Columns - Irish Examiner

Liam Mackey

Don't expect shocks - only the strongest survive in the Champions League

2016 will go down in football history as the year of the underdog. Leicester City led the way with their against-all-odds Premier League title success while, at the European Championship finals, there were the table-turning heroics of Iceland and Wales to warm the heart and, when it came to the crunch, Portugal finally ending their trophy drought by beating hosts and hot favourites France.

Tue, 13 Sep, 2016

Even the Manchester derby is still about the players

If you’re still struggling to get your head around exactly what that €13 billion Apple windfall means in real terms, there’s a much simpler and more meaningful solution than trying to work out all that banal stuff about how many homes and hospitals you could build with it.

Sat, 10 Sep, 2016

Even Robbie Keane could see Ireland’s bigger picture

To mangle poor old Willy the Shake — and, frankly, I’ve pretty much made a career out of doing just that — you could argue that nothing in Robbie Keane’s Irish career became him like the leaving it.

Sat, 03 Sep, 2016

Benson racks up a stylish hat-trick for the remarkable Robbies

It’s been a week of hotshots and superlatives to add to the store of good things in Irish football in 2016.

Sat, 27 Aug, 2016

OBITUARY: Republic of Ireland player and manager Liam Tuohy

Ireland’s football trendsetter across so many eras, writes Liam Mackey

Fri, 26 Aug, 2016

As Dundalk pay the penalty, it's time to give refs a second look

There were no, what you might call, GLT-edged chances at the Aviva Stadium AKA the Dublin Arena AKA Lansdowne Road on Wednesday night.

Sat, 20 Aug, 2016

Bullish John Hartson reiterates belief in Welsh superiority

Almost exactly a year ago to the day, John Hartson was in Dublin and gleefully blaring Welsh supremacy over the Irish.

Sat, 13 Aug, 2016

Dundalk are a side fit for European purpose

THE quote of the week had to be Stephen Kenny describing the luminous moment in Tallaght Stadium on Tuesday night when Robbie Benson’s clinical finish found the back of the net, sealing Dundalk’s stunning 3-0 victory over BATE Borisov and taking the club to the giddy heights of a play-off for a place in the group stages of the Champions League.

Sat, 06 Aug, 2016

Ireland beware as Welsh Dragons breathe fire after Euros

Wales’ march to the semi-finals was the continuation of the momentum which had been generated through an impressive qualifying campaign, writes Liam Mackey.

Sat, 09 Jul, 2016

An alternative history of Ireland at the Euros

Mark Twain once beautifully defined an expert as “some guy from outta town”. That being so, the guys and gals whose heads are entirely off the planet must be the greatest experts of them all.

Sat, 02 Jul, 2016