Who dares wins but patience the key

TRAWL through your memories of Ireland’s famous away days of the recent past and games like Copenhagen and Seville in ‘93 or Amsterdam and Lisbon in 2001 probably come somewhere near the top of the list.

Try to pick out our last standout away ‘win’ against a top-ranked nation, however, and you’ll have to go all the way back to 1987 when Mark Lawrenson found the Scottish net at Hampden Park.

Not that Ireland haven’t won a few on their travels since, mind. The Boys In Green have hit the road 25 times for a competitive qualifier in the last dozen years and brought back all the goods on ten of those occasions. Impressive, right? Well, just as with any analysis of Robbie Keane’s goals, Ireland’s list throws up alarmingly few of European soccer’s bigger fish.

Consider the scalps since ‘93: Northern Ireland, Estonia, Georgia, Estonia again, Andorra, Cyprus, Malta, Lithuania, Iceland and Lichtenstein.

On the surface, Israel would seem to fit in snugly with that sort of company, but Avraham Grant’s team are a far superior proposition and lie joint top of Group Four with Ireland, France and Switzerland on eight points.

A win in the Holy Land wouldn’t be a result to rival Hampden but it would certainly rank as one of Ireland’s most profitable and crucial days away from Dublin in living memory.

“We’re not the only team who have found it difficult going away from home in international football and winning games,” said captain Kenny Cunningham at Ramat Gan Stadium yesterday. “Teams make it very difficult for you and it’s very much a game of chess.

“The more times you go through those experiences, it helps you become better players. As Brian (Kerr) has suggested, we will have enough experience on the pitch to deal with that tomorrow night.”

Ireland may have to display the patience of Gary Kasparov himself tonight if the game unfolds along predicted lines. Israel would bite your hand off for a draw and will defend in numbers whenever Brian Kerr’s side threaten their goal.

Against the French in Paris, Israel’s ambition stretched no further than their own 18-yard line, but with 41,000 of their own supporters looking for something to shout about today, their sights are likely to have expanded somewhat in the meantime.

Switzerland were happy with a share of the booty back in November having drawn 2-2 but, either way, Cunningham is confident Ireland can cope.

“We know they like to hold the ball, they like to move it through midfield.

They won’t be launching too many balls. Likewise, we know that when we’re in possession they’re prepared to concede territory, almost to draw us on to them.

“The onus will be on us to provide that killer pass, that piece of individual skill from inside the box which will open them up. They’re good on the counter-attack as well but that’s the kind of cat and mouse game you have to be prepared for and which we have faced in the past.”

Ireland sides of the past have found defensively minded teams a tough nut to crack and it may fall to a single Damien Duff jink or a Robbie Keane swivel to make all the difference today.

“We have some outstanding players at this moment in time,” said Cunningham.

“We all know who they are. They’re players who can turn the game in an instant and have done already in their careers. That does give us confidence. We know that as long as we keep a clean sheet we have guys who can produce that piece of individual brilliance that can win you the game.

“We will have our difficult moments during the game but experience helps you to compose yourself and not become too flustered, to dig in and not to concede in those difficult moments in the game. When you go away from home and win it’s a huge confidence booster to the side.”

With France entertaining the Swiss in Paris today, the potential is there for one or two teams to stamp their authority on this group. With three home games and an excursion to the Faroe Islands to follow, Ireland are in a prime position to be one of them.

“It’s important just to focus on the game in hand,” countered the Irish captain. “I don’t think you can take an overall picture at this stage in time of the group. It’s only when the group is done and dusted that you can look back at what were the key moments.

“Certainly a win tomorrow would put us in a strong position but you could say the same for France and Switzerland. Every game is crucial. We’ve all dropped points so far.”

Dropping another two tomorrow should not be on the agenda.

Probable teams:

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Given; Carr, O’ Brien, Cunningham, O’Shea; Finnan, Keane, Kilbane, Duff; Morrison, Keane.

ISRAEL: Aouate, Afek, Ben-Haim, Gershon, Benado, Keisi, Nimni, Badeer, Tal, Benayoun, Balili

Referee: Valetin Ivanov (Russia).