Trap got it right – now it’s time to get Aviva rocking
I have to say that I’m delighted with how it went in Stockholm on Friday night. It was a crucial match in this qualifying campaign and one around which a lot of negativity had built up beforehand, especially towards the manager. But, in a convincing response to all that, we produced our best performance of this campaign to put us in a great position now, with three home fixtures in succession to come.
And if we get the result we want against Austria tonight then we can look forward with genuine reason to be confident of qualifying from this tough group.
The build up to Friday’s match was far from ideal, especially when Glenn Whelan had to withdraw on the day of the game due to an ankle injury. With James McCarthy coming in for Glenn, the manager clearly felt he needed more experience on the right side of midfield, so he opted for Jon Walters ahead of Robbie Brady. He was criticised for these decisions but, with the wealth of experience he has, he was prepared to make some big calls — and in hindsight he was spot on. We are still unbeaten away from home in qualifiers since the manager took charge and, don’t forget, we’ve been to some very difficult places along the way.
McCarthy’s performance on Friday wasn’t surprising to me as I’ve seen him do it for a few seasons now at Wigan, where he has been improving all the time. But the reason I was particularly impressed was because of the way he reacted to not being named in the original starting 11. I’m sure he must have felt a little aggrieved but, on the night, he showed a lot of maturity and class in the way he went about things. His eagerness to get on the ball and get us playing was obvious from kick off. He was composure personified throughout and created a calmness for everyone else around him.
Another player I was particularly pleased for was David Forde. He’s a lovely lad and it’s fair to say he’s had a fair journey to get to making his competitive debut for his country at the tender age of 33. I know how much it meant to him and his family for him to be in squads over the last few seasons, so having worked his way up to be No 1 must be a very proud time for him. He is a great professional who works very hard on his game and it’s always nice to see people like that getting rewarded. He was very solid against Sweden and produced a few fine saves to keep a well-deserved clean sheet. And let’s not underestimate the performance and result, as this Swedish team have produced some fine displays in recent months — not least in coming from 4-0 down to gain a point against a magnificent German side in their own back yard.
What’s vital now is that we must bring the momentum from the Sweden game into tonight’s match against an Austrian side who had a good performance on Friday with their goal-spree against the Faroes. They were also only narrowly beaten by Germany in a game they are probably aggrieved they didn’t get something from. Our manager obviously has good knowledge of Austria from his time in charge of Salzburg so we will be well prepared on their strengths and weaknesses. Our analyst Brian McCarthy works very hard on preparing clips of the opposition to make sure we know all about them. He will set up links for us players to go and check out our respective individual opponents in the build-up to a match. We will then have meetings the day before and on the day of the game as a group to drum into us the way we are going to play and also the way we are going to try and nullify the threats of the opposition.
Since we’ve come home to the new Lansdowne it’s fair to say we haven’t produced the atmosphere it was once renowned for. Indeed, that’s quite often a complaint you hear when teams move to a new stadium. But, to be honest, I don’t really think we’ve given the fans a performance so far to get the place rocking and tonight is the ideal opportunity to start.
With Robbie Keane missing with a calf strain there was clearly going to be at least one change in the starting line-up. I’m sure the manager contemplated starting Wes Hoolihan just behind Shane Long, but he has opted to go for a more orthodox 4-4-2 formation with Conor Sammon partnering Shane. I find it amusing when fans sometimes see a 4-3-3/4-5-1 formation as being negative and not as attacking as a more traditional 4-4-2. I actually think the former can be a much more attacking option if done right. It also enables you to have an extra man in midfield so you invariably have more possession. Instead of having two forwards you potentially have three if your wingers push right on. Overall I just think it’s a more flexible option. Having said all that, I’m sure we will see Wes on the pitch at some stage tonight. I also wouldn’t bet against a certain Kevin Doyle playing a part and, much like McCarthy on Friday, he may well produce something special and end this international week as the hero.
