Congratulations to both Shay Given and Damien Duff for making the Ireland team to play Brazil at Croke Park on Wednesday eveing.
Damien Duff – back in Ireland Team after injury
The Irish FA have yet to appoint a successor to Steve Staunton so caretaker manager Don Givens has named the side early to play the attractive Brazilians.
Rumors abound that Ireland are considering former Newcastle United and Bolton manager Sam Allardyce for the job, but we cannot confirm that, although we think Big Sam would be great as Manager of Ireland.
Givens has selected Damien Duff, the Newcastle winger, who has been playing well for the Tyne-side club, since he returned from his serious ankle injury just before Christmas, and Damien thoroughly deserves his recall.
Duff sustained his injury while playing for Newcastle at Portsmouth in April of last year, and it was much worse than most people realized, and it was almost career threatening at one point. So we are very happy to see Damien come through all the anxiety and difficulties, and be representing his country again. Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given will have a back four in front of him of Stephen Kelly, John O’Shea, Richard Dunne and Kevin Kilbane.
Former Newcastle center-back Andy O’Brien, Liverpool full back Steve Finnan and Newcastle’s Stephen Carr have all announced their retirement from International football and were not available for selection.
Brazil will be without one of their star players, AC Milan’s Kaka, after he had to withdraw from the Brazil squad with an injury. Kaka has played 145 times for AC Milan, and scored 51 goals for them. (wow).
This will be Shay Given’s 86th cap for Ireland and Damien Duff’s 67th cap. Duff has scored 7 goals playing for his country. Best of luck to both of them for tomorrow’s game, but please – don’t get injured. 😀
Ireland Team:
Shay Given (Newcastle United); Stephen Kelly (Birmingham City), John O’Shea (Manchester United), Richard Dunne (Manchester City), Kevin Kilbane (Wigan Athletic); Aiden McGeady (Celtic), Lee Carsley (Everton), Liam Miller (Sunderland), Damien Duff (Newcastle United); Robbie Keane (Tottenham Hotstpur), Kevin Doyle (Reading).
Comments very welcome.
14 comments so far
gloryhunter
Feb 5, 2008 at 7:44 PM
Comment #1Big snotty nose (first time I’ve been first – said the first thing I thought of)
gloryhunter
Feb 5, 2008 at 7:49 PM
Comment #2What? Sam Allardyce to be manager of the republic? Say it again. To be sure. To be sure.
Eve will be furious
Tripp
Feb 5, 2008 at 7:49 PM
Comment #3Hope the Duffer stays healthy. I hate the international breaks. At least our African players’ teams have done poorly for the most part. No offense to the lads but we needed them back.
Eve
Feb 5, 2008 at 8:25 PM
Comment #4Why has that got anything to do with me??
Sinead
Feb 5, 2008 at 8:50 PM
Comment #5Oh for the love of, we could change the team 3 times over, maybe four, with young inexperienced players who could do with match time at international level, all very good, they should that in America. It’s a friendly, why not play them. If I had it my way, out of that list I’d have 3 at the most Doyle, Miller, McGeady maybe, hell I wouldn’t even play McGeady. No one else, maybe Given, Dunne and Duff for a bit of stability but other then that like, what’s the point of a friendly if we’re not going to blood new players seeing as we’ve got a load of them.
Oh and Gloryhunter the Irish job is between Trapasomethingorother, the Italian guy and Venables. Oh Trapattoni, that’s his name.
I haven’t the foggiest idea where they’re getting Allardyce from. He’s not in the running at all. The “group” have it down to those 2, and they’ve taken long enough as it is, almost 4 months like. The senior players, everyone really is really pissed off that it’s taken so long. Allardyce, I repeat again is not, and I don’t think he ever was in the running for it except for like a day and he got pissed off no one contacted him, lol. He’d be crap anyway. Shay’d be pretty pissed off if he got it. Never really got on did they. But that doesn’t really matter Allardyce isn’t in the running, the 2 lads I just mentioned, one of them will be it and hopefully we should know by the end of the week who it is. The FAI is taking some stick for it though, and rightly so, IMO Delaney is the cancer in the FAI and should have fell on his own sword after the Stan debacle. We’ve a hell of a lot of young talent, and I mean A LOT and we need the right person to get that a long, all credit to Stan in fairness he blooded like 2o plus players in America last summer. With the right person in place, who would also do what Stan did cause he looked constantly at the players in the Eircom League, so hopefully we’ll get someone who’ll look at all fronts. But with the right person in place Irish football has a massive future.
Potentially of course. We for some reason or another have had crap luck since 2002.
Anyway Allardyce IS NOT in he running for the job. Thankfully.
Marty
Feb 5, 2008 at 9:06 PM
Comment #6Hey sinead im with ya there,all of us would have been devastated if the BSA got the job,my goodness he would probably put duff at left back n richard dunne a striker…….
not sure if venables is any better really!!
Come on the pats,beat brazil.
Chicken
Feb 5, 2008 at 9:06 PM
Comment #7Milner GOAL!!!
Get in there my son!
Chicken
Feb 5, 2008 at 9:13 PM
Comment #8ANOTHER MILNER GOAL!!!
A BEAUTY TOO!
COME ON ENGLAND!!!!! 🙂
Sinead
Feb 5, 2008 at 9:42 PM
Comment #9Marty, ya hopefully. I can’t wait for the Brazil game. The last time was brilliant, the Brazilans are well up for the banter, up all night singing, dancing , drinking, all that jazz I’m sure there was some football watching involved as well. Ah well, can’t wait.
the artist formerly known as cooldj
Feb 5, 2008 at 10:59 PM
Comment #10ha! no place for steven carr?
Sinead
Feb 5, 2008 at 11:09 PM
Comment #11Carr retired thank God.
Leo*
Feb 6, 2008 at 12:37 AM
Comment #12ive been saying all along that allardyce is going to be the next rep of ireland manager… unlucky lads and lasses, its going to happen so get used to it
Hadrian
Feb 6, 2008 at 1:21 AM
Comment #13shay will be cashing a pension before ireland would ever drop him , his like a little irish mascot .
as for allerdyce as next irish manager , their FA is putting alot of weight on their senior players opinions for a manager , cant see shay or duff singing allerdyces praises .
Sinead
Feb 6, 2008 at 11:40 AM
Comment #14Oh for the love of, lets try this one more time.
ALLARDYCE IS NOT IN THE RUNNING FOR THE JOB!!!!
And Hadrian we’ve 2 very good young keepers but in honest truth none of them come near how good Shay, now ye say that’s he’s had a one or two dodgy games with Newcastle, well I’ve been watching Ireland for a very long time, and I’ve never seen Shay have a bad game, 99% of the time he walks away with the MOTM award, either him or Dunne. SO can you blame them for wanting to “wrap him in cotton wool for another 5 years.” Because he has singlehandedly kept us in game after game. Even Johann/punkskunk whatever his name is, would have to admit that if he saw any of the Irish games and he HATES Given. Even you would and you’re not his biggest fan either.