‘God save our Keane’

THE actor Cesar Romero used to say that the most important thing in Hollywood was to be sincere – even if you have to fake it.

Robbie Keane had his critics long before he moved to Tinseltown but one thing nobody could ever accuse the Dubliner of was his bona fides when it came to representing his country. That much was apparent again this week.

Keane could have returned to Los Angeles after the first leg in Estonia — his manager Bruce Arena wanted him back early before next Sunday’s MLS final — but the Ireland captain was never going to pass on the armband and make for the airport.

“To lead this group of lads to this stage and hopefully get to the finals would be a great achievement,” he said on Monday. “Ireland means a lot to me. I turn up for every game and try my best every time. That’s the way I was brought up.”

It’s worth remembering the criticism he shipped for accepting Galaxy’s overtures. Some said it signalled the beginning of the end for his club career, more fretted that it would curb his appetite and his edge on the international scene.

Not the case.

Keane has never been more prolific in an Irish shirt than in 2011. He has found the net eight times in just ten games this calendar year. His previous best was six, which he managed twice, in 2002 and 2009.

He is still in the top ten of all-time Premier League marksmen, he is 25th on the list of top international goalscorers and he has captained his country more often than anyone else — and yet he has never been fully embraced by everyone.

Maybe it is his tendency to miss the odd sitter – like the sixth-minute shot he somehow turned around the wrong side of the post from inside the six-yard box last night. Or maybe it was his demeanour.

There was a time when that was easy to understand, a time when he was relentlessly chippy with the media. ‘I’m not bothered’ was his favoured response for years but it was a determination to do too much on the pitch that really infuriated.

Time and again he would float back into midfield to play the role of creator, his undisciplined kid-on-a-playground act stretching so far as to take throws as well, but Ireland were floundering at the time and maybe he felt obliged to do more than his bit.

He has matured since, on and off the pitch. Gone are the cart-wheel celebrations, Trapattoni’s insistence on a rigid formation has applied the manacles on his movements — in a good way — and he is more engaging in press conferences even if some old habits die hard.

He is two goals away from being the top scorer of all time in European Championship history but, when asked how he would feel if he achieved just such a milestone, his response was — you guessed it — ‘I’m not bothered’.

No doubt he would say much the same about those critics who continue to pick at his achievements in a green jersey and it was striking to hear some observers say he had contributed little in Tallinn aside from his two goals.

As if those weren’t sufficient in their own right, it should be noted that Keane was involved in the move for Keith Andrews’ opener, crossed the ball for Jonathan Walters’ goal and it was a foul on him by Andrei Stepanovs that earned the defender a red card.

Even Keane’s goal tally, which now stands at 53 in 113 appearances, has been dismissed down the years with the suspicion that he has racked up such an impressive record largely against the game’s minnows.

This argument was common currency a few years back and held more than a grain of truth when he failed to find the rigging against the game’s bigger names in the period after the 2002 World Cup and up to his equaliser against Italy in 2009.

It is hardly a coincidence such a run coincided with an era of collective disappointments for the team but it should be noted he still scored crucial goals in that spell when Ireland claimed wins by the narrowest of margins.

Let us not forget too, that he has registered against Yugoslavia, Turkey, Holland, Germany, Spain, Italy, France and Russia in competitive games during his 13-year international career. And, of course, Estonia.

“God save our Keane,” said one banner last night.