Postcard from Sydney where Ireland are unlikely to feature again in this World Cup

The realistic target following an opening defeat is second place in Group B, a scenario keeping them in Brisbane to likely meet England in the last-16.

Sat, 22 Jul, 2023 - 07:52

John Fallon, Sydney

Barring the combined miracle of six points and Australia dropping four, Ireland and Sydney are finished as a combo at this World Cup.

The realistic target following an opening defeat is second place in Group B, a scenario keeping them in Brisbane to likely meet England in the last-16.

But however short Ireland’s trip to New South Wales capital was – less than 72 hours – both left their mark on each other.

Droves of fans greeted their arrival at the airport on Wednesday morning and there was rounds of applause as the squad were noticed on their pre-match walk around Darling Harbour 14 hours later.

Two of the Dads, Gary McCabe and Shawn Brosnan, stand together for a chat in the sun that the natives tells us we should enjoy a glimpse of in this deepest winter period down this part of the world.

An estimated 30,000 Irish are living in the city and the majority wanted a ticket to embrace their patriotism.

Those were scarce but the noise generated at the 75,000-seater Stadium Australia venue 40 minutes outside of downtown Sydney underlined the takeover. Mystery surrounded the capacity reducing in the run-up to the game from 82,000 but the sight of five front rows all around getting killed off to facilitate advertising hoardings accounted for most.

Though the team only landed from their training base on the eve of the match, a decision rightly questioned when traffic caused delays to training, the local Consulate have maximising the exposure of a sporting team capturing local and global audiences.

Their staging, along with Tourism Ireland, of a Women in Sport reception at the city’s botanical gardens attracted a mixed crowd of those in tour and the leading business people of the City. One was Ray Wilson, part-owner of Shamrock Rovers, the fan made good in the business world upon emigrating to Australia.

He used some of that wealth to fund what has been re-established as Ireland’s powerhouse and while he was understandably disappointed with the midweek Champions League exit, his larger vision of a club whose strength lays in their foundations was noticeable.

The FAI too were there in force, their speech delivered by President Gerry McAnaney. What’s rare is wonderful and the feat of qualification afforded them the scope to invite key backers, Sky and Cadbury, to join them for the momentous occasion.

At their recent members General Assembly meeting, FAI officials were asked to list out every person travelling on the trip. Conscious of historical excesses, McAnaney was the only board member covered by the FAI. Any of the others wishing to travel had to pay their own way.

The Mercantile Hotel and Pub in the Rocks area of the city, close to the stunning Opera House, became the unofficial meeting spot for a section of the estimated 4,000 fans who'd travelled over. Managed by James ‘Toffee’ Dunne – son of former Cork City Chairman Terry Dunne – the venue managed a steady stream before, during and after the game, an ideal epicentre for the travelling TV crews to relay footage back home.

Another popular magnet in the Central Business District was PJ O’Brien’s, where the sight of Aoife Mannion accompanied by her parents from Galway and Mayo, prompted cheers and hunts for selfies.

The injured, newly-declared Irish defender was happy to oblige on the day her contract extension at Manchester United was confirmed. She was able to remain upbeat too, despite her World Cup dream perishing in recent weeks due to a knee injury.

There were a few of the current squad carrying knocks returning to Brisbane on Friday morning. It’s a short stopover ‘til they take a flight – a five and half hour one – to Perth on Sunday ahead of facing Canada on Wednesday.

Time can’t stand still on this odyssey and another city awaits to greet the debutants.