Moscow debacle exposes some ordinary players

A team that has performed heroics at the World Cup Finals don’t become a bad team after one defeat. But there are plenty of sports fans around who will tell you that it was only a matter of time before some of the Boys in Green were found out, as many were during Saturday’s 4-2 loss to Russia in the opener of the European qualifiers. Gary Breen is average, Ian Harte is very average, and Kevin Kilbane, well, let’s just say there are better crossers of the ball around.

Harsh? Yes, it is harsh, and we Irish don’t normally kick a man when he is down. But I’ve been watching Irish teams long before the arrival of the “Ole Ole Brigade” and I’ve always had my doubts about Breen, Kilbane and Harte, to name just three.

Whatever slim chance we had of Roy Keane coming back, I don’t think there is any hope now. Hard to image Keane coming back to help Mick McCarthy? Incidentally, on last Friday’s “Late Late Show” on RTE veteran broadcaster Jimmy Magee said he was willing to act as an intermediary, if needed, between the McCarthy and

Keane camps. On the same show, Keane’s biographer, Eamon Dunphy, admitted that the row had got out of hand and seemed to agree with Magee’s sentiments.

Ireland will probably beat Switzerland in Dublin next month, but the real test will come at the end of March, when the lads face two away games, back-to-back, against Georgia and Albania.

Last weekend’s game was at the start of the season and there were no withdrawals except for Stephen Carr, who was injured. The law of averages says that a few players are likely to pick injuries at their clubs by the end of March. Let’s pray that Richard Sadlier is fit as Ireland badly need a center forward to allow Damien Duff play as an outside left.

And maybe Mick will give John O’Shea the chance he deserves in defense. Last

Saturday was the first time ireland conceded four goals in 17 years. That was the

4-1 loss to Denmark at Lansdowne Road in November 1985, Eoin Hand’s last game in charge.

Keane Saga Continues

Back to Roy Keane, the saga goes on. Last week, Keane canceled book signings in Cork and Dublin after he underwent a hip operation in Manchester. United decided that now is a good time for Keane to go under the knife when he is almost certain to be out of the game for a long spell through suspension.

The hot-tempered Corkonian was sent off for elbowing former Irish colleague

Jason McAteer in a League game against Sunderland. He is expected to be back playing in six to eight weeks, by which time his ban may have expired.

Then last week the English FA said they were going to charge Keane with bringing the game into disrepute after he admitted in his book that set out to “get” Alf Inge Haaland in a Manchester game. Manchester United are obviously embarrassed by all this controversy and they have decided that in the future players will not be allowed to write books while they are at Old Trafford. The book ban will not effect David Beckham, who recently signed a