If we judge it on the 10/15 greatest players to come out of Ireland, then I would feel that Robbie is not in that list - some seriously great players we have produced. Each and every one of them really great players that should include the likes of Carey, Hurley and Cantwell as well as modern players from the past 30-40 years.
However, if we judge it on a player's contribution to the green shirt, Robbie easily walks into the top 5 in my opinion. He has scored 54 goals for a middle tier country. Yes some of them were against minnows and many were in friendlies, but he has been an ever present in our team for 15 years and a great example to young players in this country on how to conduct themselves. The likes of Gibson could take a leaf out of Robbie's book. You could compare Ronnie Whelan to Robbie for the purpose of this argument. Ronnie was arguably the best midfielder in Britain for a period of a few years and easily world class. On paper, he is one of our greats for what he achieved at Liverpool. However, in a green shirt, I seem to recall him often being poor or ineffective - in the same way Hoddle was wasted with England, Ronnie was probably wasted by us.
I'm not sure if some people are biased against Robbie because he is from Dublin - there is the Dub/country thing that goes on from a small element of our support, or others begrudge him being recognised as one of our greats because aside from fleeting moments and periods in his career, he never became the consistently world class player that he threatened to be when he was 18/19. Some maybe feel that he has made the easy decisions in his club career too often, like going to LA Galaxy.
However, regardless of what you think of Robbie as a man or as a player, he deserves to be recognised as a true Irish great.
I agree, it's difficult to compare eras, so that's why people shouldn't go around claiming that so and so is in the "Top 5 Irish players of all time", no matter who it is.
Robbie Keane Top 5 in the last 20 years? Most probably.
Originally Posted by pineapple stu
I usedn't have a great deal of time for him due to his tremendous arm-waving abilities and propensity to get caught offside - just found it very frustrating to see and was maybe a sign of immaturity in spite of his obvious ability - but his record and contribution to our cause has most certainly won over my wholehearted respect since. Why would people from outside of Dublin dislike him? Most of our Ireland-born players are from Dublin. That's always been the case, and it makes sense in terms of the Irish population balance, but it's not as if the rest of the country shuns the team as a result.
Last edited by DannyInvincible; 15/03/2013 at 1:51 PM.
Of course there's also a FAI Dublin conspiracy to ensure that most of our players are Dublin born, even today they are still jumping the queue, Hendrick over Meyler .... need I go on?
Alot of valid points there. In response to the Dublin thing, I do think that there is an anti-Dublin bias among a small section of our support. It is probably historical and a reaction to the fact that in the past alot of very good players from the country never got the same chances that lads in Dublin got. That kind of feeling shines through in Roy Keane's book.
Steve Finnan made over 50 European appearances for Liverpool.
Robbie stuck around longer than a certain distant namesake. That's all we need to know.
Didn't Stephen Ireland mention perceived preferential treatment for Dublin lads too? Maybe just a Cork thing...
Tongue ever so slightly in cheek, there.
Last edited by DannyInvincible; 15/03/2013 at 2:40 PM.
Roy's international career spanned 14 years. Robbie's has spanned 15, although Robbie's cap-count may give him a significant edge in the commitment department.
I'm the first to jump on the Dubs and outside in terms of genuineness and honesty and stuff, and I do think there is a bias by some of those outside of Dublin towards Dublin players. I'm sure its more to do with robbie seen as a bit of a kncaker from tallaght, as opposed to Brian from nice clontarf.
Cork people are just a bit strange, tribal and clannish. Us against them siege mentality. Its a pseudo-superiority complex stemming from second city syndrome.
I'm a bloke,I'm an ocker
And I really love your knockers,I'm a labourer by day,
I **** up all me pay,Watching footy on TV,
Just feed me more VB,Just pour my beer,And get my smokes, And go away
I was being facetious.
O'driscoll is a great rugby player and a great man, but i do think that you're right Paul, there is a bit of a class undercurrent with some people in how they perceive Robbie, though sometimes he doesn't help himself as a few posters noted with his theatrics.
Was Robbie given a chance at Inter? I dont remember those days.
Last edited by Crosby87; 15/03/2013 at 10:26 PM.
No Somos muchos pero estamos locos.
How many times would Brian O'Driscoll have to wave his arms to be removed from the list of great Irish rugby players?
A bit of an unfair comparison really, O'Driscoll is very articulate and embodies all of the attributes that people respect in a world class rugby player. Robbie on the other hand, while is our best striker ever, is not the most articulate, has a tendency to whinge when decisions go against him and could be deemed a journey man who chases money.
None of which holds any relevance to his ability or performance. Which is the point I was making.
It's not worth it anymore Charlie... if a bit of arm waving and old fashioned culchie begrudgery is what takes him from great to very good then let them have at it. Bizarre that this still being argued....
I like high energy football. A little bit rock and roll. Many finishes instead of waiting for the perfect one.
Quick question for the Keano-skeptics: How many Irish players have scored in competition against Russia, Holland, Germany, Italy, Spain, France and Yugoslavia?
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