Tony O'Donoghue offers his views on the seemingly never ending Stephen Ireland affair.
There’s no surer way of winding Eoin Hand up than by mentioning Stephen Ireland. The former Republic of Ireland player and manager and current RTE pundit reacts with indignation at the notion that anyone should have to be persuaded to play for their country.
The issue was an obvious talking point among the soccer fraternity ahead of the first qualifier against Georgia in Mainz and, just for the hell of it, I raised it again at dinner the night before the Montenegro game. To watch Eoin become apoplectic is more than enough entertainment of an evening!
But the Football Association's career guidance officer isn't alone among FAI staffers in believing that Stephen Ireland has crossed a very sacred line. Don Givens, the current Under 21 boss and caretaker manager of the senior side until Trapattoni took over, cast derision on the notion that he should travel to Manchester to speak to the Cobh native.
And Liam Brady, so cranky he'd remind you of a Corkman, made it abundantly clear at the latest senior squad announcement, that he has little or no patience for indulging Ireland. 'Show some respect for your country' it emerged was aimed at a journalist and not a comment on Ireland although that seems harder to understand than a Trapattoni sound bite.
Imagine the conversations in the corridors of power in Abbotstown when the best current Irish player is brought up.
Opinion is clearly divided among those who think Stephen Ireland should be back in the Republic of Ireland squad and those who think we have wasted enough time on the mercurial Man City star.
The reason for his self imposed exile has been long spoken of, although usually on the back pages of the tabloids. Whether people truly understand the situation is another matter.
As a reporter I believe there is a line one shouldn’t cross when it comes to commenting on the personal lives or circumstances of the people involved in a story. I mentioned to Eoin Hand, in defence of Stephen Ireland, that the 22-year-old had particularly difficult domestic circumstances.
‘We all have difficult domestic circumstances!’ he bellowed in reply and who am I to argue with that?
However the issues around Ireland’s departure from the squad in Bratislava 15 months ago are worth revisiting.
Ireland, given his chance by manager Steve Staunton in his first ever squad announcement, continued to repay the manager with his fourth goal in six games for his country including the historic first ever 'soccer' goal scored at Croke Park.
Ireland was just 20 years of age at the time but in the post match interview I was struck by the intelligence and maturity of the Man of the Match.
Ireland has had a lot of growing up to do in a very short space of time.
He became a father while still a teenager and four year old Josh and three year old Jessica live with him in Manchester with his new partner with whom he has had another child, Jacob.
Ireland scored against Slovakia in Bratislava as well but just before that game as the team were warming up a phone call with some bad news came from his girlfriend.
She had suffered a miscarriage, a tragic and heartbreaking ordeal for both of them, but Stephen wasn’t told until after the game. The message he received at the time was that there had been a death in the family. There had.
The story he told Steve Staunton was that his Granny had died. He needed to get away from the squad and back to Manchester to his girlfriend and children as quickly as possible. Football isn’t a matter of life and death after all.
In a time of deeply personal grief and turmoil ask yourself what you might have done in similar circumstances.
The FAI, to their credit, pulled out all the stops to charter a plane and fly Ireland back. The little white lies were needless and further complicated matters when the truth, as it invariably does, came out.
A few phone calls to Cobh revealed that there was no one dead there. Ireland’s other granny emerged alive and well also a few days later. Grannygate became a national pantomime and the ‘oh yes he will, oh no he won’t’ charade continues. It’s time to bring the curtain down on this comic tragic farce.
A word to Liam Brady…next month Liam, you will be 53. You were probably the most gifted player of your generation and your performances at Arsenal, Juventus, Sampdoria, Inter, Ascoli and West Ham inspired a nation.
Your 72 caps for your country meant so much to you and you insisted in each contract that you be released for international duty. You were probably discarded too quickly by Jack Charlton, sacrificed at the altar of creativity for the sake of the 'system.'
You signed for Arsenal at just 15 years of age and you work with some of the most talented kids now. Did you ever do anything in your youth or in you career that you regret. Have circumstances ever conspired against you as a player or a manager?
Growling at a player in person or at a press conference is hardly the most likely way of coaxing a positive response from the particular individual involved, even if he can sometimes be the architect of his own downfall. Why don’t you cut the guy as bit of slack?
Yes, Ireland has put pink spoilers on his jeep (what’s wrong with the colour pink?) and dropped his shorts to reveal his Superman underpants after scoring a goal but what is youth for if not impetuosity?
When Ireland goes home after the exhilaration of another high octane performance he looks after three ‘smallies’ and spends time fundraising for, among others, The Francis House Children’s Hospice.
Francis House offers the families of very sick children a respite from their role as carers and gives the children a loving home from home. The philosophy of Francis House flows from the belief in the sanctity of life, and the dignity of the person.
Other Premiership ‘stars’ spend their leisure time in clubs and WAGS.
Every player is different with unique talents and abilities. The skill of management is moulding those attributes for the good of the team. Equally the skill of management is in having all your best players available for all the important matches.
Why not go and talk to Ireland again, only this time with a little more empathy, a little more understanding? We all need to be loved, Liam. Then Trapattoni can put him in the squad and choose not to play him for the good of ‘the system’.
