James McCarthy M Celtic b.1990

[ajdarcy78]

This is getting a bit like a joke at this stage, the communication issues really need to be sorted out. In saying this I fully expect James McCarthy to have a long career in the green jersey.

[gastric]

Interesting article! To some degree it shows such alleged behaviour - lying - is okay when it protects the FAI's position. I think the inference is that the High and Mighty position Trap is taking is a bit rich in the circumstances.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...d-2660616.html

[dr_peepee]

Or have the media gotten ahead of themselves again?

I honestly can't believe how you can't see that McCarthy himself isn't at the very least factor in all this.

It's like Manblue and SI all over again!!!

[DannyInvincible]

How did he get an Irish licence? He was never resident here and I can't really imagine him putting up with the waiting times in order to drive around the streets of Raheny or Churchtown.
Tosh.

Family residence in Gweedore maybe? I dunno. Would that suffice?

[BonnieShels]

Family residence in Gweedore maybe? I dunno. Would that suffice?

So he's resident in Gweedore and working for Wigan Athletic... Danny, that's a circle that just won't be squared in my book.

Always ye Donegal heads up to nefarious goings on!

[Fixer82]

I actually feel really sorry for Daryl Murphy with all the pull-outs and still no call up. Especially with his team-mate Anthony Croaks acting the bo**ix. And especially after scoring a goal like this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQv9wwUwwVk

He never let Trap down as far as I know ad provided the assist for the first goal of Trap's reign. To Andy Keogh. I'd have Murphy in ahead of Keogh for sure

[Stuttgart88]

I don't think Murphy is one of our top 6 forwards, but with 3 or 4 of our top 6 injured Murphy can be considered a bit unlucky. Sammon might have been worth bringing over to get acclimatised and introduced to everyone. All marginal stuff though. I think we have Keane & Long nailed on to start, Cox a possible off the bench and Ward and Keogh long shots to feature in any way. Ward could be useful as an outside or inside left if we need to go to 5 in the middle.

[DannyInvincible]

I honestly can't believe how you can't see that McCarthy himself isn't at the very least factor in all this.

It's like Manblue and SI all over again!!!

I'm not readily familiar with what I presume to have been Manblue's defence of Stephen Ireland's antics. Anyway, let's have a look at things without losing the run of ourselves because you appear to be holding McCarthy responsible for "a year of McCarthy-based drama, regardless of who manufactured it". I'm not necessarily suggesting that James McCarthy is and always will be an untainted angel exempt from criticism. I just think that the media get ahead of themselves at any instance there's even a hint of a story to be written about the lad, usually at the expense of the truth of the matter at hand. I think a lot of what's written about him is rooted in idle speculation due to his circumstances rather than due to his character. It's important to distinguish here so we can identify who is actually at fault for the "drama" as, ideally, we want McCarthy to appear as committed as he can be to us.

McCarthy has been committed to Ireland since the age of 15 yet his loyalty has been, in my eyes, unfairly questioned time and time again, and even now again after he's already been capped for us competitively. Committing to us from such a young age over his country of birth ought to command respect alone, but the racist nature of the abuse he had to face from the terraces in Scotland whilst playing with Hamilton week in and week out due to his decision and the fact that he didn't let it sway him, makes his commitment even more worthy of our appreciation. Maybe it is due to this that I'm content to give him the benefit of the doubt and accord him a bit of leeway. I admire the character it took to persist through what he could have easily chosen not to go through in order to play for us.

He's played with us through every level at under-age re-affirming unequivocally his allegiance any time the media ever made a big deal about it. The roots of these questions weren't to be found in any fault of character, but rather due to circumstances which have seen McCarthy, a dual national, cast as a real prospect from such a young age where the only certain finality to the question of his allegiance in the media's eyes was a competitive cap, not to mention a surrounding media culture that survives on saturating the public arena with speculation, misrepresentation and quasi-information that has the cyclical effect of boosting interest and sales by leaving us hungry for more.

Essentially, the lad's circumstances have given the media four or five rich years in which to manufacture apparent twists and developments when the reality is that nothing ever changed in McCarthy's mind from day one, in spite of approaches from the SFA. The media are doing the very same with Shane Ferguson now despite him having clearly stated that he has not yet made any decision on his international future; whether it be with us or NI.

When McCarthy pulled out of the friendlies last year with Paraguay and Algeria after having made his senior debut in the Brazil friendly, albeit on the advice of Martinez, it was due to alleged fatigue and back spasms that were affecting his hamstrings. Doubt that if you must, but that's what the lad claimed. McCarthy's next senior appearance was in our game against Macedonia, of course. In the meantime, Noel King had been calling him into our under-21 squad, if I'm not mistaken, and he also suffered an ankle injury that kept him out of action for three months. This kept him out of our friendly with Norway. He had already been overlooked for our friendly with Argentina in November and for all of our Euro 2012 qualifying games, probably due to Trap's conservatism when it comes to competitive games as much as anything else as McCarthy had been playing a more and more pivotal role with Wigan in the English Premier League. When Trap was deciding his squad for our Nations Cup game against Wales, he said of his initial decision to omit McCarthy:

"It’s too tight. He only just returned from injury the other day. McCarthy is important. We need players in this position, who can play the No 10 or maybe behind. He was only on the bench on Saturday. Maybe he play reserve games. We also have other solutions, like Fahey, but we will continue to follow him."

He later called him into the squad after Noel King thought him fit enough for the under-21s but McCarthy was pulled out of the squad by his club due to concerns over aggravating the injury from which he'd only just recovered. Reportedly, he was gutted and had also received a bad knock on the ankle in Wigan's preceding game against Blackburn. Of course, the media saw this as another ample opportunity to stir a panic and suggest that McCarthy was considering switching loyalties to Scotland. Clarity was demanded; completely unnecessary given McCarthy had never been the remotest bit unclear as to where his allegiance lay. Silly and ignorant comments from Martinez, who seemed more intent on trying to persuade McCarthy to put international football to the back of his mind as Wigan faced a crucial Premier League run-in, didn't help matters either, but everything coming from McCarthy, his family and his agent was suggesting that there was nothing to be worried about from our perspective. Sure enough, there wasn't; when his chance finally arrived to represent us against Macedonia in a competitive game, thereby irrevocably committing him to us, he declared his delight to have had the whole saga wrapped up once and for all. He started our next game, the friendly against Uruguay, and so we arrive at our current quagmire.

Clearly, the undisputed truth has yet to emerge. We've heard so many contradictory stories that it's hard to know what the facts are. McCarthy, his family and Wigan are claiming the lad is injured and will be out for three or four weeks. The FAI were initially claiming they hadn't been contacted in relation to this, but then it transpired that they had actually received word the day before Trapattoni claimed there'd been no communication in a press conference. Tardelli also alleged that McCarthy was contacted numerous times by Mary O'Brien of the FAI but McCarthy's father, Willie, flat-out denied this to be the case. As we've seen above, the FAI aren't immune to telling a lie in order to protect their position. Tardelli has said that McCarthy should have travelled to Dublin to be examined by the FAI's doctor although FIFA's regulations don't oblige a player playing in the territory of another association to do so at all, permitting them to undergo examination in the territory they are based. Strangely, Tardelli also commented that the scans sent by Wigan weren't conclusive or didn't show an injury serious enough to rule McCarthy out but later said that the FAI weren't doubting that McCarthy was injured, indicating that they believe he and Wigan to be telling the truth. Then we have the media reporting an alleged trafficking offence due to McCarthy apparently driving without a correct licence - a non-story really - but his family disputing this and claiming it was a case of an error being made over McCarthy's Irish driving licence. I'm open to correction on the aforementioned facts and details, but I believe them to be correct as reported, so as long as such confusion, contradiction and miscommunication reigns, I don't really feel like I'm in a fit position to cast blame for all this "drama" upon James McCarthy right now.

[DannyInvincible]

So he's resident in Gweedore and working for Wigan Athletic... Danny, that's a circle that just won't be squared in my book.

Always ye Donegal heads up to nefarious goings on!

The criteria are laid out here: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en...ce.html#l1f4da

The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport has overall responsibility for driver licensing. The principal local authorities, however, are licensing authorities and issue driving licences. There are 29 licensing authorities (Motor Taxation Offices) around the country and you should make your application to the one nearest to where you live.

To apply for a driving licence, you must be normally resident in Ireland. You are considered to be normally resident in Ireland if, because of personal and occupational ties, you usually live here for at least 185 days in each calendar year.

If you have an Irish driving licence, the licence is accepted for use or exchange in all other EU/EEA member states. If you are travelling outside of the EU/EEA and will be driving, you may require an international driving permit.

I don't see what the point in it would have been but could he have exchanged a UK licence for an Irish one or something like that without needing to have been resident in Ireland? Not that it's ultimately all that important really; it's his football that counts, not his driving.

[Philly]

Reading through this thread is a bit baffling. The guy has put up with an unreal amount of stick over the years for playing for Ireland and has never once hinted at changing his mind. He also made his first full senior appearance lately to confirm his convictions.

He has been injured lots this past season and I highly doubt he is trying to dodge further caps. The FAI don't seem to have a proper channel of communication with their players, and that's their problem not Mc Carthy's.

Every time a player gets injured lately people question their attitude, and maybe rightly so at times (see Stokes), but anybody who thinks McCarty isn't interested or committed to Ireland must have amnesia because the past few years prove otherwise.

[Stuttgart88]

I think there is potentially blame on each side, and there also appears to be two very different versions: the FAI / Tardelli version that Mary O'Brien of the FAI made repeated attempts to contact the player, combined with Dr. Alan Kelly's remark that the scan that Wigan sent over revealed very little damage.

The Wigan version is that he's injured and needs a month's rest, and has had no contact. Both are plausible but only one is right and we can't judge which from our position.

Dr_Peepee is right in my opinion when he says that there is always something up with McCarthy and it all just adds up.

In a way I'd understand it if Dion Fanning's guess is true: he is on the verge of a big move to Liverpool and both he and his club want nothing to get in the way of it happening. I honestly think, in all my naivity, that all parties could understand something like this but McCarthy could have travelled over last week, maybe a day or two later, just to train and hang around the squad and only be used in Macedonia if necessary.

Philly is right to point out that the communication channel is the key. If McCarthy isn't returning calls or texts, then he is probably to blame, but it also raises the issue of whether another form of communication should be in place.

The no-showers (the worst being Stokes, the "best" being Walters who appears genuinely injured but still allowed for misunderstanding to arise, the others are in between - unsubstantiated injuries) should all be aware that there is a perception building that they are chancers and flakes. The onus is on them to put the recod straight. Glenn Whelan could talk to Wilson about it. Someone could pull McCarthy up about it. Jeez, even a level headed(!), committed Irish fan like Enda Brady, who appears to have McCarthy's ear could easily spell out what is happening, and what is required to put things right.

[dr_peepee]

I'm not readily familiar with what I presume to have been Manblue's defence of Stephen Ireland's antics. Anyway, let's have a look at things without losing the run of ourselves because you appear to be holding McCarthy responsible for "a year of McCarthy-based drama, regardless of who manufactured it". I'm not necessarily suggesting that James McCarthy is and always will be an untainted angel exempt from criticism. I just think that the media get ahead of themselves at any instance there's even a hint of a story to be written about the lad, usually at the expense of the truth of the matter at hand. I think a lot of what's written about him is rooted in idle speculation due to his circumstances rather than due to his character. It's important to distinguish here so we can identify who is actually at fault for the "drama" as, ideally, we want McCarthy to appear as committed as he can be to us.

McCarthy has been committed to Ireland since the age of 15 yet his loyalty has been, in my eyes, unfairly questioned time and time again, and even now again after he's already been capped for us competitively. Committing to us from such a young age over his country of birth ought to command respect alone, but the racist nature of the abuse he had to face from the terraces in Scotland whilst playing with Hamilton week in and week out due to his decision and the fact that he didn't let it sway him, makes his commitment even more worthy of our appreciation. Maybe it is due to this that I'm content to give him the benefit of the doubt and accord him a bit of leeway. I admire the character it took to persist through what he could have easily chosen not to go through in order to play for us.

He's played with us through every level at under-age re-affirming unequivocally his allegiance any time the media ever made a big deal about it. The roots of these questions weren't to be found in any fault of character, but rather due to circumstances which have seen McCarthy, a dual national, cast as a real prospect from such a young age where the only certain finality to the question of his allegiance in the media's eyes was a competitive cap, not to mention a surrounding media culture that survives on saturating the public arena with speculation, misrepresentation and quasi-information that has the cyclical effect of boosting interest and sales by leaving us hungry for more.

Essentially, the lad's circumstances have given the media four or five rich years in which to manufacture apparent twists and developments when the reality is that nothing ever changed in McCarthy's mind from day one, in spite of approaches from the SFA. The media are doing the very same with Shane Ferguson now despite him having clearly stated that he has not yet made any decision on his international future; whether it be with us or NI.

When McCarthy pulled out of the friendlies last year with Paraguay and Algeria after having made his senior debut in the Brazil friendly, albeit on the advice of Martinez, it was due to alleged fatigue and back spasms that were affecting his hamstrings. Doubt that if you must, but that's what the lad claimed. McCarthy's next senior appearance was in our game against Macedonia, of course. In the meantime, Noel King had been calling him into our under-21 squad, if I'm not mistaken, and he also suffered an ankle injury that kept him out of action for three months. This kept him out of our friendly with Norway. He had already been overlooked for our friendly with Argentina in November and for all of our Euro 2012 qualifying games, probably due to Trap's conservatism when it comes to competitive games as much as anything else as McCarthy had been playing a more and more pivotal role with Wigan in the English Premier League. When Trap was deciding his squad for our Nations Cup game against Wales, he said of his initial decision to omit McCarthy:

"It’s too tight. He only just returned from injury the other day. McCarthy is important. We need players in this position, who can play the No 10 or maybe behind. He was only on the bench on Saturday. Maybe he play reserve games. We also have other solutions, like Fahey, but we will continue to follow him."

He later called him into the squad after Noel King thought him fit enough for the under-21s but McCarthy was pulled out of the squad by his club due to concerns over aggravating the injury from which he'd only just recovered. Reportedly, he was gutted and had also received a bad knock on the ankle in Wigan's preceding game against Blackburn. Of course, the media saw this as another ample opportunity to stir a panic and suggest that McCarthy was considering switching loyalties to Scotland. Clarity was demanded; completely unnecessary given McCarthy had never been the remotest bit unclear as to where his allegiance lay. Silly and ignorant comments from Martinez, who seemed more intent on trying to persuade McCarthy to put international football to the back of his mind as Wigan faced a crucial Premier League run-in, didn't help matters either, but everything coming from McCarthy, his family and his agent was suggesting that there was nothing to be worried about from our perspective. Sure enough, there wasn't; when his chance finally arrived to represent us against Macedonia in a competitive game, thereby irrevocably committing him to us, he declared his delight to have had the whole saga wrapped up once and for all. He started our next game, the friendly against Uruguay, and so we arrive at our current quagmire.

Clearly, the undisputed truth has yet to emerge. We've heard so many contradictory stories that it's hard to know what the facts are. McCarthy, his family and Wigan are claiming the lad is injured and will be out for three or four weeks. The FAI were initially claiming they hadn't been contacted in relation to this, but then it transpired that they had actually received word the day before Trapattoni claimed there'd been no communication in a press conference. Tardelli also alleged that McCarthy was contacted numerous times by Mary O'Brien of the FAI but McCarthy's father, Willie, flat-out denied this to be the case. As we've seen above, the FAI aren't immune to telling a lie in order to protect their position. Tardelli has said that McCarthy should have travelled to Dublin to be examined by the FAI's doctor although FIFA's regulations don't oblige a player playing in the territory of another association to do so at all, permitting them to undergo examination in the territory they are based. Strangely, Tardelli also commented that the scans sent by Wigan weren't conclusive or didn't show an injury serious enough to rule McCarthy out but later said that the FAI weren't doubting that McCarthy was injured, indicating that they believe he and Wigan to be telling the truth. Then we have the media reporting an alleged trafficking offence due to McCarthy apparently driving without a correct licence - a non-story really - but his family disputing this and claiming it was a case of an error being made over McCarthy's Irish driving licence. I'm open to correction on the aforementioned facts and details, but I believe them to be correct as reported, so as long as such confusion, contradiction and miscommunication reigns, I don't really feel like I'm in a fit position to cast blame for all this "drama" upon James McCarthy right now.

My surmising of all that is that he walked the walk until he hit the bright lights of the Premiership. He's made the right noises about Ireland in recent times when pressed. But that's it...

[gastric]

James McArthur defends McCarthy in this article - he supposedly is really committed to us.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/othe...e-2663879.html

[tetsujin1979]

Linked again with Liverpool in the Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2...r-drogba-milan

Liverpool have identified Charlie Adam, James McCarthy and Jordan Henderson as prime targets to rejuvenate their midfield, with Wigan's chairman, Dave Whelan, admitting of McCarthy that "in the end, of course, [we will] have to let him go, there's no question about that".

[Cuyahoga]

I see that wigan have given martinez permission to talk to aston villa re their vacant managers job. Hopefully if he gets it it would be good for Ireland as he wont be interfering with james mccarthy's irish career as he has done. I blame him for all the problems with mccarthy. He was stirring it saying james hadnt made up his mind whether he wanted to play for scotland or ireland a few months ago and i would say he told him not to go over to the carling cup as well. ( He could bring him to villa of course).

[AlaskaFox]

Might have him interfering with Ciaran Clark's Irish career though.

[Stuttgart88]

I think Richard Dunne may "interfere" with Martinez if he tried to do that

[Cuyahoga]

Ciaran Clark is older than mc carthy and wouldnt be as easily manipulated.

[SwanVsDalton]

*Ciaran Clark gets a call to see the new gaffer*

'Yes, chief you wanted to see me.'

*Martinez spins round in a huge chair, stroking a cat and smiling malevolently*

'Yes Ciaran, I wanted to discuss your international career...muahahahahaha!'

[tetsujin1979]

"I'd never turn my back on Ireland" - James McCarthy hits back over squad pullout row: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/notw...llout-row.html