It’s time for new heroes to stand up for Boys in Green
Complete the context and it makes the result all the more extraordinary. Croatia had won five of their previous six games and drawn away to the fancied Belgians. Then came Scotland with players drawn from the Hull Citys and Wigan Athletics of this world and they went and snatched a win, thanks to Norwich City’s Robert Snodgrass strike.
It’s a result that sprang to mind yesterday with the announcement by Martin O’Neill of a similarly modest squad for the approaching friendly against Oman and, more pointedly, the opening qualifying fixture for Euro 2016 against Georgia in Tbilisi. In fact, it all made the task facing the Republic of Ireland manager very real indeed.
Scotland will be among the opponents to follow. The clash between the sides at Celtic Park in Glasgow this November must be one of the most eagerly awaited qualifiers the national team is ever likely to play, given the historical ties that bind that city and the Parkhead club with this island, and the Scots’ recent upswing in fortunes lend reason for both hope and trepidation.
The Tartan Army’s chances of qualifying for this summer’s World Cup were already beaten back by the time Gordon Strachan took over from Craig Levein in the wake of disastrous opening skirmishes in their group. But the wee winger of old, after two more defeats, then went and masterminded three wins from four, with Croatia done in, again, this time at Hampden, and another three points secured in Montenegro.
By the time their campaign was over, hope had been restored among the Scottish football fraternity. Supporters and journalists alike found themselves contemplating what might have been had Strachan been overseeing affairs earlier. Players too, no doubt, although Germany in Dortmund on September 7 will provide the sternest possible stress test of any progress they may have made.
O’Neill and Ireland face Georgia that same night, bringing to an end the almost interminable wait for a competitive fixture since the Derry man first got his hands on this crop of players back in November, when Latvia were passive participants in what turned out to be a facile and misleading 3-0 victory at the Aviva Stadium. It remains the side’s only win in seven attempts under the new management and the identities of the 36 players revealed by O’Neill in Abbotstown yesterday — familiar faces all — will have done little to reassure supporters that an Irish team may take part in the finals in France in 2016, even if there is now scope for three teams to make it through instead of two.
The onset of this latest campaign bears uncomfortable similarities to the ultimately disastrous attempt to book a passage to Brazil. Two years ago, Ireland took their first steps on the back of the recent retirement of Damien Duff, This time it is Richard Dunne. Back then, it was a tricky trip to Kazakhstan, now Eastern Europe beckons again. What we would give now for another lucky 2-1 win.
With trips to Germany and Scotland also front-loaded into the schedule, there is a danger it could all be over before it really begins. The loss of Dunne, following on from the disappearances in 2012 of Duff and Shay Given, leave this Irish side lighter than ever on star power and looking on from afar with relief at US-based 34-year old Robbie Keane, whose status as Mr Irreplaceable has only been solidified this week.
First, there was the sight of Shane Long, whose lack of a killer instinct has been witnessed on international duty time and again, missing a sitter for Southampton against Liverpool last weekend. Then there was the news and footage of Keane scoring one and making the winner for LA Galaxy against Colorado Rapids. Pray for that man’s fitness this next two years.
For all his detractors, Keane delivers time after time for Ireland. The same has never been said about Long or Seamus Coleman and James McCarthy, and it is chiefly that trio to which O’Neill, Roy Keane and Ireland’s fans will look to to provide renewed impetus to challenge for qualification and beyond.
All three have their champions at club level, and rightly so, but the chasm left by the old guard needs to be filled and those three and others besides have yet to prove they can manage it on the international scene. Long is 27 now and has cost millions in combined transfer fees; Coleman is 25 and the best right-back in the Premier League. McCarthy is 23 but has eight years of professional football under his belt. Glimpses of class and potential are no longer enough. If those guys don’t stand up, then the identity of those in the dugout, hired amid such fanfare, won’t matter a jot.
Email: brendan.obrien@examiner.ie Twitter: @Rackob
