2018 World Cup Qualification

murpho999 wrote: »

Better, more Premiership players than us. The rankings don't lie.

The rankings are a bit skewed.

Anyone who realistically thinks Ireland will easily qualify from this group Is most definitely sitting in front of their dial up internet desktop computer in their GAP top that is 2 sizes too big, still stuck in the 90s

There is not one Irish player that would hold down a starting place in Wales - Serbia nor the Austrian team. (Barring maybe Coleman) .... The thought of that is depressing enough without the realisation that Wales Serbia and Austria have serious talent in the pipeline whilst the Irish pipeline is rotting away playing play stations or worse again picking up rugby balls.

There has to be some serious emphasis put in to the development of the youth of Irish soccer, we can only look and envy the likes of Belgium Iceland and Wales in what they have done in restructuring the youth set up ....

Hazard - bale - Ramsey - Benteke - courtiois - deneyar - Williams ..... Serbia u20 World Cup champions

What have Ireland produced in the last decade!?? Stephanie Roche - let that sink in, no disrespect to Stephanie she literally has been the only highlight of Irish soccers past decade.

The change has to start from the FAI and john Delaney is the first that has to go. He has done nothing for the development of the league of Ireland and youth football. The pathway for an aspiring soccer star currently in Ireland is aged 10 they are brought out to a field, given a ball and told off you go have a game amongst yourselves lads.

The whole structure needs changing, Belgium for example would not allow any youth to be coached by and uneducated armchair fan daddy, anyone in a position of management in Belgium from kids upwards was required to have relevant coaching badges. Each county in Ireland should have their own club which competes in the top tiers of Irish football and centres of excellence set up at each of these clubs and the best players from each county at all ages develop through the ranks and be trained by qualified coaches.

As long as john Delaney remains at the helm he will continue to hoard the majority of the income stream, the country will not develop any quality stars and the league if Ireland will deteriorate even further.

That day doesn't seem on the horizon anytime soon based on the rapturous applause Delaney received at the latest AGM - so until that time comes, my advise would be to forget this foreign sport and maybe pick up an owl rugby ball.

Oat23 wrote: »

So your answer is to do nothing then? Let our league and our quality of players continue to deteriorate while the NT scrapes through to a world cup every 16 years?

We can do better than that. I'd rather sacrifice the near future and hope it forces change so we can do better in the 20s and 30s.

But the fact is "nothing" is exactly what we have been doing and continue to do - absolutely nothing. That clown Delaney is getting away with murder , he actually got a standing applause at last weeks AGM despite the FAI being in severe debt, the national side also look like we won't qualify to yet another tournament, no talented noteworthy players breaking through, no plan/blueprint in place to change any of this....... Yet Delaney will still stay there earn his €300,000 without answering to anyone nor outlining what exactly his plans are to revive football in this country.

What is going to happen yet again - Ireland fail to qualify and the fans will get angry at management (who can't be blamed for getting average results with a horrific set up and abysmal conveyor belt of talent) , FAI and john won't get mentioned , they'll sack current management and get in high profile team costing millions the FAI don't have and everything will be rosey once again for half a year..... And the cycle will continue until the fans overthrow that management team for not being able to make perfume from ****

The rot has to stop from the top, how crazy is it that FAI have never answered anyone on a failed qualification, they are happy for current managers to take the abuse while they sit back unnoticed. The FAI have never released a definite plan nor bluetprint with regard the creation and development of a sustainable league and quality player development.