Do You Remember The First Time?

A treasured memory from my childhood seemed a little further away today when I heard of the untimely passing of Tony Grealish, a stalwart member of the Irish team that was so cruelly robbed of qualification for Espana '82. Ireland finished 3rd on goal difference in a group that contained two of the eventual semi-finalists in Belgium and France as well as Holland, with only 2 points separating the top 4 teams.

Add to this the fact that Ireland had perfectly good goals disallowed away to both France and Belgium and that the Belgium winner in Brussels came from a free won by a dive in addition to a clear foul on the goalkeeper, I'm sure that being deprived of the chance to play on the biggest stage in world football in that fashion would have rankled with such a genuinely honest and committed player as Grealish was.

But despite the fact that Grealish had a superb personal qualifying campaign in central midfield alongside Liam Brady, scoring in the home games against Belgium and Cyprus, that's not what I really remember him most for.

They say you never forget your first, your first kiss, your first love etc.  Well, Tony Grealish was the player who scored the first goal I ever witnessed Ireland score in the flesh which kick-started the love affair I've had with the Boys In Green ever since.

It was only a mickey mouse friendly against the USA in October 1979 that's better remembered these days for the fact that Chris Hughton made his debut and thus became the first black player to represent us. But, although I'd been brought to Croke Park on a number of occasions to watch Heffo's army as they cut a swathe through the best that the GAA could produce, this was the first time to be brought to my Mecca, the home of Irish football, Dalymount Park.

Despite being young enough to spend most of the game on my Da's shoulders, I can still remember it as if it was yesterday.  I can remember making our way up the Connaught Street end and finding a spot at the back under the famous King crisps sign which would be familiar to anyone who watched any matches on tv back then and which seemed gigantic to me.

I can remember that sinking feeling that I've gotten so used to over the years as Ireland went behind early on against a country that were minnows in football terms back them.  I can remember the annoyance of my Dad and his mates as Ireland huffed and puffed but couldn't get back into the game and the good-natured resignation as they said "here we go again".  And I remember the curses that filled the air when the USA went 2-0 up not long after the hour mark.

But then it happened.  I can't recall much of the build-up as it happened so quick as Ireland attacked pretty much straight from the restart but the ball somehow made it's way to Tony Grealish and next thing it hit the net.  Suddenly I was bouncing up and down with my Dad as the atmosphere changed in the space of a minute from one of embarrassment to a feeling that the game was there for the taking.

Sure enough, once Ireland had their tails up the USA crumbled and substitute Don Given equalised within a couple of minutes before another sub, John Anderson hit the winner two minutes after that.   From 2-0 down on 63 minutes, Ireland were 3-2 up after 68 with the other two goals coming within 4 minutes of Grealish putting us back in the game! I can remember thinking that if every football match was like this I'd like my Dad to bring me more often!

From there on I always took an interest in his career at club level as a boy and remember rooting for him in the 1983 Cup Final as he led Brighton out as captain v Man Utd due to Steve Foster's absence wearing Foster's trademark headband as a mark of solidarity with his suspended teammate.  There were numerous Irish players playing that day with three and a sub for Brighton and two and a sub for Man Utd but the fact that an Irish player might actually lift the FA Cup really caught my interest.

And he came so close in the last minute with that famous 'and Smith must score!' line roared by the commentator before Gordon Smith somehow contrived not to and instead fluffed his shot straight at Gary Bailey.  Although Grealish wasn't captain in the replay with Foster's return, I can still recall how gutted he looked going up to collect his losers medal as Man Utd ran out easy winners. And still recall how gutted I felt for him myself.

At international level, I saw him play many more times in the early '80s as my Dad often brought me again untill I got old enough to start heading in with my own mates around the same time as the Jack Charlton reign began. Unfortunately, Grealish was one of only a couple of players from the Hand era who never got a chance under Jack as a move to Man City didn't work out and he dropped down through the leagues.  In fairness we had an abundance of players who could play in his position with the great Paul McGrath often having to be accommodated there due to the quality we had at centre half but I was always sorry that he got stuck on 45 caps when 50 was considered a huge achievement back then.

By the time we started qualifying for the tournaments that he was cheated out of appearing in in 1982, he was seeing out his career with Rotherham and Wallsall but he was never forgotten by a certain vintage of supporter who grew up admiring his tenacity and never say die attitude, not to mention his trademark beard!  He also represented the 2nd generation fans with pride as, despite his London accent, you only had to look at him to know he was Irish through and through even before finding out that he played hurling and Gaelic football as a child and actually represented London in the All Ireland in his youth.  I have no doubt that he brought his battling qualities to the fore in the fight with his illness but unfortunately this was one fight he just couldn't win.  

Since that day back all of 34 years ago I've travelled far and wide supporting the Irish team and have long lost count of the amount of home games I've been to or the amount of goals I've seen us score. Hopefully I'll see many more.  But no matter how many I've seen or how many more I will in the future there'll only ever be one first.

Rest in peace, Tony Grealish.  Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.

The Last Cut is the Deepest

The thing that hurt most about this particular cut was that it was entirely self inflicted. While the concession of late goals from winning positions by our national team is not something that has arrived with Trap (think Macedonia under McCarthy, Israel under Kerr, Slovakia under Staunton), most of those turnarounds have come on the road and it was the manner in which we ceded the initiative and the inevitability of what transpired that was most galling. Make no mistake, those 2 points were lost last night by the managers stubbornness and ego, nothing more. While there were positives to be taken from the last weeks work, a 4 point haul was what the players deserved for their efforts but when help was needed from the sideline late on it wasn't forthcoming.

Again, the wisdom of naming the team 24 hours in advance has to be questioned. For right or wrong the selection of Conor Sammon up front for his first competitive cap was always going to be controversial and the resultant hoo ha in the media only served to increase pressure on the lad to perform. I appreciate that at 74 years of age Il Trap has his habits that he's not going to change now but I fail to see the benefit of giving the media an angle to run with. By all means let the players know the team but what advantage is gained from making it public, regardless of whether you think that it's a help to the opposition or not? Despite this and despite my pre match prediction that the game would end in a draw given our history of following up points gained away from home by dropping points at home I had my usual sense of pre match anticipation all day and my itchy feet finally got the better of me at 4.30 when I slipped out of work and made my way to meet the usual suspects in the Beggars Bush for some pre match lubrication. Although the scene on the walk down the canal through the snow was more reminiscent of a Christmas card than an Easter fixture the feel good factor from Fridays result was tangible and there was a great atmosphere around the Ballsbridge area as both sets of supported mixed freely swapping scarfs and exchanging chants. Word had filtered through of the commendable efforts of the You Boys in Green supporters group who, having heard of an Austrian couple who been pickpocketed the previous day and had their wallets and match tickets stolen, had arranged free tickets via the FAI and organised a collection to reimburse the money stolen with an excess being donated to charity. A number of Austrian fans mentioned this classy gesture which once again goes to show why we're the best supporters in the world and no doubt this contributed to the general air of bonhomie between the two sets of fans pre match.

With all the troops gathered we set off to the ground around 7.20 and instead of the usual mad rush actually made it into the ground comfortably for the national anthems and a lovely tribute to the late Con Martin, scorer of Ireland's first goal in that famous 2-0 victory v England in 1949 when we became the first foreign team to beat them on their home turf. Funnily enough I was actually wearing a replica of the shirt the team wore that day which provided a lot more warmth than todays kits would have! Having positioned ourselves on the far right of the Singing Section we started getting behind the team. I thought we made a decent start and, despite Austria having the first strike on goal from a free that went safely past the post, had the better of the early exchanges with Long being incorrectly called back for offside while going through on goal and McClean winning the first corners of the game. However, just as the game was settling down, disaster struck. Reminiscent of the error he made in the Premier League a few weeks ago against Man City and despite having plenty of time and options to clear the ball Ciaran Clark dawdled on it trying to beat two attackers, was dispossessed and before we got catch our breath the ball had been squared across the box to Harnick who gave Forde no chance. It was an absolute howler from Clark and there really is no excuse especially having been caught doing similar a matter of weeks ago. He needs to cut that out of his game, I have big hopes for him as a player for the future but you'd hope that his decision making improves with age.

Given how Ireland have capitulated after going behind in recent games it was encouraging to see the response here though. Ireland quickly regrouped and upped the tempo and began putting the Austrian goal under pressure with McClean and Long looking particularly lively. Having being denied a certain corner when Long played the ball out off his marker we regained possession and started causing then some problems at the back. Every time they cleared the ball was coming back and eventually Long got onto a ball over the top from Glen Whelan and despite looking short on options at the byline held the ball up till Pogatetz dived in with as reckless a challenge as anyone would have been seen all week. A stonewall penalty and despite having missed 3 in the league this season Jon Walters stepped up and buried it in the right hand corner! One all and game on. The atmosphere upped a notch and at this stage was probably the best it's been in the new Lansdowne bar the celebratory vibe of the deal rubber play off 2nd leg v Estonia. Buoyed by getting back on terms so quickly and feeding off the crowd Ireland really got into the ascendency with an audacious back heel from Shane Long hitting the inside of the post and somehow rebounding to safety. At this stage Sammon was winning his share of headers and rather than settle for going in level at half time we kept up the pressure and when Whelan swung in another corner that had been won by McClean in stoppage time, Jon Walters did superbly under pressure to get his head to it and guide it into the corner! Lansdowne erupted and there was a real sense of optimism returning with the debacle against Garment retreating further into the memory. Austria barely had time to kick off before the ref blew for half time.

So far so good and it was great to see the team come back from a self inflicted wound and take the game to the opposition in the manner they did. The half time chat was all about whether we'd start the second half in a similar manner or whether we'd retreat so there was a palpable sense of relief as we started aggressively again and McClean nearly capped off what had been a very impressive display with a free kick that hit the side netting. Little did we know misguided that relief was. While Austria gradually got a foothold in the game, it was ebbing and flowing as any match does and we responded well by having another spell of pressure resulting in a series of corners around the 70 minute mark. One of these nearly resulted in the third goal we craved which would surely have wrapped the game up when an Austrian defender under pressure from Sammon headed straight at his own goal only for the Austrian keeper to pull off an amazing save. The next corner also resulted in a decent chance for Marc Wilson who headed just wide and you could clearly see from our position behind the goal in the South Stand how rattled and how relieved to only be a goal down the Austrians were. At that stage they were there for the taking, all it needed was to use the bench. Sammon had run his legs to stumps by then and had he been taken off at thst stage would have been given an ovation for his work rate and endeavour. I think it was tailor made for Wes Hoolahan (indeed, I'd have started him) but if Trap didn't trust him to do the required job then Kevin Doyle was the obvious change to make. Instead it seemed like once we didn't score from that spell of pressure we decided to take what we had.  St Ledger replaced an injured Clark and we sat further and further back inviting the opposition on to us. Into the last 10 minutes and we were holding firm but again we were crying out for a change. Bizarrely, Long, who looked our freshest player up front and had had an excellent game gets replaced by Green with Walters moving up front alongside Sammon. Both players were looking leggy by then and when the ball was coming up field it wasn't sticking. With another sub in hand surely now was the time to use it. But no, rather than twisting Trap decided to stick as we got pinned back time and again. The time was moving tortuously slowly by then but when the board came up showing a fair 3 minutes I started to think we might get away with it. Indeed, in the first minute of stoppage time we won a free in the corner in their half. Surely then was the time to use the last sub, calm things down and play the ball into the corner to run down the clock. No, instead a rushed free kick saw Walters lose possession and we were back under the cosh. There was a horrible sense of inevitability as we cleared a couple of half chances but couldn't relieve the pressure. Sure enough as the game got close to the final minute of stoppage time and as we roared our defence on Albala takes a final pot shot that clips off an attempted block from St Ledger to loop into the net giving Forde no chance. The sense of deflation was as sharp and quick as someone bursting a balloon. The atmosphere was killed stone dead in a split second.

The second thing that hurts so much is that the feeling was oh so familiar. Regardless of the manager, over the years we never seem to have the minerals required to see the job out against our rivals in the qualifiers. We've conceded goals in the last minute against Croatia and Macedonia in Euro 2000. Israel in WC 2006, Slovakia and Wales in Euro 2008 and Italy in WC 2010. Goals in the last ten minutes v Turkey, Holland and Switzerland in the same time period. Even under Charlton during our 'glory years' we blew Eruo 92 qualification by conceding 2 late goals away to Poland and we were rarely able to win the home games against our nearest rivals, drew with Belgium and Scotland in 88, drew with England and Poland in 92, drew with Denmark and lost to Spain in 94, drew with Northern Ireland and lost to Austria in 96. Under McCarthy more of the same, drew with Romania, Iceland and Belgium in 98, drew with Turkey in 00, drew with Portugal in 02 and lost to Switzerland in the aftermath of Saipan before he resigned. Brian Kerr comes in and we draw with Russia in the 04 campaign and drew with France and Switzerland in 06. Stan comes in and we draw with Czech Republic, Cyprus and Germany in 08. And since Trap came we've drawn with Italy, Bulgaria and Montenegro and lost to France in the 2010 series and drew with Slovakia and lost to Russia in Euro 201 2. This is no new phenomenon but the chance was there to buck the trend last night. For a manager of his experience not to take advantage of the bench in the last 5 minutes or even in stoppage time was criminal. I feel that he wanted to prove a point about Sammon which is whey he left him on when he'd clearly run himself into the ground and needed to be replaced by fresh legs. A chance to say 'Trap knows best'. Well, it's rebounded on him big time and it's us, the supporters, who are feeling it more keenly then anyone.

So, in the cold light of day, where does this leave us? I don't think that changing the manager is viable at this point, I don't believe the FAI have the money to pay him off and, despite the nature of the draw last night, barring the aberration against Germany, the campaign is panning out like most of the campaigns have the last 30 years, including our successful ones. We've generally beaten the minnows under Trap and I don't see that changing. Austria and Sweden have to play each other twice so someone will drop points there, 2 draws would be the best outcome. We haven't lost an away qualifier under Trap but I think we'll need to turn that into a win in the return v Austria and we'll need to beat Sweden at home. Do that and we have a chance. It's possible but the fact that goal difference rather than head to head determines the position if teams are level on points puts us at a distinct disadvantage. One things for certain, any wriggle room we had disappeared with that flash of David Alaba's boot at 9.36 last night.

Stockholm Syndrome

I don't think there's any Irish fan out there who can be unhappy with what we saw in the Friends Arena in Stockholm last night.  Right across the team people performed and there was a solidity that hasn't been witnessed in a long time, possibly since Paris in 2009.

After the sort of chaotic build up that seems to have become the norm under Trapattoni, he seems to have stumbled upon the most effective team he could have put out as a result of Glen Whelan's injury.  Although you had to feel for Robbie Brady, Walters has played on the right regularly enough through his career and given the relative inexperience of the team in competitive games it was an understandable decision.  That said, it brings into focus the pure folly of Trap's habit of announcing the team the day before the game.  Had the team that started the game simply been announced an hour before kick off it wouldn't have been questioned.  Although Paul Green's selection undoubtedly would have raised eyebrows in some quarters, with Whelan's injury it was the logical choice in the absence of David Myler from the squad and Darron Gibson's continued self exile.  Unfortunately by naming the team 24 hours previously, Green's selection ahead of James McCarthy became an issue as did the question of whether Brady would start or not.  Personally, I don't think that Trapattoni was questioning Brady's mental strength, when he talks about 'mentality' he means the focus to adhere to the all important system the manager puts so much faith in.  There was nothing wrong with wanting to work on that at the final training session and ensure he was ready but putting it in the public domain was pointless and only led to more confusion and controversy.  The fact that Trap has been using language like that since day one is irrelevant now that the knives are out and elements of the media are ready to jump on any vague statements rather than try and make sense of them.  In fairness, I don't think that his worries about Brady fitting into the system was the reason why he made the change, more that, as stated above the starting 11 had become more inexperienced with McCarthy's inclusion.

Onto the game itself and the first 20 minutes really were superb from Ireland.  Neat passing, good build up play with a number of corners forced before Sweden got into the game at all ending with a half chance on the far post for Walters.  One great chance then came to Robbie Keane who unfortunately took an air shot on the sort of chance we've seen him instinctively put away on many occasions over the years.  You'd have to question whether playing in the MLS gives the level of sharpness required to bury chances like that.  That aside, I though Robbie had a decent game before making way for Wes Hoolahan in what may be a taster of things to come. Shane Long then generated a great chance for himself before snatching at his shot an ballooning it over the bar.  Sweden began to come into the game but the back 4 all acquitted themselves very well with Seamus Coleman and Marc Wilson also getting forward very well. I was concerned about Davy Forde's selection in goal but he played superbly and was up there for man of the match for me.  He was solid when he came under a pressure before half time and we went in at nil all relatively untroubled and having shaded the first half.

More of the same was required for the second half and I was delighted to see us begin it in the same vein as the first with the midfield again imposing themselves very well.  Although Green hit a few wayward passes, he covered the ground very well and broke up play far better than most expected.  His discipline also gave McCarthy the chance to impose himself on the game in a manner that augers very well for the future.  While his final ball in the last third on occasion let him down (one in particular when James McClean was free on his right), his general play and distribution elsewhere on the pitch was excellent.  He has to play on Tuesday regardless of Whelan's fitness and I'd also stick with Green as I feel he's more mobile than Whelan, particularly if Whelan is carrying a knock.

When we did come under pressure Forde again was more than equal to the task and pulled out some top drawer saves as well as dominating his area in a manner that I haven't seen in a long time.  While not putting Forde in the same class, even Shay at his best wasn't the sort of keeper to come and claim corners in the way that Forde's extra height enables him to do and seeing the ball stick to his gloves under pressure was very encouraging.  It was also good to see Trap make positive subs as the game wound down.  I'd like to see Hoolahan get more game time and it may be time to think of starting him and holding Keane in reserve to come on in the last half hour of games where his fresh legs may be useful against tiring defences.  I don't think that's very likely though given the managers history and I do still believe that Keane is our most natural finisher and most likely source of goals.  There's still a place for him in this set up and his experience is invaluable.

So onward to Tuesday now with renewed optimism. More of the same with a sharper cutting edge required. Same starting 11 with Hoolahan given more of a run after Robbie busts a gut for an hour will do for me

COYBIG!!!!

Six of the worst……

 

Well, where do you start after that debacle? 33 years since I attended my first game and I’ve never walked out of Lansdowne, Dalymount, Tolka, the RDS or any away stadium as chastened and humiliated by a performance as that. Despite the injuries, retirements and gulf in class there is no excuse for the lack of fight shown by the bulk of the team last night.

I never expected anything other than a defeat last night but after leaving work early and meeting the usual home game crew and a few of the lads we go on the way trips with for some pre game refreshment that heady mix of Guinness and optimism took hold. By the time we got into the ground just in time for the anthems and a moving minutes applause for James Nolan, the lad who tragically lost his life in Poland, the talk was of possibly being able to hold on for a draw and of the fact that most of the critics had got the changes they were shouting for albeit off the back of a huge injury list coupled with the post Euro retirements. The team wasn’t that different than I’d have chosen with Wilson for Ward and Long for Cox with Walters moving out wide the only changes I’d have made. There was an argument for Clark instead of O’Dea at the back but it was never likely given that he’s only just been reintegrated into the squad and to be fair to O’Dea, he’d never left Ireland down before last nights game. Although I’d have started with Long the clamour for his inclusion by elements of the media was over the top for me, he has two league goals so far this season compared to Walters one and has been subbed or started on the bench in a number of games, this isn’t a player who’s been banging goals in week in week out. As it was, Walters was one of the only players to emerge with any credit last night and Long obviously let his frustration get the better of him and picked up a needless booking that may cost him game time later in the campaign.

Once the game kicked off I thought we started reasonably well for the first 20 minutes or so and even created a half chance that Andrews snatched at with his right foot when he should have hit it with his left. But the longer the game went on the more Germany started dominating possession and the denial of an absolute stonewall penalty when O’Shea was caught dawdling in the box and hauled down Reus seemed to spark them into upping the tempo further. Funny enough, when they didn’t get that decision I actually thought that maybe this might be one of those days when we get the rub of the green. After all, in one of our most famous victories against Holland in 2001 they absolutely battered us for the first half before we managed to get a foothold in the game. Could it happen again? Obviously not.

I don’t know if the sense of injustice that Reus felt for getting booked for diving when a red for O’Shea and a pen would have been a fairer outcome made him raise his game but he was unplayable the rest of the half and the relief we felt in getting that decision soon evaporated when McGeady lost him and he was quickest to react to a ricochet off Coleman’s knee before cracking the ball in off the crossbar. One down and my hope that we could make it to half time at only one down was forlorn as within seven minutes the same player slotted home his second. Game over.

The second half was like a ritual slaughter and a lesson is possession football. We just couldn’t get the ball off them and the odd occasion we did couldn’t keep it. The third soon followed when O’Dea was badly caught and Ozil got the penalty they should have had in the first half. Simple fact, whatever about Robbie Keane playing the MLS at the end of his career, for a player of O’Dea’s age it’s not a good enough standard to play in and hope to be up to speed at international level. Klose then finished neatly for the fourth and a poor clearance from O’Shea led to the fifth from Kross before the same player struck the final nail in the coffin and made it six with Ireland in total disarray. Keogh’s consolation at the death only served to dampen the cacophony of boos that seemed to be building as most of the remaining crowd were still ironically applauding the goal when the full time whistle went.

So where do we go from here. Trap doesn’t seem in any mood to go anywhere and the budget isn’t there for the FAI to pay him off. What are the alternatives? McCarthy carries baggage with a section of the support and looks to be heading for Bolton. Funny to see Dunphy cheerleading for his appointment last night given how vitriolic he was in calling for his head 10 years ago. Coyle may well be heading back to Burnley. Whatever about paying Trap off the FAI certainly don’t have the cash to buy out someone’s contract. And could another manager do much more with what are probably the poorest group of players we’ve had in a generation. Would the likes of Hoolahan or Clark have made any difference? And should we win on Tuesday we’ll have 6 points from 3 games which is the most anyone would have expected if we’re being honest. Austria being held by Kazakhstan last night out our win over there in a different light and means we’ve got 2 points in hand on them given their previous defeat to Germany. Although the fact that Sweden struggled and needed 2 late goals to beat the Faroes is a worry. Tuesday’s game in now a must win, lose or draw and Trap’s position becomes untenable. The players that people had been calling for let themselves down last night and need to step up. And the manager has to stop pushing square pegs into round holes. Win and 2nd place is still on despite the abysmal recent performances. Either way something has to change.

Euro 2012 - Day 13. Unlucky for some.

So that's it. After all the planning, organising and anticipation it came down to 9 days and 3 games in which we just didn't perform. Feeling pretty disappointed right now on the train to Sopot as myself and Louise travel back up to the coast to unwind for a few days before coming back home to reality.

We arrived to Poznan yesterday in blistering heat, it was by far the hottest day since we arrived and I was concerned that the players might struggle a bit, it was in the thirties and was that damp humid muggy heat that saps your energy as you're sweating from every pore. We were met at the train station by the guy we were renting the apartment from and he dropped half of us with our bags to the apartment while the rest of us followed in a cab. Again, the generosity of the hosts shone through, he could easily have met us at the apartment but insisted on meeting us from the train. All he could talk about was how much the media over here had taken to the Irish fans and how bowled over the locals were, a great impression has been left.

Having dropped our bags off we headed down to the square where fans had congregated and found the place thronged with green clad supporters with only a handful of Italians present. The atmosphere was good if lacking a little in intensity due to the meaningless nature of the game and a bit of travel fatigue setting in amongst the fan base as we reached the end of our journey. We bumped into some familiar faces and then, showing our new found maturity, decided to go for a group meal with the 7 of us rather than settling down in the square with a bag of cans! Found a place that some of the lads had eaten in before the first game so decided to grab a table there and see if the ribs were as good as they'd said. The place was pretty busy and incredibly warm but once a round of beers (and 7 waters ;) ) arrived we began to cool down a little and started to feel a small degree of anticipation for the match. The huge plate of ribs duly came and went (they were sensational, best I've ever eaten!) and we hit the fan zone. With a bag of cans.

Around 6.30 we decided to head for the ground but the one fault I'd found with the trip reared it's head again as the organisation for transporting fans to the ground was a bit lacking and the crush to get onto the trams was horrendous. We soon realised we'd have to go back towards the terminus to get on as it was mayhem at the stop we were at so walked that direction and eventually got squeezed into a carriage that was resembling a cattle truck at that stage. The volume of people on it combined with the heat and the fact that the sheer weight of numbers meant the tram couldn't pick up any speed meant a long unpleasant journey to the ground and it was close to 8 by the time we made it. One drink outside and in we went having stopped for a few pics with the local police holding the Drumcondra 69ers flag aloft! Got in just at kick off and watched as we finally managed to get beyond 5 minutes in a half without conceding! Buoyed by this, the team actually began to play a bit of football with one crunching Kevin Doyle tackle on Pirlo ratcheting up the atmosphere as the crowd began to roar on the team. The usual chants were going and then a new one, which had been started in the square earlier that day when some lads had unfurled a flag bearing the words 'We'll sing when we want, f#*k off Keano' on it, began to reverberate around the ground. To the tune of Arsenal's Van Persie chant, the Irish support en masse were roaring out 'We'll sing when we want. We'll sing when we wa-a-ant! Fuck off Roy Keane! We'll sing when we want!'. Seems like 10 years after he seriously divided the Irish fans he's succeeded in uniting us again, there really has been a strong backlash to his comments over here amongst all but his most one eyed supporters. By all means criticise the failings of the team but he's way out of step with the Irish support and clearly doesn't understand where we're coming from. Roy against the world again. So be it. His loss.

Back on the pitch we were getting into the last 10 mins of the half and looking comfortable to go in level at halftime when our old failings returned again. Shay looked nailed on to comfortably gather a speculative 30 yard effort that he'd normally be able to take with his eyes closed but inexplicably let it slip through his hands and out for a corner. It was very reminiscent of Bonner's gaffe v Holland for Wim Jonk's goal in Packie's last game at World Cup 94 and I thought to myself 'At least it didn't go in, just get the corner clear and no one will dwell on the error'. Unfortunately that wasn't to be as a combination of slack marking and maybe slow reflexes meant that the smallest man on the pitch in Cassano got a free header that had clearly crossed the line before Duff hooked it clear. 1-0 Italy and here we go again.

2nd half began and again we manage to get past the first 5 minutes without shipping a goal and again we start playing okay and at least keep ourselves competitive in the game. Every so often the Spain-Croatia latest score was shown on the big screen and at 0-0 meant that a 1-0 victory for Italy wouldn't be enough by my calculations, as with 3 teams on 5 points head to head couldn't be used so goal difference would come into play. I dunno if they were worried that if they pushed too hard we'd hit on the break or if they really fancied Spain to beat Croatia but they seemed happy to sit on what they had. We kept probing and fashioned a couple of half chances and, after a further stadium wide rendition of 'We'll sing when we want' there seemed to be a bit of belief coming back to the fans as we stayed in the game right to the final act.

This being Ireland though, we were brought back crashing down to earth in a crazy last 5 minutes though! First off a goal flash came through from Gdansk. 87 minutes, Spain 1 Croatia 0. This puts Italy through with a single goal victory so their few fans begin to celebrate wildly. Then Keith Andrews, probably our best player this tournament (not that that's saying much) and one of the few to emerge with any credit gets a very harsh 2nd booking from the ref (who was awful all night btw) and is sent off. A few choice words were sent to the ref by him and a ball and water bottle took an awful kicking but it leaves us down to 10 men for the final minutes. Still we pushed on but Italy hit on the counter and win a corner. Corner comes in and Balotelli makes a mug of John O'Shea and whips a cracking finish past Given. Game well and truly over and Italy join Spain in the quarters.

After the final whistle the players came over to applaud the fans and the pain of defeat is etched on every face in the stands and on the pitch. I've been at games where we've been knocked out before but it never felt like this. One defiant blast of The Fields and we're just about to leave when we notice the Italian team has left their pocket of fans and are walking around the pitch applauding our support and getting applauded in return. A nice gesture which shows the esteem our reputation is held in.

By now the heat and humidity has turned into another thunderstorm and we leave the stadium to another tram ride from hell to the backdrop of spectacular strikes of fork lightning splitting the sky before the inevitable rain arrives for another soaking when we arrived back into town. The rest of the lads had arrived back before us and had found an Indian restaurant with a bar so we joined them there and we're joined by my old mate Feargal who'd come up for this one game. We had a couple of drinks and I gave a blast of 'Parklife' with the last remnants of my vocal chords in response to the gang of lads on the next table who's just sung 'Wonderwall'. Despite pleas for an encore we decided to head back to the apartment and have a night cap and reminisce there before crashing and going our separate ways in the morning.

And so here we are, everyone's departed with the promise of shared photos and reunions back in Dublin when some of the lads that live abroad are in town. The trips had its ups and downs but has been brilliant leaving aside the football.

The lows:

The football obviously. We never got going and bar the time between St Ledgers goal and Croatia's 2nd never looked like it. We need to change for the World Cup qualifiers and if it takes retirements to force Trap's hand then so be it. New blood is needed and we can't keep relying on our old stalwarts.

The injuries to key players. Regardless of what the camp were saying it's blatantly obvious that Given was not 100% nor were Dunne and O'Shea. Shay's clearances were barely reaching halfway and the usual spring in his legs was absent. Dunne and O'Shea were sluggish all tournament.

The performances of the senior players. In addition to the 3 mentioned above it was a tournament to forget for Keane, Duff, Doyle and McGeady in particular. The MLS seems to have blunted Robbie's edge as I feared it would and if he's serious about playing on, a move back to Villa or similar is essential. I really thought McGeady might show what he has this tournament but the usual inconsistencies returned. Duff, I think will retire and Doyle needs a move badly but won't have wooed any prospective suitors this last 9 days.

Formation and subs from Trap. We need a plan B and cannot keep relying on a rigid 4-4-2. We need to utilise what talent we have and do so in the correct manner. Bringing on Cox out wide v Croatia even if he tucked in from the wing made little sense with McClean & Hunt sitting on the bench. Starting Cox as the link between midfield and the forwards when it's Walters who has experience playing that role? Crazy. And Fahey should have been replaced with a like for like when he couldn't travel rather than a clogger like Green. I don't think it would have made any odds but even at 30 Hoolahan is worth another look. That said, I still think Trap deserves another 2 years, he's only the 3rd manager to get us this far and until the changes being made at underage level are embedded and players who've come through that start reaching senior age, the senior team needs to be managed in it's own right. We needed someone to turn around the fiasco of the previous regime and he has done that and restored some order. Some of the stuff about football being set back years is utter rubbish. Back to when we weren't even qualifying? The Dutch model is the one everyone's copying yet despite that they still went home with 3 defeats as well. Sometimes teams have bad tournaments, it's happened bigger teams than us.

The officiating. Don't think it'd have made any odds but it was Godawful. Little contact allowed, players staying down after barely being touched and refs doing nothing, bogey offsides, stonewall pens not given because the crowd are whistling, brutal. And don't get me started on the goal line officials, wtf do they actually do? Sooner they mic up the refs and get a TMO the better, it's one of the few things about rugby I admire.

The bloody weather! Everywhere we go, we always take the weather with us! Monsoons, thunderstorms, heat waves you name it! Was funny hearing the song being changed to 'we always take St. Ledger with us' though!

The highs:

Too many to mention really but the main ones.

St Ledgers goal. Despite the moron in the crowd with the whistle that caused a double take from everyone, it was still an epic celebration when it went in, shame more didn't follow.

The reception from the locals. I think most of us back home would have friends or colleagues from Poland given their migration to Ireland during the Tiger years but I think a special bond has been formed this last week or so, they have been incredible hosts, have made us so welcome and have been really taken by the conduct in general of the fans. Yes, there's been a lot of drinking and I've seen some articles at home bemoaning the fact that there's been an element of 'Oxegen on tour' round some of the campsites but with nearly 40,000 fans here there's always going to be a bit of that. For me, the reputation of the Irish abroad has been hugely enhanced by the tournament and looking at the media coverage outside of Ireland would back that up. I'd obviously sooner have had success on the field but it's a small consolation. Just a shame we're not as good at football as a nation as we seem to be at begrudery.

Meeting friends, old and new. It may be a cliche but the camaraderie on Ireland trips is something special. Was great to spend time with people I've known years like the Brummie boys, Terry the Tash, McCoy and the London crew, Billy, Mark and Paul, Bradley and his mob and people from more recent trips like the YBIG gang we met in Macedonia and the Quinn towers and their mates. Bumped into some of the Bohs lads and the Swords crew, Feargal, Bren and Noel, Caimin and Karl from work, familiar faces everywhere we turned, it's a home from home. Had a great gang to travel with, 2 top lads I hadn't met before in Jimmy and Niall and the usual crowd from recent games with John, Ray and Peter for the duration and Richie, Alan and Louise all doing a stint. You're all apes mind you! Apart from Louise. :) It was some craic! Was great to have Lou come over as well as it meant I could move to a room where I didn't have to share with someone who snored! Seriously, it's been great to have her here and I'm lucky she's happy to take a football trip as her hols. Even on the trains travelling around some of the best craic is just getting chatting to other fans you may never see again. Everyone I've met over here has added to the experience.

Anyway, we're nearly at Sopot and my thumb is about to drop off so I'll finish. Sorry for the length of the post but delighted so many people seemed to enjoy the updates, it's been a great way of passing the time on some of the journeys, see you all when I get back!

Euro 21012 - Day 12, Gameday 3. Back to Poznan.

With temperatures due to hit the thirties today we're currently on a sweatbox of a train back to Poznan as I write this having decided to stay an extra day in the beautiful city of Torun rather than head yesterday as originally planned. Seems a good few Irish did the same as there's a good number of us on the train but the mood in general is far more subdued than for previous games with tonight's game being nothing more than a dead rubber and the chance to try and regain a bit of pride and send the Italians home.

Torun was still pretty busy the last few nights, we spent Friday evening watching the thunderstorm disrupt things in the Ukraine for their game with France before meeting up with the Brummies and the Quinns and co and becoming honorary Swedes for the night as we tend to do for any country England happen to play. In keeping with the rest of the football on the trip that obviously didn't work out too well! :). Few drinks and a bit of a sing song with some other fans and locals back in the square and that was that. A few renditions of The Fields of Athenry could be heard as we walked around, people over here are not happy with Roy Keane's comments at the moment, not one fan is happy with what's transpired on the pitch but given that these comments come from a man who's previously on record for criticising what he called the prawn sandwich brigade for not getting behind Man U when things weren't going their way it's difficult to take that level of hypocrisy seriously. Can't have it both ways Roy. No one will chant 'you only sing when you're winning' at us.

Saturday brought with it a lot of excitement as the Poland v Czech Republic game was on that evening with Poland in a must win situation. With the game not on till 8.45 we took the afternoon to take in some more of the sights and killed an hour with a boat trip up the Vistula river which runs along the outside of the city walls. Beautiful scenery on both sides but it started clouding over heavily while we were out and after hearing a couple of thunderclaps and witnessing some lightning we docked and dived into a barge bar on the river just as the heavens opened again and a similar thunderstorm to the one witnessed the previous night in the Ukraine hit. I don't think I've ever seen rain like it, it absolutely hammered down for about an hour before passing and leaving a rainbow hitting the water right in front of us, amazing sight. Funny enough a police boat came up the river just then so the running joke was that it was to guard the pot of gold!

We'd more or less decided to stay the extra day in Torun at that stage as none of us fancied the madness of the night before the game in Poznan so myself and Lou headed back to the hotel to sort the extra night out before joining the rest for dinner, painting our faces in Polish colours and trying to find somewhere to cheer on our hosts. We settled on a bar packed out with locals where the atmosphere was rocking although the heat inside made us move out onto the terrace where things were a bit more roomy. All the locals were bedecked in red and white and there was a real sense that this was their night as they started strongly and it seemed like a matter of time before the goal they longed for would go in. Unfortunately half time came and went scoreless and the Czechs began to dictate things in the 2nd half. Still they roared their team forward as one of their players went on a forceful run from midfield but suddenly he overran the ball and the Czezhs hit on the counter right through where he'd run from and a couple of passes later the ball was in the Polish net. The deflation of the atmosphere was like a balloon being pricked before the defiant chants of 'Polska!' picked up again. But there was a desperation about their play at this stage and while they had a couple of chances very late on they never looked like getting the 2 goals they needed. In fact, with word coming through of the Greek victory against Russia most seemed to be happy enough that the last minute effort cleared off the line hadn't gone in as while a draw was no good to Poland it would have put Russia through and the Czechs out. International rivalries can do funny things to sports fans! That said, we seem to be taking on the role of tournament jonahs with every team we cheer on taking a beating! :)

After the game there was a lot of mutual back slapping and consoling going on with the Poles giving it loads on the Irish chants they'd picked up and the Irish chanting 'We love you Poland, we do!' back at them. The bond between the two nations has definitely been strengthened this past week or so, they've been brilliant hosts and have taken us to their hearts. Still doesn't make up for our results tho! :)

After the match finished, as if on cue another huge thunderstorm rolled in so we dived for cover into what turned out to be an Indian hookah bar complete with cushions laid out on the floor, hookah pipes bubbling away and a very chilled atmosphere! Great spot to unwind for a few hours waiting for the rain to stop! Unfortunately the rain didn't stop so for the third time on the trip got absolutely soaked to the skin as we ran for a cab.

Yesterday was our last in Torun and the weather was actually decent for once so it was a day for sightseeing and relaxing before we headed to a BBQ one of the local hotels put on as a thank you where we watched Holland exit the tournament with 3 defeats to give us a chance of avoiding the wooden spoon if we can get anything tonight.

A few colds and chest infections seem to be creeping in after the various drenchings but armed with cough bottles and tablets from the pharmacy we're now pushing on to Poznan! Not really happy with the team selection, I think Gibson, Walters and McClean should be in for Whelan, Doyle and McGeady but we all know how stubborn Trap is. I believe this is the last hurrah for this team and he wants to give them a chance to bow out with the 11 that qualified. I'm delighted to see Duff get the armband for his 100th cap and would love to see him roll back the clock 10 years as his performances in Japan / Korea were the best I've ever seen from a wide man in the green shirt. He's been a wonderful servant but I think he'll retire now and it wouldn't surprise me to see Keane, Given & possibly Dunne do likewise. No one can fault their dedication to the cause and it's a shame they only made two tournaments but greats like Brady and Giles never graced any so at least they've had the two.

Again, we're travelling with little expectation. If Italy had held on v Croatia and only needed a draw I'd have expected the draw tonight. The fact they need the win and could still go out even with that is ominous. If we can summon up the spirit of Paris then maybe be can have a chance. We live in hope!

Euro 2012 - Day 9. The evening after the night before.

It's sunk in that we're heading home and realistically our hopes were unfounded and our expectations were probably overhyped. I never thought we'd ship 4 but outside of Germany there's not a team that will live with Spain in that form.

The day had started well with the sun shining and a spring in our step as we left the hotel and heading for a quick beer before getting the bus into Gdansk city. Had a funny moment when the bus arrived and a good natured mixture of Irish and Spanish fans all bailed on filling the bus only to be told to get off again as the wooden bridge into the beach are we were staying in is slightly the worse for wear and the driver didn't fancy the bus and everyone on in going for an unscheduled dip into the Baltic sea! So over the bridge we all filed to the bus stop across the islet where everyone barrelled on again and off we went! As soon as we started moving the chants started with each teams fans alternating the likes of Molloy Malone, Viva Espana, a team of Gary Breens, La Bamba etc! Great craic and great banter between the fans and then some locals started joining in with Polska chants and one old lad who fancied himself as the Polish Perry Como crooned a few tunes! John offered his seat to a local old lady and was rewarded with a few strawberries from a punnet she was carrying, it was that type of journey! However en route we'd noticed the storm clouds gathering which was the last thing we needed given the Spaniards complaints about the dry surface impacting on their passing game.

We duly arrived in the centre and made our way to the old town square where both sets of supporters were congregating. We'd just managed to blag a covered table in a cafe bar when the heavens opened. The only 2 days of constant rain and they both happen to be our game days. Not a good omen and not ideal for our attire either given the Irish males penchant for shorts and a t shirt once the mercury hits double figures! Oh well, at least I wasn't wearing flip flops like some! Unlike Sunday I had my own game face on as I'd no hangover having discovered the recuperating qualities of 9.5% Polish porter the previous night. If Guinness is good for you then this stuff must be great for you, right? :) Anyway, we hung our flag and settled down for some serious lubrication of the vocal chords in preparation for the game. Various friends and acquaintances dropped in from previous games and some new arrivals who'd missed the first match came in and the craic was good till the time came upon us to hit the ground.

On the advice of a couple of locals we took the train rather than the tram and got to the ground pretty quickly with the usual chants in the packed carriages adding to the building atmosphere. It was pretty clear on arrival that the organisation in Gdansk was a lot poorer than Poznan. The way into the stadium seemed to be a series of bottlenecks leading to big delays and a lot of pushing and shoving which wasn't ideal for the girls present in particular but we finally made the seats just as the anthems were starting. Little did we know what was about to unfold.....

A huge amount of disbelief had been expressed by Trap's decision to start Cox ahead of Walters but to his credit he started well to pull a save from Cassilas in the 2nd minute. Unfortunately that was as good as it got with Shay slow to react again as Torres, who couldn't even finish his dinner all season, chose his return to form to come against us. I think Shay could have got his hands up quicker and pushed it over but the shot had a lot of pace on. I still contend he's not fully fit as its normally a save he's make. From there on in we were chasing shadows the whole half but at least it was only one at half time. We did have a bit if comedy relief when we noticed Marty Morrissey standing behind us with a jacket on with MM embroidered on the sleeve! As if people wouldn't recognise that uniquely shaped head!

Anyway, 2nd half starts with Trap admitting his mistake by bringing Walters into the fray but déjà vu. For the 4th half in a row this team, who'd shipped only 3 goals in our previous 14 games, gives away another. A mistake from another stalwart in Dunne gives away possession, Shay punches a ball he'd normally catch and Silva mesmerises our defence. 2-0 and game over. All we were hoping by then was to avoid a rout but still they passed around us and we couldn't get a sniff. It was as good a display as I've ever witnessed in all my years watching football, they really are an incredible team. 2 relatively late goals bring the rout we feared but as the noise from the 15% or so of the attendance made up of Spanish fans gets louder our own defiance in the stands comes to the fore and the last 10 minutes of the game are played out to a spine tingling rendition of The Fields of Athenry. Fuck the begrudgers and those that say this was accepting mediocrity. We have a team where our best players are reaching the end and the rest are honest midtable pros from the Premier league and the Championship. We were playing a team made up from the 2 best teams in Spain and arguably Europe augmented by a couple of players from the English Champions and Champions League winners. Do people honestly think that a player such as Hoolahan who's had one season at the top level or rookies like McCarthy, Clark and Coleman, with all due respect to them would've made a blind bit of difference?? Even in 2002 there were at least 6 players with recent Champions League experience behind them. Zero this time out. Perspective is needed, I can't fault the effort out here, whatever about the application.

What happened with the fans was a reaction to the opposition celebrating and letting them know we were still there. Would people prefer we sat there in silence or worse again booed the team? Fuck that. We may be beaten. We'll never be bowed.