Kevin Foley wants to follow the lead of Wolves teammate Stephen Ward by nailing down a place in the Ireland side for Euro 2012.

AFTER A WEEK of comebacks so surprising that you half expect Muhammad Ali to step back into the ring, would it be too much to imagine Stephen Ireland putting on the green of his country again?

IRELAND’S legion of football fans will be left fuming after it emerged other countries heading to Euro 2012 have secured up to 50% more tickets than the Green Army.

Anthony Stokes admits he would love a recall to the Republic of Ireland squad ahead of their Euro 2012 play-off against Estonia next month.

THE crowd in the South Stand at the Aviva Stadium in Lansdowne Road last Saturday evening, with their cheering and singing, provided a noisy and lively atmosphere that made up for many of the empty seats at the European Championship qualifier with Macedonia.

The Republic of Ireland’s Greg Cunningham has said that Everton’s Seamus Coleman was “disappointed” at not making an appearance on the field for his country in their defeat to Norway last night.

ROBERTO MANCINI will allow Shay Given leave Manchester City on loan in January after the Republic of Ireland goalkeeper admitted he was “very, very frustrated” with life as Joe Hart’s deputy.

RUGBY fans should well remember what Neil Back did to Munster in 2002. It was the closing minutes of the Heineken Cup final between the Irish team and his side, Leicester. The English side is winning by 15 points to 9, but Munster have a scrum in front of the Leicester posts, in a perfect position to launch a final assault on the Leicester line, to score a try that would have left Munster with a conversion to win the cup.

FRANCE coach Raymond Domenech has heaped unnecessary pressure on his own players ahead of the World Cup play-off with the Republic of Ireland by referring to Giovanni Trappatoni’s team as “a sort of England B side”.

Giovanni Trappatoni returned to Italy determined to play David to Marcello Lippi’s Goliath.

Giovanni Trappatoni's Republic of Ireland team are up three to 38th in the FIFA world rankings.

The Republic of Ireland have dropped one place in the FIFA world rankings, despite Giovanni Trappatoni's steady start to his reign as manager.

New Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trappatoni has named a team which combines youth an experience for tonight's friendly against Serbia.

STEVE COPPELL is not the only manager sporting a furrowed brow at Reading’s plunge towards the Championship.

Former Ireland manager Eoin Hand, has expressed his views on the recent appointment of Giovanni Trappatoni saying that the Italian's vision gives Irish supporters genuine grounds for optimism.

Former Italian coach Giovanni Trappatoni has been confirmed as the new Republic of Ireland soccer boss after a protracted recruitment process handled by Don Givens, Ray Houghton and Don Howe.

Sunderland Chairman Niall Quinn has welcomed the news that the FAI search for a new manager is drawing to a close.

It's turning out to be one of the most talked about recruitment processes ever in this country but it's not finished yet.

THERE is a certain symmetry that the player who got Italy’s World Cup campaign off to a winning start is the same one whose intervention earned them a place in tomorrow’s final against France.

Francesco Totti scored midway through the second half to seal Italy's 2-1 win against Georgia in their World Cup group eight qualifier.