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Irish see Cyprus as reason to celebrate

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

By Mark Jones

DUBLIN — Consider the position and savor it. Approaching the endgame of a World Cup qualifying group that includes two of the best teams in the world, never mind Europe, Ireland are on the verge of qualification for next year’s finals regardless of the result of Saturday’s match against Cyprus in Dublin.

Admittedly, that precious qualification spot will be assured only following a playoff against the third-best team in the Asian groups — probably Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar or Uzbekistan. However, considering how well the Irish have performed so far against powerful nations such as Portugal and Holland, those World Cup finals are looming larger into view by the day.

If Ireland win, lose or draw against the Cypriots at Lansdowne Road, it’s unlikely to matter, as all Portugal have to do is beat Estonia at home to ensure they top the group and qualify by right. Though the teams have the same record, Portugal has a superior goal difference, plus 21 to the Republic’s plus 14.

What is significant is that no matter what happens, Holland are out of the picture, so a playoff in November is manager Mick McCarthy’s worst-case scenario.

If the unthinkable happens and Portugal are held to a draw by Estonia, then if Ireland beat Cyprus, they will snatch that one automatic qualifying spot. So McCarthy has to aim for a win as long as there is the possibility of a shock result, but unlike previous qualifying tournaments when Ireland blew their opportunities, the game against Cyprus can almost be a mini-celebration for the manager and his players.

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Of course, those playoff games, scheduled for Lansdowne Road on Nov. 10 and then at a destination unknown the following Thursday, won’t be pushovers. But if the Irish, unbeaten in their last 14 games, can come through a qualifying section without losing to either Holland or Portugal, they must feel confident of facing the third-best team in Asia.

With four players — Robbie Keane, Jason McAteer, Mark Kinsella and Kenny Cunningham — on yellow cards, McCarthy may decide to change his tried-and-tested lineup for Saturday’s game. A second yellow card for any of the four would mean suspension for the first of the playoff matches in Dublin, so there could be starting places for Newcastle defender Andy O’Brien, Matt Holland, Mark Kennedy and David Connolly.

With Damien Duff, Steve Carr and Richard Dunne ruled out through injury, and with Gary Kelly suspended following his sending off against Holland, McCarthy may also decide to rest Niall Quinn, so there could be opportunities for striker Clinton Morrison and full-back Steve Finnan.

Whatever happens in terms of selection, the pressure is off McCarthy and his team for the moment. All the players can do now is beat Cyprus and say a quiet prayer that Estonia deliver one of the shock results of all time.

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