Ireland U23 V Slovakia U23

[Dr. Ogba]

Of course it's more legitimate than the "senior" side, these are players who have actually contributed to football in Ireland and represent the strength of the Irish game. Ireland is basically an unrepresented territory in international football so it's great to see some kind of legitimate Ireland XI take the field (just as the Catalan team only plays about once a year.) It may be a contrived competition with arbitrary eligibility criteria (why are your kind only capable of judging anything by comparison to England, by the way?) but if you're a fan of Irish football it's the closest thing you have to a national team and that makes it important.

PS: Mods - I'd move this thread to the eL section or merge with the topic there, didn't realise it was in the Oireland section.

This is the most unbelievable post I've read on this forum. I knew there were a few EL fans with this kind of superiority "real Irish" complex about them but this is just ridiculuous.

So a young Irish lad given the chance to make a living out of football in England immediately becomes less of an Irishman because he chooses to take this chance??? Get off your bloody high horse will ya....

[Sheridan]

Thats ridiculous Sheridan , its a sad fact that our players move abroad in order to fully reach their potential

No they don't, they move abroad to make more money in leagues where players of all standards are ten-a-penny and success is based on being in the right place at the right time more than anything else. Not that I begrudge them that right, but let's call a spade a spade.

There's a good chance that 4-5 of that team last night will be playing abroad in a few months time ,Will they become unrepresentative of you then if they play for their country again?

I hope everyone who played last night remains eligible for the rest of the competition; they've all earned the right by contributing to the game in this country. Compare it to the RepublicOfIreland squad for the game against Wales; I don't follow British football so I can't be sure, but I make it that three of those twenty-two squad members have played senior football in this country, and that's abnormally high. Just think about that for a second. Three out of twenty-two is an anomaly. And that's before you even get to the players who've only ever set foot in this country to play internationals. How in the name of God does that represent Irish football rather than British football?

BTW, I fully agree with Dodge about these fatuous international comparisons between leagues, something else which stems from your average Oirish fan's inbility to comprehend anything save by comparison to England (what the **** does "Premiership standard", or "Championship standard" or "Conference standard" mean? They're meaningless terms even within the context of the English system.)

[btid1]

League Two/Conference is our level,

I wouldnt agree with this.How do you explain European performances in recent times if this is the case?

[Sheridan]

Dr. Ogba, when did I mention anything about "Irishness?" In fact, there's nothing more Irish than selling out so in that sense our exports are as Irish as they come. I'm talking about football here; Kevin Hunt may not be Irish, but he's contributed more to Irish football than the young f'la from Drimnagh who suckled coddle from his oul' one's breast but signed for some British club's academy at the age of 14 and will spend his entire career there, perhaps returning every few months to spout inane sh1te on the TV once he's outlived his usefulness.

[Dodge]

I wouldnt agree with this.How do you explain European performances in recent times if this is the case?

That the other leagues are just as bad/good


Bohs best player in recent years couldn't make a living in the lower leagues in England. Joe Gamble was released by Barnet and is a hero at Cork.

There are players in the LOI that good enough for championship in England IMO but the league over all (not just certain players) isn't anything close to the top 50-60 clubs in England.

Doens't bother me one bit in the slightest and I don't really care if Dublin fans of the British games use it as an excuse not to go to games. They'll never go anyway...

[Sheridan]

Bohs best player in recent years couldn't make a living in the lower leagues in England. Joe Gamble was released by Barnet and is a hero at Cork.

That's a bit disingenuous IMO, and doesn't mean anything. There are so many professional players and teams in England that it's harder to catch a break (I could reel off a list of world-class players who flopped in England for one reason or another, and a longer list of those who had lengthy pro careers in England and flopped in Ireland.) Roy O'Donovan was released by Coventry but later deemed good enough for the Premiership, Kevin Doyle couldn't cut it at Pat's etc etc.

These lazy cross-comparisons are largely pointless IMO. Once you delve below the elite level, it's the quality of individual players that counts, as the "standard" is universally mediocre. There are players in the Drogheda squad who'd contend for a place in Premiership teams, just as some of their team-mates wouldn't hold down a place in the Conference (or whatever it's called.) The bottom half of the eL First Division is of an apocalyptically poor standard, probably equivalent to one of those amateur leagues with names from classical antiquity in England. But that doesn't mean they get whipped every week by the superior sides, because familiarity breeds contempt.

[adamcarr]

That the other leagues are just as bad/good


Bohs best player in recent years couldn't make a living in the lower leagues in England. Joe Gamble was released by Barnet and is a hero at Cork.

There are players in the LOI that good enough for championship in England IMO but the league over all (not just certain players) isn't anything close to the top 50-60 clubs in England.

Doens't bother me one bit in the slightest and I don't really care if Dublin fans of the British games use it as an excuse not to go to games. They'll never go anyway...

Gamble wasn't released by Barnet. He was offered a new contract by them.

[billybunter]

Here, how did the under-18s get on against Germany last night?

they were beat 4-0 tuffpaddy -

[pete]

For what it is worth I think Joe Gamble is best player in the league. He would make a living in the Championship but would likely not cope with extra pace & strength required in the Premiership. He was on loan to Barnet from reading who released him. He has improved in the eL.

[Dodge]

That's a bit disingenuous IMO, and doesn't mean anything. There are so many professional players and teams in England that it's harder to catch a break (I could reel off a list of world-class players who flopped in England for one reason or another, and a longer list of those who had lengthy pro careers in England and flopped in Ireland.) Roy O'Donovan was released by Coventry but later deemed good enough for the Premiership, Kevin Doyle couldn't cut it at Pat's etc etc.

I agree, my post was more of an snwer to the (guarenteed) post about Doyle/Long etc making it in the UK

These lazy cross-comparisons are largely pointless IMO. Once you delve below the elite level, it's the quality of individual players that counts, as the "standard" is universally mediocre. There are players in the Drogheda squad who'd contend for a place in Premiership teams, just as some of their team-mates wouldn't hold down a place in the Conference

I agree 100%. As posted I've no real time for people continually trying to compare leagues

[Sligo Hornet]

Good result, 2-0!.....and Sligo man Peers on score sheet!

Anyone go and give an insight on the game?

[btid1]

Doens't bother me one bit in the slightest and I don't really care if Dublin fans of the British games use it as an excuse not to go to games. They'll never go anyway...

I would agree but I dont feel putting down our clubs helps anyone all the same.

Id also agree that is not as simple as picking a few examples either way be that Doyle,Long,Ward or Hunt,Gamble.Thats why I like to use the barometer that is European football and not the constant comparisons to the UK.To me European competition gives our clubs a chance to pit their wits against teams of a similar ability and clearly higher levels of ability (eg Rosenborg) in a meaningful competition.

[Dodge]

I would agree but I dont feel putting down our clubs helps anyone all the same

Agreed, but it depends on the audience. For the most part people here know what level it is, so I don't bother sugarcoating it.