February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Jay Mwamba
Ireland were on Tuesday drawn with former European champions Holland and Portugal in the qualifying round for the 2002 World Cup soccer finals, to be co-hosted by Japan and South Korea.
The draw in Tokyo also cast Cyprus, Estonia and Andorra with the Republic in Group 2. The qualifiers kick off next year.
With only the group winners assured of a place in the 32-nation finals, Ireland will have to improve on their form after the recent Euro 2000 qualifiers if they are to emerge from the group.
Coach Mick McCarthy’s side developed a penchant for conceding late goals that cost the team dearly. Ireland were eventually eliminated 2-1 on aggregate by Turkey in the playoffs.
Holland, the early favorites to top the group, beat Ireland 2-0 in
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Liverpool four years ago, in a one-match playoff for a place in the 1996 European Championship.
Dutch coach Frank Rijkaard, who played in the two sides’ last encounter, a 2-0 Dutch victory in the second round of USA ’94 in Orlando, was optimistic about his team’s chances in the qualifiers.
"I know there are three very strong sides and the others will have to be treated with respect. But we will be prepared, we’ll be ready," he said in Tokyo.
Ireland missed out on France ’98 after playing in the 1990 and 1994 tournaments.
Northern challenge
Northern Ireland, whose last World Cup finals appearance was at Mexico ’86, face an equally challenging task in the qualifiers. They were drawn in Group 3 alongside the Czech Republic, Denmark, Bulgaria, Iceland and Malta.
The highlight of the European zone qualifiers, however, should be the England-Germany pairing in Group 9. The two former champions will clash for the first time outside the World Cup finals. Their group rivals will be Greece, Finland and Albania
Lucky Scots
Scotland, who came so close to upsetting England in the Euro 2000 playoffs, should fancy their chances in Group 6 against Belgium, Croatia, Latvia and San Marino.
The rest of the European qualifying groups are: Group 1 — Yugoslavia, Russia, Switzerland, Slovenia, Luxembourg and Faroe Islands. Group 4 — Sweden, Turkey, Slovakia, Macedonia, Azerbaijan and Moldova. Group 5 — Norway, Wales, Poland, Ukraine, Armenia and Belarus. Group 7 comprises Spain, Austria, Isr’l, Bosnia and Liechtenstein, while Romania, Italy, Lithuania, Hungary and George will play in Group 8.
The nine group winners qualify automatically, while eight of the nine runners-up will enter a playoff competition after a draw. The ninth runner-up left in the bowl will face an Asian entrant in an intercontinental playoff.