New thread as the last thread seems to be broken.
The emails for the season tickets say "Priority booking for March play-off matches"
Priority booking for March play-off matches"
Our teacher used to bring in a small telly - (Charlton era) for the matches definitely the big ones that happened to be on during school time. Probably the away games? More likely World Cup qualifying- remembered more than Euros. Everyone in larger area outside the classrooms. Think was the only time some lads paid attention. Obviously no homework that day too.
Phones are nearly as big as that telly now I would say. Always seemed like the reception was from space or the moon. Echoing or delayed commentary,”we apologise for any technical difficulties”
“Turn it up, teacher!”
The buzz/bandwagon is back so!
Looking on ticketmaster. There’s only some in the premium 300 sections left.
are they nearly sold out? Where did you hear that?
it’s included in the season ticket. That’s why the season tickets are nearly all sold out.
Almost certainly an extra.
2 flights over and back? When's the return flight?
Enjoy.
It'll be mighty craic without a ticket. Even more so if we win.
If we beat the Czechs, will the home game against Denmark/N Macedonia be included in the Aviva season ticket?
Or will season ticket holders have to buy it as an extra?
Stopping in Brussels.
Booked it at lunchtime yesterday
Direct to Prague?
How much?
On another forum people said they're getting the sleeper train from Brussels. 15 hours!
Booked flights yesterday, near zero chance of a ticket but, even of we don't make it in the end, it's hard to put a price on still alive in the competition for the next four months
The last round of games really has reached everywhere.
Beer!!
Adversity can bring people together though.
If I was Czech I'd be disappointed as we're the toughest of the Pot 3 teams that they could've drawn.
But they'll feel the home advantage will tip the balance.
Schick is a quality striker though.
I can see us drawing 1-1 and going through on penalties.
Both of my kids (8 & 11) got yo watch the draw in school today.
It reminded me of our national school in the late 80s/ early 90s - obviously we had no TV in the school but my parents owned a small portable TV with bunny ears and on the day of Ireland qualifier matches (often played midweek during the middle of the day), my mother would drop it into the school and the entire school (only 60-70 kids) would crowd into one room to watch the match. It was unbelievable craic
Great post!
I'm a primary school teacher and the buzz around the place the past week has been one of the best parts of it all for me. Kids mimicking Ronaldo crying last Friday, bouncing in the door saying Ireland won, lads arguing at break time over who can be Troy Parrott, hearing some older kids talking about who we'd get in the playoffs etc. Too bad it was fecking yard time by the time the draw had actually started today! They were all asking me who Ireland had gotten.
I was the exact age of the class I teach when Ireland last qualified for a world cup. McAteers goal v the Dutch, the TV being wheeled in for the playoff vs Iran, collecting the stickers leading up to the world Cup, getting up at the crack of dawn to watch Ireland v Cameroon! Jesus what a time. These are the types of things that create fans for the future. It would just be amazing if we managed to get there. The country is dreaming again for the first time in a long time!
If that draw today is anything to go by the World Cup draw in early December is gonna take about 3 hours with Trump there and all the bloody fannying about they do.
Better load up on the popcorn.
Children telling me that they were able to watch the playoff draw in school (two different schools). I’m absolutely delighted for them and that there’s common sense with regards to letting children get excited about this.
Yeh, the odds are against us , but if this is as close our kids get to experiencing the World Cup, I’m all for it. For 4 months they can dream , they can watch the draw in December and dream. Hopefully it also lights a fire with some who try to follow their own dream in sport.
Life is hard enough as it is and these sort of nuggets of joy should be cherished. The sense I got last week really did feel like 2002 or 94,90. The fact “it was just for a playoff place” has absolutely zero bearing on the sense I got. Brought me back to that fateful night in Windsor briefly.
Life is short, the good times can be few and far between. I pity anybody who can’t enjoy a moment without requiring higher standards and I know many like that. Enjoying the small wins on the journey is just as much as enjoying the big moments. My wife just had a big operation and it’s looking good. Driving my kids to the hospital , we can chat about the playoffs aswell as their mum, it’s a great way to be able to relate to the kids on multiple levels. One wants a parrot t shirt ; the other who doesn’t even follow soccer said it would be cool to see what it would be like to see Ireland in the World Cup. These are the things that matter. Not that Ireland somehow won a game last minute , but that everybody can enjoy it , fans and non fans, and even for a brief moment we can all enjoy the same thing for what might be different reasons.
Football, for so long for me, has me demoralised with everything about it being ruined by money and quite stinking stewardship from fifa , uefa and even our own FAI over the years. But though reconnecting with my my sons “career”’, coaching his team , following his progress at other teams , getting back to my Shelbourne roots in 2020 and enjoying Ireland , I’ve found my love for the sport again.
The time it gives me , with my children , is simply priceless. The shared joy of moments with my “crappy Irish league” has been as good as any of my experiences at Ireland World Cup matches (I was in Japan and at a lot of the Irish home/away games in 90s/00s. I’ve also been at massive EPL games that were superb. But I’ve enjoyed the last few years as much if not more. Even the shels 3-2 win over bohs couple of weeks ago (after being 2-0 down) was absolutely amazing fun.
I’m rambling so will stop, probably my meds just kicking in. Even though the odds are against us, I’m gonna enjoy dreaming about next summer with my kids.
And sacked their manager after they lost 2-1 to the Faroe Islands in October.
Let's just hope the disruptions hang about!
Had a quick scan of the Czechia squad on FotMob just there....they seem to have a lot of Hoffenheim players, a few Slavia Prague.…and that's it.
Soucek and Schick the nearest to household names (and FPL nerds might remember Coufal as a cheap defensive option).
I'm sure there's Czech lads doing similar "analysis" and going meh as well so both sets of fans are probably happy with the draw I guess ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
They could be in a better place come March though.
Recently only bet San Marino at home 1-0. Ok it was a friendly but that’s a bit of a shocker.
It’ll all be immaterial come March to an extent but it’s encouraging
all not well in the Czech camp, below from ESPN sport.
PRAGUE -- The Czech Republic soccer association stripped Tomás Soucek of his captaincy Tuesday and denied financial bonuses to national team players as punishment for ignoring their fans after their final World Cup qualifier against Gibraltar.
Czechia, who had been assured of second place in Group L, won the home game 6-0 in Olomouc on Monday, but the players didn't go thank the diehard fans who were critical of their performance in the qualifying campaign.
I vote that if we do make it to the home game we replace the anthem with Put em under pressure for 2020mins straight!
Lyra for the national anthem.
All the better if people write us off but to me it will be 25% and then 50% regardless of who we play. The Danes won't fancy coming to Dublin after the Scotland game.
Plus anytime we play at home it's against 10 men for large periods of play so we've got that in our favour 😂
All in all if we do make it past Czechia the FAI better lose the dreadful singers and bring back the band. Let the fans raise the volume and create some atmosphere.
Was planning to visit the in-laws in Colorado around the WC anyway so fairly easy to get internal flights cheap around then. Most people will plan to base themselves in one place and travel on match days. We'll have a rough idea the 5th Of December.
The Czechs will be slight favorites and so will the Danes if we meet them in the final, so less than 25%. Maybe 16% is more accurate.
