Former Irish manager Steve Staunton has told BT Sport that he achieved his goals as Ireland boss, meeting the demands set by the FAI board. Speaking to Life’s a Pitch, the former player and captain also spoke about Saipan, Roy Keane’s return, and his time in the Republic hotseat.
Playing in March apparently angered Jack Charlton while Steve Staunton thought it meant we performed better. The next few days could prove to be defining moments for Giovanni Trapattoni that determine if we should clear our calendars next summer.
It was Steve Staunton’s first game in charge and a 3-0 win over Sweden threatened to usher in a new era in Irish football. It proved to be a false dawn. Will Friday’s World Cup clash in Stockholm see the sun begin to set on Giovanni Trapattoni’s reign or reignite our ambitions to reach Brazil in 2014?
“My team’s gone cold I’m wondering why
I got out of bed at all
The Dublin rain clouds up my window..
and I can’t see at all
And even if I could, my team can’t play,
Dunphy’s picture’s on my wall
It reminds me, that it is this bad,
it is this bad..”
It’s not an April Fools’ joke that Stephen Ireland is seriously considering ending his self-imposed exile from international duty.
Yet the Corkman can’t help but contradict himself every step of the way.
A SHORTER than usual Spud Watch this week as I am losing the will to live, because, with Ireland’s economy now playing in the Vauxhall Conference against teams like Darfur and Haiti, it seems like our national team may be heading in the same direction.