‘We are capable, but talk is cheap’

WITH two games left and no wriggle room remaining, the time to stand up and be counted has arrived for the Republic of Ireland, as Kenny Cunningham acknowledged on the eve of this evening’s match against Cyprus.

"We've put ourselves in a difficult position," the Irish captain admitted yesterday. "We are playing catch up, but it's still there for us. We need six points from two games. We are capable of it, but talk is cheap. We will have to go out and prove it.

"We have given it our best so far, although the quality of our football at times has been below what we would expect of ourselves. That's frustrated the players and that's what drives us on because we know we are capable of showing a little bit more than we have so far.

"Now it's about being focused on this game. That's all you can do. We are prepared as well as we can be. There's a good spirit among the players and a real determination to put things right."

With tonight's game having taken on make-or-break proportions for the Irish, Cunningham believes it's a test of character his team won't fail.

"There's a bit of apprehension because we know what we have to do," he said.

"That apprehension or fear can consume you before you take to the pitch, or you get the opposite reaction and it can bring the very best out in people, and hopefully that will be the case."

Cunningham maintained that all the attention on Brian Kerr's position had not distracted the players. "We've not really spoken about it," he claimed.

Seated beside his manager at yesterday's tense press conference, the Birmingham City defender went on: "Any international or club manager has to deal with speculation on a week-to-week basis. It comes pretty much as part of the job. Brian accepts his responsibilities. He knows what's at stake.

"Players are quite selfish creatures in moments like this. They look pretty much to themselves and to the opportunity of playing in a World Cup. That's what drives them on. They want a taste of it. They are not too concerned about what's going on at the periphery."

Asked about his own perspective on the manager, Cunningham said: "Brian has the respect of every player. That's without question. I shouldn't even have to say it. We've all been impressed by his determination and his passion for the team, and what he wants the country to do, which is be at next year's World Cup.

As captain, Cunningham doesn't think he will need to say much to motivate the players before they leave their dressing room in the GSP Stadium.

"We know what we need to produce, the type of performance, the qualities we need to show. They are going to start off with a high tempo, being the home team, and we are going to have to stand up to that. At some stage we are going to have to wrest the initiative from them, dictate the rhythm of the game, be brave, get on the football, be positive and look to feed our forward players because we have players capable of winning matches.

"We need to create opportunities and when they arrive we need to be clinical. And hopefully we will get the result we want."