I agree that we're capable of beating them since they are on a par with us, Bale aside. However, to beat two of our rivals away from home in the same campaign is asking a lot but I do think it will favour us if Wales only need a draw. However, looking at the permutations as regards best runner-up, it looks like Wales will also need to win. We might have McCarthy and Hendrick back by then and hopefully be able to put out a strong side. I haven't given up hope yet.
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
With us, hoofball never dies, it just redirects.
Aiden O'Hara writing in the Irish Independent wonders, if Ben Woodburn was Irish, would Martin O'Neill have given him an opportunity yet: http://www.independent.ie/sport/socc...-36119032.html
He's probably right to think it less likely than more likely.
The contrast between the cautious O'Neill and Coleman, who has enough faith in his own judgment to take a risk, is stark.Originally Posted by Aiden O'Hara
oneill has taken risks too at times but obviously that's generally been forgotten. was kevin long starting against Austria not a risk? or the new ctre back partnership in the win against Italy in the Euros?
its not as if woodburn started either of wales last two games and he was instead thrown on only when wales were struggling and running out of ideas. maybe the risk oneill took last week against Serbia was to put on odowda.... not oneills fault that odowda isn't the same quality player as woodburn
Fair enough points, although I would have thought going with Daryl Horgan might have been the "risk" option against Serbia as Horgan had/has yet to play in a competitive fixture. I think Horgan is a more dangerous and penetrative player than O'Dowda with an explosive yet deceptive burst of pace, but O'Neill clearly doesn't have enough faith in him yet, which is unfortunately. Of course, I do acknowledge it's all very subjective and personal preference can lead to bias or weigh heavily on whether or not one thinks O'Neill made a "safe" call or took a "risk".
Kevin Long's inclusion against Austria was an odd one. It was very much out-of-the-blue, but I'd actually put it in the reactive (rather than proactive) bracket. Two or three EPL appearances for Long in the run-up to that game appeared to heavily or disproportionately influence O'Neill's decision-making process at the time, as if it all-of-a-sudden proved to O'Neill that Long was a safe choice, and then Long was effectively dropped again for the next game for no apparent reason. Would O'Neill have checked Long out of his own volition and selected him purely on the basis of his own personal judgment if the player hadn't been fortunate enough to get those appearance for Burnley at the end of the last EPL season? It's hard to know. Personally, I don't think O'Neill's trust in his own judgment would stretch that far; it just seems very reliant on the calls of club managers, as if they provide O'Neill with a sort of defensive/supportive crutch, shoulder for potential blame-sharing or something to fall back upon if the call goes wrong. That's just how it seems to me.
People say O'Neill was unlucky with the Coleman injury, but the way Ireland approached that match is partially to blame for why it turned into such a reckless display of violence. A Welsh or Irish player was bound to get seriously hurt. A more positive approach and less hoofball and it might have been a more amicable match.
All our best results from the past 20 years are from when we got the ball on the ground and played football. We didn't beat Holland from set pieces.
O'Neill's management fairly being shown up by Maguire's Championship form.
It's like Shawcross on Ramsey. He probably didn't want to break Coleman's leg but you can't tell me he didn't mean to hurt him (not to that extent) to send a message.
I'm sure he feels gutted.
People punch people in the face and people end up in comas because they fall like a sack of potatoes and hit their heads on concrete; something that wouldn't be as dangerous if it happened on softer surfaces.
Maybe, you shouldn't put your whole bodyweight behind tackles like that, because, similarly, you cannot legislate for the consequences.
There are multiple people responsible.
Taylor is responsible, yes. The managers are also responsible for instructing the players to play caveman football. Glenn Whelan nearly maimed a couple of Welsh players as well. The referee is also responsible for not cracking down on the match in the first half.
What I'm saying is that when you instruct your team to play rough, people will get hurt. So O'Neill shares responsibility. He also picked James McCarthy when he clearly wasn't fully fit yet, and James McCarthy's injury got even worse. Is O'Neill also unlucky because of that?
Nobody else is responsible besides Taylor.
Murphy would have been the prototypical Trapattoni forward.
Imagine him coming on instead of Sammon against Austria when we drew 2-2.
I think Daryl was playing most of his football out wide, for club and country then.
Didn't he set one up for Andy Keogh in that Serbia game?
Amazing amount of analysis occurring on here. Would O'Neill play Woodburne? We don't have this situation, so why ask the question. Maguire is also being portrayed as the Messiah and we should condemn O'Neill for not picking him. Yes, he is a good player, and hopefully will develop further, but he has scored two goals in the Championship. Hourihane has scored more. Maybe we put Hourihane forward as per some of the supposed logic on here. I am being highly cynical, but give me patience, there is far too much garbage being portrayed as debate on here presently.
No, it's complete nonsense. The only over-aggressive tackles on the day came from Welsh players. Blaming O'Neill for Wales players going over the ball is next-level bull****.
I don't know why you're bringing up picking McCarthy as it has nothing to do with your badly-conceived point.
The match was a feast of lunging in left, right and centre into 50/50 tackles. Somebody was bound to break somebody's leg eventually. As it was, it was Taylor's boot connecting with Coleman's leg.
Sure, Taylor is responsible for that. But, on another day, with two different managers playing different football, it's possible that all 22 players would have left the pitch injury-free.
Last edited by brine3; 14/09/2017 at 4:08 AM.
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