Bobby Robson: We are all disappointed.

BOBBY ROBSON last night launched a spirited if wholly unconvincing defence of under-fire Republic of Ireland manager Steve Staunton and FAI chief executive John Delaney.

As the firestorm of criticism intensified following Ireland’s 2-1 victory over Group D minnows, San Marino, the Republic’s international consultant insisted the side can still qualify for the Euro 2008 finals.

Robson said: “We did not want to win 2-1. We are in a bit of a dogfight now but the message is that we won — not convincingly — but we won.” He stressed that the side were not complacent and are deeply upset by the failure to match Germany and the Czech Republic, who scored 13 and seven goals respectively against the tiny state.