Roy Keane

[cwebber82]

What a nasty little man Roy Keane is. A truely great player who made the most of what talent he had.

For this group of Irish footballers (a very, very limited bunch) getting to a European Championship or World Cup is a pretty good achievement. Throw in a manager who doesn't trust them to play and a group with the world's best team and what do you expect?

I think the fans are intelligent enough to realise all this and just decided to enjoy themselves on what was probably their one holiday of the year or maybe of the years ahead and had a sing song. Maybe Roy wants them to cause trouble with opposing fans or just boo the irish players? Fans who support the team...oh the shame.

What a miserable sh!t. He's also a terrible pundit, providing no insight whatsoever, just a bunch of cliches. John Giles he aint.

Do us all a favour Roy....shut up, you incredible bore.

[sarah_lennon]

Consider the rag he writes for. Nuff said

[Logorrhea]

For this group of Irish footballers (a very, very limited bunch) getting to a European Championship or World Cup is a pretty good achievement. Throw in a manager who doesn't trust them to play and a group with the world's best team and what do you expect?

I think the fans are intelligent enough to realise all this and just decided to enjoy themselves on what was probably their one holiday of the year

This is exactly what he was talking about. We were happy to just turn up, didnt expect to win, and went along for the sing song. As long as we are happy to just be there, we'll never really compete.

The same applied in rugby, we had generation upon generation of teams just looking to have a go and be competitive for 50-60 minutes. We never really thought we could win,and as a result, were actually as a team (and fans) to lose regularly, once we showed passion etc. That changed about 10 years ago when the new generation realised they were actually good enough.

Then again, you have the Irish squad in New Zealand talking about "hoping" to win a "single" test. That was picked up immediately by the New Zealand press who immediately brused us off as losers, repaeating what Keane said.

I'm not a huge fan of Keane, and I thought the fans were excellent and had every right to sing at the end, but the crux of what Keane said was correct.

[tackle-bag]

I'm not a huge fan of Keane, and I thought the fans were excellent and had every right to sing at the end, but the crux of what Keane said was correct.

I totally agree with this. Keane suffers from the fact that he's often guilty of hyperbole and the fact that he's not particularly articulate, but the point that he's trying to make with regard to the Irish mentality is irrefutable.

I, like so many others, have grown incredibly tired of the paddy-whackery that passes for media coverage of Irish sports teams. "Win, lose or draw, the Irish will have a few. They do love a party the Irish!"

Instead of trying to challenge or dispel the reputation we have as producing plucky competitors who will be the life and soul of the party, we have actively embraced it. We need to start believing that we can beat the best in the world in every sport in which we compete. Because with the right mentality, we can.

Having a small population is a hindrance, of that there can be no doubt. But it's far from everything. Look at Australia for Christ's sake. It's a massive but sparsely populated country, in which the organisation of national teams is a logistical nightmare, yet they manage to maintain a position at or near the top of the world in every sport they play.

Turning to specific sports, it is equally clear that a small player pool does not prevent you from being the world's best. According to the official IRB statistics, NZ has 27,726 senior male rugby players, while we have 25,440. Our respective records at international level speak for themselves. According to FIFA's official statistics, we have 252,844 soccer players registered to official clubs. That's considerably more than Turkey (197,657), Portugal (132,734) and Croatia (109,799). Spain are only 16th globally in terms of registered players with 653,190, yet have managed to dominate the game at club and national level for much of the past decade.

The ultimate point is that provided your mindset and developmental structures are correct in respect of any team sport, you can survive amongst the best without having enormous player pools from which to choose.

[Dexter]

I'm not a huge fan of Keane, and I thought the fans were excellent and had every right to sing at the end, but the crux of what Keane said was correct.

I totally agree with this. Keane suffers from the fact that he's often guilty of hyperbole and the fact that he's not particularly articulate, but the point that he's trying to make with regard to the Irish mentality is irrefutable.

I, like so many others, have grown incredibly tired of the paddy-whackery that passes for media coverage of Irish sports teams. "Win, lose or draw, the Irish will have a few. They do love a party the Irish!"

Instead of trying to challenge or dispel the reputation we have as producing plucky competitors who will be the life and soul of the party, we have actively embraced it. We need to start believing that we can beat the best in the world in every sport in which we compete. Because with the right mentality, we can.

Having a small population is a hindrance, of that there can be no doubt. But it's far from everything. Look at Australia for Christ's sake. It's a massive but sparsely populated country, in which the organisation of national teams is a logistical nightmare, yet they manage to maintain a position at or near the top of the world in every sport they play.

Turning to specific sports, it is equally clear that a small player pool does not prevent you from being the world's best. According to the official IRB statistics, NZ has 27,726 senior male rugby players, while we have 25,440. Our respective records at international level speak for themselves. According to FIFA's official statistics, we have 252,844 soccer players registered to official clubs. That's considerably more than Turkey (197,657), Portugal (132,734) and Croatia (109,799). Spain are only 16th globally in terms of registered players with 653,190, yet have managed to dominate the game at club and national level for much of the past decade.

The ultimate point is that provided your mindset and developmental structures are correct in respect of any team sport, you can survive amongst the best without having enormous player pools from which to choose.

Some good points, backed up with relevant facts. I was particularly surprised by the stats on registered soccer players! I wonder do we just spread ourselves too thin with a small population and loads of different competing sports?

In saying that, Keane is still a cranky, mean-spirited, bore

[olaf the fat]

Sounds like we are World Champions at registering players!

[Dave Cahill]

Hey, if at the beginning of the tournament you were told we would do at least as well as the Dutch, who wouldn't have taken it!

[alterego]

f%~k Keane.

He chose to watch Lancashire in the County Cricket championship rather than represent his country at the World Cup. And don't get me started about Stephen Ireland

What is it with langers ??

Hats off to the supporters. They're realists. We were always on a hiding to nothing against Spain. While it's easy to be gracious in victory, it's a better barometer of a nation when it can also be gracious in defeat.

[tackle-bag]

Some good points, backed up with relevant facts. I was particularly surprised by the stats on registered soccer players! I wonder do we just spread ourselves too thin with a small population and loads of different competing sports?

You could write for hours about the reasons why we don't succeed in maximising our potential, but as I've mentioned above, I believe there are two key problems which apply across the board in Ireland:-

(a) The first is one of attitude. This can mean many things, but a lot of our sports stars aren't a patch on the world leaders in their field in terms of belief, professionalism, and a desire to win at all costs. There have been occasional exceptions (McBride, Wood and BOD are examples in rugby terms) but a vast number of Irish sportspeople simply enjoy the ride provided to them by their God-given talent.

(b) The second problem is that of infrastructure. As Leinster rugby fans, it's easy for us to miss this point because the Leinster set-up is first class (although far from flawless), in that we have a vibrant academy, a highly competitive schools system, top-quality coaching and excellent modern facilities. There are certain other bodies that have done their best to promote talent with limited resources - Cricket Ireland is one example, although again it's not without its flaws. However, a large number of sporting organisations in this country are living in the stone age. Tennis Ireland is a joke, Athletics Ireland doesn't seem to be much better, and the FAI couldn't pour piss out of a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel.

[ronk]

the FAI couldn't pour piss out of a boot if the instructions were printed on the heel.

[suisse]

I, like so many others, have grown incredibly tired of the paddy-whackery that passes for media coverage of Irish sports teams. "Win, lose or draw, the Irish will have a few. They do love a party the Irish!"

Instead of trying to challenge or dispel the reputation we have as producing plucky competitors who will be the life and soul of the party, we have actively embraced it. We need to start believing that we can beat the best in the world in every sport in which we compete. Because with the right mentality, we can

What really bothers me is the hypocrisy of Irish people when it comes to this. We're happy to point and laugh at those "stupid, fat" American tourists for buying t-shirts of drinking sheep and hungover cows in Carroll's. We love to tell the whole wide world that we love something called the "craic" and yet when people either cash in on it or write about it in a foreign paper (http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog ... ly-singing - this article is patronising, but what do you expect when we sell this very image to the world?) there's outrage.

When I moved over here in 2009 the Irish embassy in Seoul sent me a bunch of sh!t (and I mean that word) to tell everyone about Ireland. Within this package were 2 posters about Ireland. One was a few lads fishing off the west coast and the second poster was made up of 20 small pictures - "a glimpse of Ireland." In 12 of the 20, people were either in a pub or drinking beer elsewhere. Two more were of people "having the craic" on St. Paddy's Day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rbuLn-Y8KM - sums it up perfectly.

[Sauvignon Blank]

Sounds like we are World Champions at registering players!

f%~k Keane.

He chose to watch Lancashire in the County Cricket championship rather than represent his country at the World Cup. And don't get me started about Stephen Ireland

What is it with langers ??

Hats off to the supporters. They're realists. We were always on a hiding to nothing against Spain. While it's easy to be gracious in victory, it's a better barometer of a nation when it can also be gracious in defeat.

This.


Ah well, i'm off to have the craic now.

[Scott]

f%~k Keane.

He chose to watch Lancashire in the County Cricket championship rather than represent his country at the World Cup. And don't get me started about Stephen Ireland

What is it with langers ??

Hats off to the supporters. They're realists. We were always on a hiding to nothing against Spain. While it's easy to be gracious in victory, it's a better barometer of a nation when it can also be gracious in defeat.

[Schumi]

(a) The first is one of attitude. This can mean many things, but a lot of our sports stars aren't a patch on the world leaders in their field in terms of belief, professionalism, and a desire to win at all costs. There have been occasional exceptions (McBride, Wood and BOD are examples in rugby terms) but a vast number of Irish sportspeople simply enjoy the ride provided to them by their God-given talent.

The bigger problem, in football at least, is that our players aren't a patch on the world leaders (or even world followers) in terms of skill. Even Armenia and Slovakia passed and controlled the ball better in the qualifiers. Until players' development as kids is improved, the situation won't change.

[Sauvignon Blank]

f%~k Keane.

He chose to watch Lancashire in the County Cricket championship rather than represent his country at the World Cup. And don't get me started about Stephen Ireland

What is it with langers ??

Hats off to the supporters. They're realists. We were always on a hiding to nothing against Spain. While it's easy to be gracious in victory, it's a better barometer of a nation when it can also be gracious in defeat.

and the other one that said.."Can we sing now Roy"

[tackle-bag]

(a) The first is one of attitude. This can mean many things, but a lot of our sports stars aren't a patch on the world leaders in their field in terms of belief, professionalism, and a desire to win at all costs. There have been occasional exceptions (McBride, Wood and BOD are examples in rugby terms) but a vast number of Irish sportspeople simply enjoy the ride provided to them by their God-given talent.

The bigger problem, in football at least, is that our players aren't a patch on the world leaders (or even world followers) in terms of skill. Even Armenia and Slovakia passed and controlled the ball better in the qualifiers. Until players' development as kids is improved, the situation won't change.

I agree but I think that falls under point (b) above, namely infrastructure. If my own experience of playing underage soccer is anything to go by, the average set-up of a youth side in Ireland is a joke. Even aged 11 and 12, we played competitive matches on full-size pitches. Training sessions consisted of a quick warm-up followed by a match of some description, with almost zero emphasis on the development of basic skills like ball control, heading and tackling. The net result of this system is that the strongest and fastest guys on the team were designated as the best players, because they could cover the oversized pitch quickly and overpower smaller players, notwithstanding the fact that many of them were terrible footballers. From an early age, kids should be spending hours in confined spaces trapping balls, then dribbling or passing them, instead of belting them up and down expansive pitches without any real purpose.

The FAI need to set up a proper national soccer academy, and start scouting guys when they are still in primary school, instead of paying that clown John Delaney €430,000.00 a year to be on a perpetual junket. Soccer's not like rugby, in which you have to wait for a guy to develop physically before you can tell how good he will be. In general, you're able to spot true talent from a very early age.

[Schumi]

I agree but I think that falls under point (b) above, namely infrastructure. If my own experience of playing underage soccer is anything to go by, the average set-up of a youth side in Ireland is a joke. Even aged 11 and 12, we played competitive matches on full-size pitches. Training sessions consisted of a quick warm-up followed by a match of some description, with almost zero emphasis on the development of basic skills like ball control, heading and tackling. The net result of this system is that the strongest and fastest guys on the team were designated as the best players, because they could cover the oversized pitch quickly and overpower smaller players, notwithstanding the fact that many of them were terrible footballers. From an early age, kids should be spending hours in confined spaces trapping balls, then dribbling or passing them, instead of belting them up and down expansive pitches without any real purpose.

The FAI need to set up a proper national soccer academy, and start scouting guys when they are still in primary school, instead of paying that clown John Delaney €430,000.00 a year to be on a perpetual junket. Soccer's not like rugby, in which you have to wait for a guy to develop physically before you can tell how good he will be. In general, you're able to spot true talent from a very early age.

All spot on. With schoolboy clubs having so much influence in the FAI, Delaney will be very slow to go against them and they're more interested in winning the under-14 league than developing players.

Listening to Dunphy and co. talking about changing the international manager and playing a different formation was depressing, totally missed the point.

[nelly the elephant]

(a) The first is one of attitude. This can mean many things, but a lot of our sports stars aren't a patch on the world leaders in their field in terms of belief, professionalism, and a desire to win at all costs. There have been occasional exceptions (McBride, Wood and BOD are examples in rugby terms) but a vast number of Irish sportspeople simply enjoy the ride provided to them by their God-given talent.

The bigger problem, in football at least, is that our players aren't a patch on the world leaders (or even world followers) in terms of skill. Even Armenia and Slovakia passed and controlled the ball better in the qualifiers. Until players' development as kids is improved, the situation won't change.

I agree but I think that falls under point (b) above, namely infrastructure. If my own experience of playing underage soccer is anything to go by, the average set-up of a youth side in Ireland is a joke. Even aged 11 and 12, we played competitive matches on full-size pitches. Training sessions consisted of a quick warm-up followed by a match of some description, with almost zero emphasis on the development of basic skills like ball control, heading and tackling. The net result of this system is that the strongest and fastest guys on the team were designated as the best players, because they could cover the oversized pitch quickly and overpower smaller players, notwithstanding the fact that many of them were terrible footballers. From an early age, kids should be spending hours in confined spaces trapping balls, then dribbling or passing them, instead of belting them up and down expansive pitches without any real purpose.

The FAI need to set up a proper national soccer academy, and start scouting guys when they are still in primary school, instead of paying that clown John Delaney €430,000.00 a year to be on a perpetual junket. Soccer's not like rugby, in which you have to wait for a guy to develop physically before you can tell how good he will be. In general, you're able to spot true talent from a very early age.

An important point well made.

[tones]

Set-up of the FAI and an Academy are great points.....but attitude gets people through the first stages of professionalism. Seems, the Irish lads (most from a background where not succeeding is ok) struggle with this.
Roy is right regarding the attitude.

[OTT]

The head of our FAI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=affbvK4UZgc


Infairness good attack on his hair piece/weave/toupee for the last minute or so hehe