Can't agree there ...other than that the team was of course in terminal decline. You could argue Germany won the thing with a team in decline though. We went to america two years earlier with our most prolific striker plying his trade with Motherwell, were made play games in tropical conditions and we still managed to get out of the group.Originally Posted by OwlsFan
By the time Euro 96 rolled round we'd have had David Connolly and Keith O'Neill as striking options, Shay Given would've been a young but credible competitor for the keepers shirt and Jack would've had seven months to blood anyone else brought to his attention as well as take out some dead wood.
I did say as well that the Austria game marked the collapse. We'd already beaten Portugal in Dublin in April and, if the Austria games had gone better (bear in mind a dreadful Northern Ireland team stuffed them home and away) a draw might well have been enough against Portugal to win the group outright or qualify as a runner up.
One last big stage for the likes of McGrath and Townsend...playing for Ireland at Villa Park maybe. Or a 24 year old Roy Keane in a green shirt at Old Trafford. We'd have been fine.
" 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?"
Maradona's Positive result in World cup 94. ended part of a legend..
other than that, I love the Hand of God but I'd have that goal scrached as his second was in my book the finest goal ever and was enough to beat the english. We wouldn't still be hearing england going on about it every frikken world cup....
I know slightly off point but we still have to listen to them
Last edited by Dricky; 20/04/2006 at 3:11 PM.
It's only just begun...............
If the last 21 years were class, here's looking forward to the next 21 years. It is our time
sorry lads, when you are as bad as us you have to grasp on to anything even if it does make us sound like england and 66somebody ban this lad
im glad ye beat england that time, now we dont have to hear about spain 82 every time theres a match on up there!
I was at that game and my recollection is that Spain were unlucky to have a few goals chalked off for offside. No sure we created much in extra time even though we dominated. It was a good performance ok but I didn't come out of the game feeling we had been robbed - just sick at the pathetic attempts at penos and Shay diving the wrong way for ALL 5 of theirs and Mendiete's creeping under his legs. Ouch........
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
They were all offside
Its hard to feel robbed with 2 penalties awarded in the 90 minutes. Anders was the best ref we ever had, a close second was the German in the game against Holland 2001.
What was positive about our WC 2002 was that the squad after being hit by a major blow regrouped, recovered to give their all and put in some decent performances. All this with a squad, with a few exceptions, that was composed of rookies, the injured, the average and old timers.
Definitely Spain in Suwon. That world cup was there for the taking. Germany got to the final by beating Korea, USA and Paraguay(I think) in the knock out stage.
Other options would have been Macedonia or the Turkey play off. I really think we had an excellent team then. A fit Quinn and Robbie Keane never played in a tournament together, plus Roy was at his best.
TC
After being run close by the abject 3-0 defeat in the swimming pool in Portugal in '95 and the 1-1 draw away to Israel (which lost us the group and Kerr his job) and Wim Kieft's goal, the utmost, the utmost changeable result was Macedonia '99.
I can still see clearly in my mind the number two in yellow/red rise above the non-existant challenges and it going over the man on the post as if it just happened a minute ago. It is an image that is burned into my mind and probably will be there forever more.
The Spain game was a missed opportunity rather than a painful memory, Italia '90 was an achievement regardless - a 1-1 draw in Macedonia to go from qualification to failure with just eleven seconds to go............Aaargh!
The Model Club
Tell all the Bohs you know
that we've gone and won two-in-a-row
and it's not gonna be three
and it's not gonna be four
it's more likely to be 5-1.
Also Croatia 1-0 99 i think was the year, remember some gob****e starts singing you wont beat the irish behind us with 3 of the 5 added minutes gone, Davy says hello roars at that to shut up its not over yet, and you know the rest....mind you great result 3 days earlier beating the yugoslavs in dublin. watched that game in some kip of a pub in malta
you wha??? Davy superfan says hello, wasn't at the game..................
I thought you were off the drink Ronnie?
"No, I drink to help me mind my own business....can I get you one? (c) Ronnie Drew
The Spanish game in Korea in 2002.One of the best games I ever attended,but sadly the result just wasnt meant to be ....A lot of If only questions after that game.
Definitely Spain in WC 2002. if only for those missed penalties, us being a man up at one stage, so many if only's. Still hurts.
'Fascists dress in black and go round telling people what to do, where as priests.....'
Then im losin the plot as I sat beside him on the flight from Malta!!
remember it clearly as my young one was thrilled to meet him, dont know why but she was only about 9 at the time and her 1st away game
Poland 3 Ireland 3 .If Dave O'Leary hadn't given the ball away TWICE for two of their goals we would have won and qualified for it. Given a team that didn't qualify actually won the tournament ( Denmark) we might have been in with a chance!
I love it when the North beats England personally speaking it doesn't happen often enough 1972, 2005 ....somebody ban this lad
im glad ye beat england that time, now we dont have to hear about spain 82 every time theres a match on up there!
Easy choice. Away to Macedonia. Had to go out and buy a new tv after I threw a boot at the tv when they equalized.
agree. team was at its peak at that stage. real pity we didnt qualify. houghtans miss late in one all with eng in wembley and an Aldo miss in poland nil all at home cost us qualification reallyPoland 3 Ireland 3 .If Dave O'Leary hadn't given the ball away TWICE for two of their goals we would have won and qualified for it. Given a team that didn't qualify actually won the tournament ( Denmark) we might have been in with a chance!
Euro 92 definately but NOT the Poland match. It was the 1-1 draw at Wembley that done the damage. We dominated and should have won 3-1, English fans agreed. We could have won Euro 92 as the squad was very experienced and we had a young Roy Keane and Denis Irwin.
For older generation of players its WC78 and WC82. First one robbed by a bent ref in Bulgaria (French manager Hidalgo saw ref the night before with hookers supplied by the commies). The second one robbed in Brussels by bent ref. Eric Gerets dived about fifteen feet for a free kick in last min and Ceulemans fouled our keeper (McDonagh?) to score. After ref had dissallowed a perfectly good Stapleton goal in first half and booked Brady for protesting at half time. Belgian football was ridled with corruption at the time as Nottm Forest and Spurs found out against Anderlecht.
Also people say Wim Kiefts goal in Euro88. Damage was done in the 1-1 draw with Russia. Had we beaten them 2-0 as we should have done we'd have gone through to play average German team i semis.
Spain in '02, forget about it. You can't win if you only score three penalties out of seven.
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