Some of my
recent blogs have been about the inadequacies of the English FA and the current
England squad. On reflection, maybe I was a bit too hard or even too quick to
point the finger. I mentioned the
problem at grass roots level they currently have. I also discussed their lack
of top players coming through. The new FA commission panel which includes the
enlightened Danny Mills is another issue I could bring up. However, I think it’s
time that I sit back and take stock. My own country, Ireland, is in a far worse
state than our neighbours across the sea. If we think England have it bad, think
again. Ireland is in dire straits at the minute. In the words of the great Peter Cunnah
of the band D-Ream “Things can only get better”. Well with Germany away tonight,
I very much doubt it.
It’s pretty safe
to say that Ireland won’t be enjoying the sun and sand of Rio next year. It is not the first time we have missed out
on major finals and it surely won’t be the last. But the reason behind Giovanni
Trappatoni’s departure was the manner in which we missed the finals. For the
last five years Trap has been criticised for his team selection. He was berated for his lack of knowledge of Irish
players and for not attending enough games to see prospective players. To many
times he made the wrong calls and played too defensively. We went to Ukraine
and Poland to participate in the Euros and decided to get the first bus home. We were denied a World Cup place by a French
Slam dunk but even if we did make it, the outcome would have been similar to
that of the Euros. So, is it Traps fault
why we are where we are, back in the doldrums of international football? His record
as manager wasn’t that bad if you look at it. Is it the fans fault for having
the expectations set too high for such a small footballing nation? Is it John Delaney’s
fault for just being John Delaney and sounding like he constantly has a blocked
nose? Oh who cares, the fact of the matter is, we are where we are. No point blaming
Trap, Thierry Henry or anyone else. Let’s stop feeling sorry for ourselves and
start to do something about it.
There are many
reasons behind our gradual decline. One that comes to mind is the current
decline in kids playing sports on the street. If I go back to when I grew up, my
friends and I would be out from morning until night playing football. Irrespective
of our abilities, we played and played and played. When we went to the shop for
a break, we dribbled the ball with us. When we sat down for a break, we practiced
our volleys or tricks. Now things are different. Society doesn’t allow kids out
for that amount of time unsupervised. You don’t play heads and volleys or reenact
the Champions League final with your friends. Their exposure to football is minimal. They see
a football twice a week with their local team and maybe at lunch in school if
they are lucky. Otherwise its play
dates, Xbox and WWE.
Another point is
the resurgence of GAA and rugby as alternatives to football. Dublin, Leinster
and Munster have given kids different avenues to become professional sports
stars. Growing up, I only thought about football, that was it. Schools now have
more options in terms of team sports. With the recent success of Dublin and the Irish club
teams in the Heineken Cup, kids do not feel that football is the only
sport. Diversity is good and kids having options in sport is great too. Not every
child is suited to football. So now football
is battling with two resurging codes for children’s attention. And the worse Ireland
get, the harder it will be to convince the youth of today.
Grass roots is an
obvious issue. Like England, our grass roots coaching has not been up to scratch
of late. Over the last three to four years I don’t know if it has improved. I have
been out of the country. If it has, brilliant, but let’s be pessimistic and
assume it has not. Look at the top six teams in England and how many Irish
payers can you find. Coleman, McCarthy and Gibson of Everton. Go on keep thinking. Don’t worry, ill wait. Take
your time……….. Exactly! Remember Brady, Houghton, Whelan, Stapleton, Aldridge, McGrath, Keane , Irwin, Beglin and Moran. Back then we flooded the top teams. Even Robbie Keane at
Spurs and Liverpool and Damien Duff at Chelsea. Was it that football wasn’t as hard to break
into back then? Was it because these legends played more football as kids than
kids do now? Was it coaching? Did they have more ability than our current
players do now? Playing football as a kid, I don’t remember the training sessions
being too technical. I don’t recall talking about tactics or understanding
shape or different formations. I do remember
standing around freezing, while we did passing drills. I do remember running
and running and running. I also remember being picked because of my height and
size rather than my ability (which may I add was nonexistent). I remember being
told to turn the full backs with a ball over the top. “Get stuck in” was a regular call from the sideline and “if in doubt, knock it long”. And I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who remembers
all of the above.
As I said, I cannot comment on the current coaching
in Ireland today, I don’t live there. I haven’t seen it with my own eyes. But put
it this way, if it’s good, then it’s got to get better. It’s that simple. Starting from the bottom and improving as we go will put us in a better place. We need
to realise our place in football right now though. We are minnows. We are a small footballing
nation with some decent players who have pride and ability. But gone are the
days of our players playing in the top teams. Gone are the days of getting
ready for World Cups with giant inflatable tricolour hats and hammers from Crazy Prices (now Tesco).
Trap is gone and the hunt for his successor is on. We all know the type of manager
we want. We want someone who knows our
players, knows their strengths and weaknesses and is there for the long haul. We
want someone who has a plan. We want someone who can communicate with the
players and get along with the players. Our
expectations, our grass roots, our current squad and our battle with other sports
all play a part in our slide into footballing darkness. But there is hope.
Robbie Brady, James McCarthy and Hoolahan show us we have ability in abundance.
Oh and don’t forget Adnan Januzaj, surely he can play for us cant he?
I hope tonight we
do well. I would be happy with a good performance. Not brave, tackling and running
around like bees after honey. Show the world we can pass a ball. Take a player
on and be confident. Enjoy the night. Noel King takes charge tonight and no one can point any
fingers at him. He is stepping in to help out. He has been a great servant for
Ireland and deserves the rub of the green tonight.
It’s bad at the
minute I’ll admit it. We all know it is. But you got to be able to stand the
storm if you want to see the rainbow. Here’s hoping!
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