Longy joins the Irish roll of honour
It’s been a good week for Irish football — we gave a very good account of ourselves against England at Wembley, and the sight of Richard Dunne out on the training pitch with the lads for the first time since the Euros was a huge bonus.
It’s been a very tough year for Richard. He is an absolute colossus for us and has played through the pain barrier countless times over the years, but this injury has proved to be a very frustrating one. I sincerely hope that, for both his and the team’s sake, he keeps progressing well because we need him. And it would be lovely if, as has been mentioned in the build-up, he gets to make his long-awaited comeback in tomorrow’s game against Georgia.
Having been a young spectator at Lansdowne in 1995 when the occasion was ruined by mindless thugs, it was great to see proceedings flow the way they should at Wembley this week — respectful but competitive, both on the pitch and in the stands.
Because of that 18-yeargap between the two fixtures, I find it very sad to think a whole generation of Irish kids won’t have childhood memories of an Ireland v England game to reminisce about. I suppose I was spoilt by the Ireland team I grew up supporting, with players like McGrath, Whelan, Houghton and Quinn, to name but a few of my heroes.
Games between the two nations will always have an edge to them for obvious historical reasons, while the fact that England traditionally have the “better” players — with Ireland cast the role of the underdog — always gives us an even greater incentive. I do think it means more to us than them.
On Wednesday, we showed our usual spirit and desire but I thought we also looked very confident in possession at times.
Seamus Coleman set the tone when the ball was played back to him straight from the kick off. Wayne Rooney charged at him in his usual aggressive manner, but Seamus showed all the composure in the world when he feigned to play the ball down the wing but instead did a lovely Cruyff turn which left Rooney sliding off the pitch on his backside.
I thought the manager picked a very strong team with an obvious eye on the opposition’s strengths. For example, Jon Walters isn’t a right winger but he played a key role in nullifying Ashley Cole’s renowned forays into our half. This is a job he had done frequently at Stoke and it was vital for us at Wembley as, in the modern game, full backs can be as important as wingers when the opposition is attacking.
As a fellow midfielder, I’m open to people thinking I’m a little biased on this, but I have to say that James McCarthy was my man of the match on Wednesday. He is constantly improving and increasingly looking at ease at the highest level. The other night, I was probably most impressed with the work he did off the ball — especially his positional play and filling gaps to stop the ball being played through us, as well as his decision-making in when to close down the opposition at pace. James is maturing very nicely yet I know there’s still a lot more to come from him. It’s vital, therefore, that if he does leave Wigan in the summer he goes to the right club, with a manager who is going to continue to nurture his huge talent.
I sent Longy a text straight after the match saying he’s joined my list of legends to score against the old enemy — though I probably won’t be calling his name in celebration when I score in training, like I do with Houghton or Sheedy! Shane was always going to be a key player for us at Wembley because I know for a fact that, with his direct style of play, the top defenders in England don’t relish playing against him.
Another big player for us on Wednesday was David Forde. He produced some fine saves and was always trying to come for corners and free kicks to relieve the pressure on the back four. David has had a long old journey to get to be his country’s number one, which will only make his arrival now all the sweeter. He’s a top professional and deserves the plaudits he’s received this season.
In the end, I think a draw was a fair result on Wednesday, even though England were pressing hard and forcing us deep in the last 10 to 15 minutes. By contrast, tomorrow’s match against Georgia will be a different test of attitude as, let’s be frank, it’s stuck between two altogether more important and prestigious games. You don’t need anything to get you up for a match against England at Wembley or a qualifier at Lansdowne but a friendly against Georgia is bound to be another matter. Reading this, you might think that surely a player should be up for it no matter what the game and, while that’s true to a degree, we’re only human too. So, just ask yourself which game you were looking forward to watching most out of these three? I’m guessing Georgia wasn’t number one.
For that reason, I think it’s important that we start the match in a positive fashion and set a tempo to ensure it doesn’t turn into a testimonial-style affair. A bright start means the fans get more into the game, making for a better atmosphere. With all that in mind, I’d expect the manager will make changes to freshen things up, ever mindful of the fact that it would be good to keep momentum going ahead of the vital World Cup qualifier next week against the Faroe Islands.
