Angry Fans
You may agree with him or then again you may not. This week Graeme Souness is two faced; Case for Delap being reinstated to the National side; RTÉ running a pole on Eircom league; Rovers in Tallaght; Brian Murphy for Ireland; Chelsea players need to stay quiet; Scolari’s record not so impressive; Poor refereeing; What was Ronaldo up to everyone wants to know; Spurs still in trouble; Well done to Everton for sticking with Moyes;
The Letter of the Week goes to Irish Bluenose. Get in touch with your postal address and our prize will be winging its way to you as quick as you can say Pinocchio.
CAN that Scottish git on Sky Sports get any more annoying? All he does is scrutinise
refereeing decisions: to him it seems all other aspects of the game are irrelevant.
They have even given him his own show where he can criticise referees. Pundits
on Sky seem to be afraid to criticise players so turn their attention to the referee.
Has anyone else noticed the difference in the views of Graeme Souness from when
he is on RTE to when he is on Sky?
:
And, of course, the Dunph would be just like a little mouse on Sky, yielding to
the God-like genius of Jamie Redknapp.
VERY much enjoyed the efforts
of Dean Windass to put long-throw expert Rory Delap off his stride and also the
fact that the Hull goalkeeper Myhill clearly preferred to concede a corner rather
than a throw-in. Which led me to wonder whether there were other innovative means
to put the Irishman off his game. You could, I suppose, do a version of the haka
in front of him as he winds up timing the final leap as he releases the ball.
Or you could shout insults about Letterkenny as he takes aim.
: Is tickling under the arm a bookable
offence?
SERIOUS question Liam . . . if the Delap long throw causes such
mayhem in the defences of the "best league in the world" isn't there
a case for Trap bringing him back from international exile. He hasn't turned out
for the Republic since 2004, but surely he's worth a squad place just on novelty
value alone?
: Well,
if that was the criterion, Trap would be sending on Andy Reid with his banjo.
(On second thoughts, he'd be more likely to just send on the banjo).
I SEE that RTE has been running a poll for viewers to give their over-riding memory
of the 2008 eircom League season and that among the nominations are: the Bohemians'
double; the European performances of Drogheda & Pat's; the overall quality
of football on the pitch; consistently poor refereeing; financial problems and
Galway's last day survival?
What would your own choice be Liam, and are you
optimistic about the future?
: I'd be optimistic that a leaner LOI can survive but, unfortunately,
I can't quite see how the higher standards on the pitch of recent years - at least
among the elite teams - can be maintained, let alone developed, in a tougher economic
environment. Meantime, Bohs' double - especially their record-breaking title win
- has to be the highlight of this year. And next year? Read on...
ARE
you looking forward to next season Liam, especially the prospect of matches at
Tallaght Stadium after all the arguments of the past few years. Any prospect of
it inspiring Shamrock Rovers to give Bohs a run for their money d'ya think?
:Many eyes, and not just those
of their supporters, will be on Rovers' move to Tallaght After all the troubles
of recent years - and Bohs are hardly immune now - the Hoops project could be
a litmus test for the whole league.
ISN'T it about time that Trap and
Tardo threw off the blinkers and got Brian Murphy into the Ireland squad. If he
was playing in the Premier League or even a second string over there, we all know
that he would be called up double quick. That sort of thing does no good for football
in this country.
: Agreed.
WHY couldn't the Chelsea players keep their mouths shut before the game with Arsenal?
Cech, Ballack, Cole . . . all lining up to say that the Gunners haven't got the
heart for the Premier League. They might as well have gone into the dressing room
to give Arsène Wenger's team talk for them. They know better now don't
they?
PERHAPS Chelsea's 86-game
unbeaten run is going to be counter-balanced by an 86-game losing run in football's
equivalent of the smart-dumb balance being restored?
I KNOW that Scolari won the World Cup, but he did have a
side of outstanding individuals at his disposal. With Portugal his record has
been very different. Portugal have had a record of under-achievement and failing
to win the big games that counted. Perhaps the truth is that he just hasn't got
what it takes at the very highest level in club football. For example, he waits
until his team are losing 2-1 to Arsenal before blooding one of his best youngsters,
Stoch. When Chelsea were winning 4-0 he brought on Paolo Ferreira. Doesn't seem
like good management to me. Getting rid of Mourinho looks like one of the biggest
own goals in football history, and it was made in Russia.
ANOTHER big game changed by a shockingly poor decision
by a linesman. Van Persie was at least a yard offside for the Arsenal equaliser.
Have the Premier League got some sort of co-sponsorship deal going with a blind
school in the UK where they take the most promising of their pupils and allow
them to run the line with a flag?
: Great to know that 70s stand-up humour is still alive and well
in Kilkenny, despite the annual influx of the foul-mouthed 'alternative' brigade.
Have a red card Declan. Meanwhile, my favourite reaction to Sunday's result was
the disgruntled Chelsea fan who called for Avram Grant to be brought back.
JUST what was Cristiano Ronaldo up to with that handball which led to his
second yellow card on Sunday? Was he worried that the ball was going to strike
him in the face and mess up his looks? Or was he imagining that he was playing
beach volleyball in Spain? Why didn't he just head it?
WELL that's the fake sheikhs put firmly in their place. Two
points outside the relegation zone. That isn't what the Arabs have paid their
money for, and it doesn't put them on course for Champions League football in
the next two years. Shame that. Many more defeats of that kind and you can kiss
Mark Hughes goodbye is my guess.
Hope not but fear you're right. He's a fine young manager, Hughes,
but probably not sufficiently marquee to keep his seat at Eastlands.
.
DESPITE all those victories Spurs are still deep in the mire, and they may find
it increasingly difficult to pull away from there once the Harry Redknapp honeymoon
period has worn off. They need some major restructuring in January if they're
not to find themselves scrapping it out for points with Newcastle down the bottom
at the business end of the season.
: Absolutely. 'Arry, 'Arry, 'Arry, Out, Out, Out. Speaking of which...
WELL done to Everton for sticking with David Moyes for 300 games. Some
managers don't even get a full season. Everton probably won't be anything other
than a steady top eight side unless they find someone to invest more heavily in
them but at least he has brought them regular Premier League football with one
or two forays into Europe. Things could be a lot worse. Just ask Leeds United
. . . losing to Histon in the FA Cup, the outstanding result of the weekend.
We like Moyes here too so, just
to make up for all the trophies your team won't win, have our Letter of the Week
prize.
