Morrison backs Ireland for Euro spot

Clinton Morrison has backed the Republic of Ireland to book a ticket to Euro 2016 in France.

The former Republic of Ireland international believes home advantage against Poland and Scotland in 2015 could be decisive.

“We have to win our home games,” Morrison said. “Poland is a big game, if we can take three points off Poland and with Scotland coming in June, I think we’ll be set up nicely. ”

Morrison was speaking on Goals On Sunday where he was joined by another former Ireland international in Keith Andrews. The midfielder said Ireland’s group was a tight one and spoke of his disappointment in the display at Celtic Park in November when the O’Neill’s men were beaten 1-0 by Scotland.

“I went to the game against Scotland in Glasgow, that was a huge game and I thought we let ourselves down a little bit,” Andrews said. “We’ve got them in June in Dublin and that’s going to be a real pivotal one. It’s very delicately poised.”

Morrison scored nine times in 36 appearances for Ireland between 2001 and 2006 and was part of the squad for the 2002 World Cup. Yet his Ireland career almost never happened.

“I nearly didn’t play for Ireland,” he recalled yesterday. “My agent had sorted out a deal to meet Mick McCarthy and we were an hour late for the meeting. It was kind of my fault, there was a bit of traffic and when we went in there he was just about to go. “I thought, ‘here we go, he’s about to have a go at me’ but he didn’t say nothing. He went to my agent and said, ‘it’s your fault, I arranged the meeting with you and you’re late’. I just sat there. Playing for Ireland was the best decision I made.”

Then as now, Roy Keane was the dominant voice in Irish soccer. Morrison, now at League Two outfit Exeter City, got on well with the current assistant manager although there was the odd flashpoint.

“He played how he trained. He set examples. He has his demons, he can lose it now and again,” Morrison said.

“I remember one game we played he had a go at me. He gave a ball to me and I didn’t quite get there. I said, ‘the ball was too short so shut up Roy’.

“He looked at me with that growl and all the lads thought, ‘here we go’. So he comes over to me at half-time and I’m ready for him to have a right pop off me. But he’s like, ‘you’re alright mate, I agree with you’. I was scared.”

While dodgy time-keeping nearly cost Morrison his Ireland career, Andrews feared his time for a call-up had past, given he was 28 when he finally made his international debut.

He recalled: “It came a bit late for me, I had to be patient. I had just gone 28, so it was obviously a lot older than the norm. I thought my time had gone and I think the time at MK Dons, got the move to Blackburn — if it didn’t happen then, it was never going to happen. It was then or never really.”

It was a pretty uneventful weekend for the Irish in Britain. Michael Harriman, on loan at Luton from QPR, was on the scoresheet on Saturday but the Hatters crashed out of the FA Cup after a 2-1 defeat to Cambridge.

In League Two, Ireland U21 Rhys Murphy scored the only goal as Dagenham & Redbridge beat bury 1-0 to climb out of the relegation zone.

In the Scottish Championship, Jon Daly was on the mark as Rangers beat Dumbarton 3-1.

In the Scottish Premiership yesterday, Adam Rooney scored twice as leaders Aberdeen beat Motherwell 2-0 to move four points clear.