more likely that English clubs will get the "first pick" of developing Irish players in Ireland and so these players become embedded into the English footballing culture from an early age. Their whole careers, they'll have had it drilled into them that "moving across the water to the best league in the world" is the ultimate aspiration. Being under the impression that making it in England equates to playing at the pinnacle level of football globally, the notion of moving further afield might never even have crossed their minds. There's no real tradition of Irish players moving to clubs in continental Europe or beyond; it's an almost alien concept, bar a few rare exceptions. Scouts with links to continental European clubs aren't even common in Ireland, are they?

So, I'm sure it's not just those nagging wives and kids holding our poor lads back in every case... What a terribly sexist comment to make.

Sexist? You can't be serious? How was anything I said remotely sexist? I didn't make any judgments.

It is a fact that most footballers wives do not work apart from the rare exception. Therefore, it should be the footballer's decision as to where he goes to make his living.

Too many of our footballers are leaving those choices to their girlfriend/wife's discretion and it impacts on on our national team, because they'll end up twiddling their thumbs in the SPL, Championship or League One when they could be testing themselves in a foreign country with a new culture and more technical level of football.

Use Gavin Gunning as an example. He's linked with Palermo. He says he's going to consult with his family before he makes a decision as to where he continues his career. He'll probably end up going to Rangers or Sheffield Wednesday at a push because his wife doesn't want to move to another country. He won't be an option if he's playing in the Scottish second division.

Look at how playing abroad has benefited Cillian Sheridan, Darren O'Dea and Kyle Lafferty. Champions League, Europa League and Serie A promotion respectively. Even Stephen Hunt retrospectively said that he regrets not moving to Valenciennes.

It's their loss and ours too. I just find it amazing that, as a country, we have disproportionately high emigration rates in proportion to comfort of living. You have Irish lads on every corner of every continent yet these pampered footballers (and wives) can't abide the thought of living in a country where people speak a different language for 2.. 3 years.