It’s not black and white for Irish team

AS a race, we tend to deal in extremes. We are either up in the clouds or down in the dumps. A bit like Cian O’Connor and the unfortunate Waterford Crystal.

One minute an Olympic gold medal and, in the blink of an eye, a battle for credibility. Was it ever otherwise?

Assessments of the merits of the Irish team followed a similar pattern after the latest World Cup flurry. There were many who lionised the team after drawing with France in Paris. Some berated them for not scoring a hatful of goals against the Faroe Islands.