Stan calls up unknown 22 year old St Ledger

**PaulB** · 29/08/2006, 7:18 AM

Stan scares 2 buckets of **** out of me. He just come sout with these beauts every now and then. Let's hope we're wrong and this guy turns out to be a class act

, but do we need another central defender in the squad. Dunne, O'Brien, O'Shea, Doherty..

**Paddy Garcia** · 29/08/2006, 7:24 AM

Originally Posted by loscherland

Seems a little non-sensicle to throw 'whoever this is' into a full international squad having never even been called up to the squad -- even when half the team dropped out of the dutch squad.
- If stan knew about him then, why wasn't he drafted in? Even just to see him in training.
- Or is he english-irish & only just declared for us?
- Or was he injured
- Or is stan actually a magician & able to pull players out of a big black hat when it pleases him?

http://www.unison.ie/sportsdesk/stor...=12&si=1678413

"Staunton's fellow Dundalkman, Foreign Affairs minister Dermot Ahern, last night instructed embassy staff in London to expedite the issuing of a passport to St Ledger, once they were satisfied that the Birmingham-born player qualifies through his Carlow-born grandmother.

The 21-year-old will receive his Irish passport today "

...though to be fair someone on this forum reported that he trained with the U21s about 6 months ago.

By the way he is not an unknown - he is the star of "Big Ron Manager" (when is this on?).

**drummerboy** · 29/08/2006, 8:20 AM

Sky One and 2 are showing a programme called Big Ron, Football Manager, in which Ron works as a consultant with Peterborough Utd FC. Its a fly-on-the-wall documentary based on last seasons campaigh. One of the main characters in the programme is Peterborough player Sean St Ledger. Let you guys judge for yourself. Next episode is on tonight.

**SeanieBoy** · 29/08/2006, 9:09 AM

Originally Posted by drummerboy

Sky One and 2 are showing a programme called Big Ron, Football Manager, in which Ron works as a consultant with Peterborough Utd FC. Its a fly-on-the-wall documentary based on last seasons campaigh. One of the main characters in the programme is Peterborough player Sean St Ledger. Let you guys judge for yourself. Next episode is on tonight.

Yeah, I saw that last week & was shocked to hear that we had called him up. But it seems that he was very highly regarded by Peterborough. No harm having a little back up at CB, might turn out to be a great move by Stan!!

**eirebhoy** · 29/08/2006, 9:10 AM

He has been mentioned on this site a few times after training with the U21s. I haven't seen him play but seems a strange call up with McCarthy still "not ready".

**NeilMcD** · 29/08/2006, 9:10 AM

I was reading 4-4-2 and the Peterborough fans said there start man for this year was going to Be Sean St. Ledger. Now I know that They are are a level far below us but it look like he was the start man for them and Preston snapped him up. He has started well by all accounts at Preston

**tetsujin1979** · 29/08/2006, 9:27 AM

Slightly off topic, and I mentioned this on another board, did Kilbane get his first cap for us at Preston, and if not does that mean that the last Preston player to declare for us was Lawrenson?

**Stuttgart88** · 29/08/2006, 9:55 AM

It's all academic anyway I reckon, as he's little or no chance of actually playing.

Finnan, Carr, O'Shea & Kilbane are full back options, though I'm pretty sure that JOS will start in midfield.

I'm actually glad Doherty is ahead of McCarthy for this game though I'm surprised SSL is ahead of McCarthy. Not that I've any great belief in Doc but I don't think this is any game for either of the other two to be making a debut & Doc might be better suited to marking Klose if either Dunne or O'Brien gets injured. According to some here he's been playing well.

Again, this is a case where we've got to trust Stan's judgment. I'm more concerned with what he does with the 15 players most likerly to play than with those on the fringes.

To some extent he's being consistent with his "building for the future" statements but I'd personally feel more comfortable with Rory Delap as back-up due to his versatility & experience - he can play both full back positions and central midfield - and I have a hunch he'd be a half-decent centre back given his physique.

I just hope that Stan doesn't have grudges against Reid & McCarthy and others. Kerr omitted the likes of Dunne & Steven Reid on an ongoing basis. But as Neil said above, if nothing else, at least predicting Staunton's squads is interesting.

**DotTV** · 29/08/2006, 10:08 AM

I thought the St Ledger was a horse race?

Anyway, as Stuttgart says he probably won't get a game but at least it is extra cover at CB

**Paulie** · 29/08/2006, 10:14 AM

I reckon that the main reason McCarthy is not in the squad is his poor disciplinary record. He already has 3 yellow cards this season

**BrayUnknowns** · 29/08/2006, 10:17 AM

This bloke is in the Sky 1 programme "Big Ron Manager" at the moment (on tonight AFAIK), it was filmed while he was still at The Posh. Seems to be highly rated but surely he's not the answer ? FFS, from league 2 to a WCQ in the space of a few months, theres not a chance he is ready for this yet.....

EDIT: I didn't see the above post.... Oops

**NeilMcD** · 29/08/2006, 10:24 AM

Has Big Ron replaced Sir Bobby as our international consultant?
Tuesday August 29th 2006
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A FEW weeks ago Steve Staunton's phone rang. He looked at it and saw the name 'Big Ron' flashing on the screen.

Ron Atkinson, Staunton's former manager at Aston Villa, is now a football troubleshooter, called in to help managers in crisis, with the results shown each Tuesday night on Sky One's 'Big Ron Manager'.

No doubt apprehensive that his old boss was going to offer to bring himself and his film crew to help out the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, Staunton answered the phone.

But all 'Big Ron' wanted was to offer one piece of advice. "Check out Sean St Ledger at Preston North End. He's got an Irish granny," advised Atkinson.

"He can play right-back or centre-back and could even do a job at left-back. But I think he'd make a great attacking midfielder.

"He is a very, very energetic player. He has got great attacking pace, good energy and is a tidy player who works hard," added Atkinson.

'Big Ron' explained to Staunton that he had come across St Ledger when he was at Peterbrough earlier this year filming his television programme and was very impressed by the 21-year-old Birmingham-born player.

"He is an old fashioned type of player," he observed before adding that Preston had paid �225,000 to Peterbrough to sign him in July.

Staunton, who stated his his intention to use the 'Granny Rule' on his first day in the job, had St Ledger watched because Atkinson doesn't gave away recommendations cheaply.

"Over the last four years I have only recommended three unknown players to clubs in the higher divisions - Marlon Harewood, now with West Ham, David Nugent, now with Preston, and Sean St Ledger. I told a number of clubs about St Ledger but Preston were the first to move," explained Atkinson.

St Ledger has played every minute of Preston's six games this season and the reports back were so encouraging that Staunton placed him on the standby list for this weekend's Euro 2008 opener against Germany in Stuttgart.

When Birmingham City's Stephen Kelly pulled out after picking up a calf injury in Saturday's top-of-the-table defeat by Cardiff City, Staunton called up St Ledger and then discovered his newest recruit didn't yet have an Irish passport.

Contacted

The FAI immediately contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs and when Minister Dermot Ahern, himself a keen football fan, heard about the problem he asked his staff to expedite the application once they were satisfied that St Ledger qualified for a passport through his Carlow-born grandmother.

The Irish embassy in London will issue St Ledger with his Irish passport later today and the Preston defender will fly into Dublin this evening and report to the Ireland squad's HQ in Portmarnock.

Tonight, the Irish squad will no doubt take the opportunity to check out St Ledger by staying in to watch the latest episode of 'Big Ron Manager'. St Ledger admits that he is unhappy with the Sky One programme because he is being portrayed in it as the 'bad boy'. He said: "There were bits in last week's show I was not happy with - and there is worse to come.

"I'm not happy with how I'm being made to look and viewers have been given the wrong impression of me.

"Even the linesman (on Saturday against Southampton) had a pop at me about last Tuesday's show when I ran to the touchline to get water." St Ledger and Peterbrough's rookie manager Steve Bleasdale didn't see eye to eye and their bust-ups figure prominently in the television series. "It's strange watching myself on telly - I feel like I'm in Big Brother.

"Some of it is cringeworthy and some is funny. There's a lot of arguing and I can see now why Steve was worried about Ron coming in.

"Steve and I didn't have the best of relationships but the TV company wants to portray me as having an attitude and being a bad lad around the ground.

"There's a time in one of the episodes when I look like I have an attitude because Steve asked me to do a little extra training. But that wasn't the reason.

"What the cameras didn't show was Steve implying that I was an alcoholic. That's why I was annoyed. He just started talking to me and telling me stories about George Best.

"I might have the odd drink at weekends but I never drink in the week. Yet the show made it look like I didn't train. If you ask any of my friends, they would say I am a good lad. The programme is not a true reflection.

"I am just pleased the show came out after my move to Preston as I don't think many clubs would want me after seeing me on it." Atkinson also leapt to St Ledger's defence by stating he didn't observe anything that would have set alarm bells ringing.

"I thought his attitude was first class. He was a very good trainer. I think he had a problem with the regime and the previous manager and that was manifested when Steve took over as caretaker."

Steve Bleasdale has been appointed caretaker manager in January following the dismissal of Mark Wright. In his final days in charge Wright had dropped St Ledger for a game against Lincoln for showing a lack of respect to Bleasdale, then his coach, in the build-up.

Attitude

"Sean has a big future but his attitude was not right," said Wright at the time. "I don't care who the players are, if they don't abide by the rules then they won't be in the side."

Atkinson admits that he has been watching Staunton's rookie year in international management with great interest and believes his former player can be a success.

"I think he will be very honest, very open and very strong. He's in a bit of a transition period with the squad. "But he does have outstanding individuals in Damien Duff, Robbie Keane, Richard Dunne and Shay Given whom he can build a team around."

Atkinson's involvement in the recruitment of Sean St Ledger and his vast experience as a manager is sure to catch the eye of the FAI if they find themselves in a position where they have to go and look for a new international football consultant, should Bobby Robson's doctors advise him to relinquish the role in the coming weeks.

But only if he leaves the television cameras at home!

Gerry McDermott

**Over the post** · 29/08/2006, 10:29 AM

Maybury, Delap and Flood can all play full back and have international experience. As mentioned in an earlier post, the lad has no chance of a game this time round and Stan may have drafted him in so that he gets and idea of what the international set-up is like. Fair enough I suppose, but if it's merely a question of giving someone a chance to link up with the squad, SSL would be fairly far down the list of candidates.
We have two fit right backs in the squad and while Carr is no great shakes, I can't see SSL getting a game ahead of him. I read that Big Ron said he could probably play on the left but we need specialist options in that position.
Initially when Stan starts calling up relatively unknown players you begin to think "he must have found some teenage prodigy" but after a while it begins to smack of desperation.

**CraftyToePoke** · 29/08/2006, 10:30 AM

i went to see him play last season for posh and he went to bits after an early goal-costing error, i did a report in the irish in britain thread,

here, http://www.foot.ie/showthread.php?t=19834&page=43

i thought the occasion got to him that day as it was a game for playoff/automatic spots, but a season ticket at p'boro assures me he is much much better than that days performance and was their best player many times last year.

**John83** · 29/08/2006, 10:58 AM

Why are people talking about St Ledger getting in ahead of McCarthy? While he can play centre half, he's also a right back, and it's clear that he was brought in to replace Kelly, who's a right back. McCarthy isn't, AFAIK, able to play full back.

**pete** · 29/08/2006, 11:05 AM

Bizarre call up & would be surprised if Staunton has not seen him play much. Says a lot when have to find him a passport in a hurry.

I am no person to defend Don Givens but if Staunton is picking a player who could not get in the U21 squad does his mean he has no confidence in the U21 manager?