Spain v Ireland match thread

[Liverpel]

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Friday 12:29 CET: Ireland have just managed to win possession.

[Liverpel]

Saw this on Facebook.

A letter to Roy Keane after his reaction to the Spain performance
June 15, 2012 at 2:00 pm by Sober Paddy

Dear Roy,

When you left (or were pushed) that famous time in Saipan, a nation divided like nothing seen since the civil war. But time passed and be dad, many is the man, woman and child who has forgiven you for sins you may or may not have committed.

When you dragged that team you captained kicking and screaming all the way to qualification, no one argued that you were truly one of the greats – up there with Mc Grath as possibly the most influential player ever to wear the green of Ireland.

When you slated the FAI for their inept preparation and their lack of professionalism, the people of Ireland sat and listened. Every man and his dog thought you were right and we knew that things were not all gravy in the hallowed halls of Merrion Square.

When we bought your book we read every page with hunger and lapped up every story. It was told with passion and with a great eye for what we love to know. It was a book written for the fan.

Even though some of us are Liverpool fans, when you got that second yellow in Turin we felt your pain though you yourself were numb. We felt it because we followed your every move as an Irish success story for many long years.

When you criticised the prawn munching brigade in the Theatre of Dreams, we all laughed and agreed that corporate United had indeed sold out to the money men.

But there were no prawns being munched in Gdansk.

It is not the mentality of the Irish fan to indulge in half time prawns.

No Roy, in Gdansk you saw and heard the raucous thunderous noise of passionate supporters singing their hearts out for men who were on their knees.

This was no sing-a-long. This was no late night arm around the shoulders yippin’ and hooin’ rebel song serenade.

This was thousands of men and women supporting their team. This was the last cries to defy the pain being felt as the harsh reality of our inadequacies as an international football team were hammered home. This is the mentality of fans who would do the same if we were winning or were losing.

The best fans in the world is a title all fans lay claim to – the Irish ones included.

But there are not many groups who will love and sing and instantly forgive in the face of such annihilation as this team had just suffered.

Roy, I watched this game in a small café in a small street in a town in Colombia with two Islrealis, two Colombians and my Kiwi wife who spent the last 20 minutes looking at her iphone.

With five minutes to go tears were streaming down my face.

Not because we were out.

Not because the group and individuals had underperformed.

Not because we had just lost 4-0.

They were streaming down my face because my Irish brothers and sisters wearing the green were singing their hearts out in spite of all that had gone wrong. The tears flowed because I saw how we embrace the ones who fall. The tears flowed because my fellow supporters stood up and were counted when the end was looming large.

We sang for you too Roy, when you fell (or were you pushed?)
Maybe it is time Roy, for you to stand on a terrace again.

Is mise le meas
Sober Paddy
*
*

[Kenneth]

Gay

Crackoff

[Shaggy]

I said last night the fans were great but it's all getting a bit much now. It's like they're the first set of fans ever to sing at the end of a match they've been hammered in. Also think it's a bit patronising towards the Irish. "Ah bless them, their football team might well be utter **** but they've got lovely fans, listen to them singing, lovely"

[Buzzo]

Gay

Crackoff

[Liverpel]

Gay

Crackoff

[Galb]

Keane is a ****ing bellend.

Massive respect to the Irish fans, amazing amazing support.

Meh. He is a bellend but in my depressed state I can kind of see his point.

Yes, its good to support the team but we do also sometimes come too close as a nation to celebrating mediocrity because its our own and we feel we should. There's always an excuse and a refusal to criticise when we might be better in the long run being critical and trying to improve - be it football, politics, banking, whatever. We're too quick to pat ourselves on the back for being great craic rather than making sure we're good enough to deserve more than that.

Like, the lads tried hard last night (and Keith Andrews deserves particular credit) but there must be serious questions to answer for the FAI, etc about how we have almost no players with decent passing ability. Long-term thinking for us seems to be trying to spot who we can poach from Northern Ireland or Scotland under the age of 20. Where's the coaching? Where's the infrastructure? Where's the domestic supports that stops our young lads being shipped off to English clubs? France and Spain took a long hard look at themselves after failures and put the right plans in place. Maybe if we'd done less of the sing-song in the 90's, we'd have done the same.

And could we ever sing more than the same chorus of the Fields of Athenry? Its bad enough having only one song but we dont even sing the verses!

[Buzzo]

I said last night the fans were great but it's all getting a bit much now. It's like they're the first set of fans ever to sing at the end of a match they've been hammered in. Also think it's a bit patronising towards the Irish. "Ah bless them, their football team might well be utter **** but they've got lovely fans, listen to them singing, lovely"

Totally agree. Yeah, they held a good tune etc. etc.

But that was as close to total domination as you will ever see on a football pitch. I think what Roy Keane is getting at is that it is possible to have both the great support and a good footy team. Far better to be belting out the anthems having just beaten someone 4 nil than having just been beaten 4 nil. Ireland were outclassed and embarrassing last night.

We have the same issues in Scotland, and it gets to a stage where glorious failure really isn't good enough. But some of the Irish surrendered the jersey too easily last night.

[Galb]

I said last night the fans were great but it's all getting a bit much now. It's like they're the first set of fans ever to sing at the end of a match they've been hammered in. Also think it's a bit patronising towards the Irish. "Ah bless them, their football team might well be utter **** but they've got lovely fans, listen to them singing, lovely"

Dont worry, we're doing great at patronising ourselves over here too. It started before the game even finished last night, blah blah, if there was a medal for the world's best fans, blah, blah. Getting drunk and singing 30 words isnt *that* hard.

Making yourself look like some of the Swedish/Polish/Russian ladies - now that's hard work that deserves a medal!

[Galb]

Totally agree. Yeah, they held a good tune etc. etc.

But that was as close to total domination as you will ever see on a football pitch. I think what Roy Keane is getting at is that it is possible to have both the great support and a good footy team. Far better to be belting out the anthems having just beaten someone 4 nil than having just been beaten 4 nil. Ireland were outclassed and embarrassing last night.

We have the same issues in Scotland, and it gets to a stage where glorious failure really isn't good enough. But some of the Irish surrendered the jersey too easily last night.

In fairness, I think a lot of it is a generation wanting to live up to the stories they've grown up on of wide-eyed fans following the dream to unexpected levels of success in Euro 88 and Italia 90. We all wanted our own stories of Stuttgart and Genoa.

In fact, the Irish fans have been quick to boo (ironically, much too quick IMO) at home games in the last few years so maybe the patience for glorious failure is already on the way out.

[Buzzo]

Good posts Galb.

[Neil Young]

Making yourself look like some of the Swedish/Polish/Russian ladies - now that's hard work that deserves a medal!

To be honest mate, I'm not even going to try. I fear it would be a colossal waste of effort for very little result.

[kingfunk]

@paddyrobinson82: @fmuamba. #prayforirelanda