Maltese minnows next up, Ireland 90 minutes from another crisis 

The Boys in Green were branded 'pathetic' in their defeat to Norway this week. 

SCRUTINY: Ireland manager Stephen Kenny after the defeat to Norway at the Aviva Stadium. Picture: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

33 years apart, could the archipelago of Malta, where Jack Charlton broke new ground as Ireland boss by ending the World Cup drought, mark the breaking-up point for the latest, Stephen Kenny?

Scrutiny is the guaranteed constant when holding the biggest job in Irish sport but such has been the incumbent’s dismal record that his 30th match at the helm, against a Mediterranean minnow, constitutes 90 minutes from another crisis.