Quotethat was what i was trying to say. thanksOriginally Posted by youngirish
No, no, no, no. When will people ever learn? HE'S NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR INTERNATIONAL FOOTBALL. Give someone else a go ffs.
that was what i was trying to say. thanks
Connolly's had various chances with Ireland. He's had more comebacks than Frank Sinatra.
In fairness, Connolly has started no more than 20-25 games for Ireland and most of them were beside Keane. The majority of his games when not partnering Keane he put in a good shift. The Keane-Connolly partnership has never worked.
He is exactly right (though I have said it before I think) Connolly's best games came with Niall Quinn...he could also work well with Doyle. I cant find exact numbers, but Connolly and Keane are both guys who make their own goals (Connolly more than Keane though, Keane is always there to pounce). I'm not saying Connolly should start. He could work with Doyle if Keane is hurt though. Someone find me a complete list of Connolly's caps w/ time of sub, etc. and tell me its been that bad. Roy Keane said Connolly has been banging them in in training, and who is he playing against in training? Oh yes, defenders like starting Slovakian defender Stanislav Varga and Welsh internationals Darren Ward and Danny Collins...dont we play both of those teams? (not to mention the goals he has scored in the league) I know its training but still.
enough of this though, just read
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Last edited by theworm2345; 11/01/2007 at 11:43 PM.
My Guarantee
Am looking for old Irish matches on VHS, PM me if you have some and I'll upload them here
Connolly should be consigned to the dark recesses of history. He was never any use for Ireland. You can make excuses till you are blue in the face as to why this has been so and who's fault it is but in my own opinion he's not skillful enough and definitely not strong enough to get goals against top class defenders. Most of his Ireland goals have been against sh*t teams. Even Morrison (who has his critics) has been a far better servant over the years.
Now with his advancing years and the emergence of Doyle, Stokes, Long, Murphy, Clarke and Keogh the arguments for giving him a recall look to hold less weight than ever. Now let us never speak his name again.
Last edited by youngirish; 12/01/2007 at 9:51 AM.
I'm not 100% but I'm pretty sure none of his 9 goals were scored when partnering Keane. Considering he played a load of times with Keane and also came on as a sub for plenty of his caps he actually has an excellent scoring rate without Keane beside him. He was excellent in that match against Turkey. Him and Doc played up front. As soon as the Swiss match comes around and he's stuck with Keane again and both were anonymous as usual.
Here's the nail, there's the head. BAM! Spot on, we've never had this much young striking talent coming through so why stifle their progress by including someone like Connolly? He's well past it and had his chances. I admit to being short sighted with this opinion but I never liked him, thought he never fulfilled any potential and was a bit of a chancer. That peno against Spain should have sealed his international fate... Awful.
Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have Connolly in the squad either.
Personally I think without a doubt he should be, but Do you reckon Stokes, in reality, will be that 3rd choice striker? (ahead of Clinton and behind Doyle and Keane) Or what will Stan pull out of the bag this time... Exactly, Connolly, no way!
i'd say it would be a close call between elliot agus stokes. exciting that they can compete directly at club level, may well drive each other on. i've always liked elliot and feel he is more deserving of the third spot at the moment
was in the bar of the team hotel after the spain match, the players we're in the restaurant having a meal and from the hallway you could see the players through the glass. every one of the supporters to a man was absolutely gutted and i saw connolly laughing and joking like it was playtime... lost a lot of respect for him then - most of the rest of the squad looked down in the dumps and it didn't knock a dot outta connolly - despite the fact he had missed one of the penalties. lost a lot of respect for him then.
anyway the fact is he has not cut it at international level or in many attempts at premiership level. he is what he is - a decent championship player who has found his level. please don't darken our door while we have so much emerging talent
I knew it...!
Quote from wikipedia on connolly that some may find amusing ; "He is generally considered to be a complete "tw@tface" by most Watford fans. Who regularly sing "You're just a short, greedy basterd" when ever he is encountered."
Last edited by kingdom hoop; 12/01/2007 at 2:18 PM. Reason: change spelling to avoid censorship
Last season was his first in the premiership.
actually you might be right there eirebhoy, but he has played for a few teams who have won promotion and then been dispatched - meaning their manager don't see him as premiership standard. regardless i think his day has come and gone in an ireland shirt
sorry to nitpick galwayhoop but that has not happened.
last season he didnt seem to get a decent run in the team at wigan, mostly due to injury, but when he did play he looked decent enough. he has always scored goals at his clubs but this is a bit moot as i agree that he probably has had his day, but in my book he deserves some protection from the critics. stokes and elliot are definitely ahead of him but i'd rather see him play in front of clinton and alan lee at the moment
Can't see how anyone could justify having him in the squad. I'd suggest our striker's should be selected in this order if fit:
1. Doyle
2. Keane
3. Elliot
4. Stokes
5. Morrison
6. Murphy
7. Lee
8. Connolly
9. Long
10. Clarke
11. Keogh
I can see Connolly dropping further down this list in the next few months if he begins to be frozen out of Sunderland by the arrival of Stokes which, if we consider his fairly poor goalscoring record, is likely to happen. Long, Clarke, Keogh and possibly Rooney at Stoke (he'll get more time on the pitch with Bangoura gone) also could climb up this table if they progress over the next few months (Clarke and Keogh should continue to get regular football and develop though I'm a bit worried about Clarke's lack of goals since his return from injury).
I just can't see any reason for including him in the squad in future. Needs to be phased out.
Last edited by youngirish; 12/01/2007 at 3:36 PM.
I reckon at first Murphy will be the one to make way for Stokes. Keane forked out a big enough wad of cash for Connolly and will want to show that he was right to buy him. He's started scoring again in the last few weeks and has a proven record in the championship. So I'd say Keane will go for a Stokes-Connolly partnership with Murphy waiting in the wings. Maybe I'm wrong but we'll see tomorrow. BTW I also think he shouldn't be in the Ireland squad.
I wasnt arguing for his inclusion in the squad, just said "i'd rather see him play in front of clinton and alan lee at the moment", in fact i'd prefer long and clarke to be selected, but if it was between connolly or morrison my vote would be connolly- i dont see why you had to argue at length this point in this thread, its pretty much a toss up anyway, start a 'top 10 current irish strikers' thread if you feel strongly
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