Part 3 overall (part 2 of The McCarthy era but…)
1998
After the disappointment of the World Cup Qualifiers it was inevitable that some of the elder statesmen exited stage left. Houghton and Townsend called it a day which opened up possibilities in midfield. Mark Kinsella would soon make his debut alongside Damien Duff.
March was the first game of the year and a trip to Olomouc! The Czechs hadn’t qualified for France either and given their status as European runners-up were surely more disappointed.
In front of a crowd of less than 10k, the home side came back to win 2-1 after an early Gary Breen goal. McCarthy did not have a summer tournament to experiment with but he would have two more friendlies before the Euro 2000 qualifiers began in the autumn.
The changing of the guard was in full swing now with just three surviving members of the Italia 90 squad still active. Two of those, Staunton and Quinn were still in situ and perhaps surprisingly both were still there four years later. In Quinn’s case he had taken to life in Sunderland very well by forming a bond with Kevin Philips. But Staunton had somehow ended back up at Anfield on a free transfer.
Both were included in the game against Argentina at Lansdowne Road. Quinn partnering the young prodigy from Wolves. Robbie Keane. This was a fine game. My first visit to Lansdowne Road too if I recall. While Ireland were beginning to put something together the Albiceleste were a few steps above. Veron, Batistuta and the heir to Diego’s throne, Ariel Ortega. You might scoff now but it didn’t sound too ridiculous by the end of this game. An almost impossible lob over the keeper to seal a two nil win. Levels kids, levels.
A drab nil all friendly followed against world cup bound Mexico the following month and it was all a bit grim. It was a cold May afternoon and with that, any perceived heat after the 96 US Cup was extinguished.
Could we start a fire for the Euro qualifiers? You better believe it!
Croatia came to town in September. A proper game. Old school afternoon stuff, so reminiscent of when the big boys used to come into town and left with tails between their proverbials.
The boys got off to a great start with an Irwin penalty in the first 5 minutes. Croatia struggled with the Lansdowne swirl, not so much chasing shadows but maybe trying to dodge empty packets of Tayto crips( crips, that’s how we say it)
This was a fine performance by the elder Keane. He always seemed to relish big games(not friendlies) at home to big opposition and this day he topped it all with a goal and a smile. McCarthy was happy too. This scoreline against the World Cup semi finalists was a huge result for him. His first real moment of success as manager. Ireland followed it up with a routine win against the hapless Maltese. The younger Keane with a brace.
Unfortunately the next game in Belgrade ended with a 0-1 reverse. Staunton’s error late on denied what could have been a priceless point. And maybe there was still lingering doubts within the squad when playing away. Ireland hadn’t had a good result on the road since the nil all against Spain in 93. Hadn’t had a big away win since…since…ooh struggling here.
So that was 1998. 6 points out of 9. Journalists might have expected 5 beforehand, but the Croatia win had gotten everyone’s hopes up.
1999
Into the new year and a very long wait until competitive games returned. There were three friendly games in the spring. Paraguay( Irwin pen and Connolly) and then Sweden(Graham Kavanagh and Mark Kennedy) were dispatched by two goals to nothing before Northern Ireland eeked out their first ever win in Dublin. This game was referred to as the peace international. Following the tragic bombings in Omagh the previous April, it had been tacked onto the small print of the good Friday agreement but neither side appeared to be that interested. An embarrassingly low crowd of 12000 was blamed on the game clashing with an auld firm fixture the same day. Remember the name though, Darren Griffin
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Griffin_(footballer)
And speaking of that, I neglected to mention that TV3(whisper it) had signed a contract the previous year to show Ireland’s away games. The changeover from Montrose to Ballymount did little for the team’s fortunes but perhaps it was more the political situation in the Balkans than Trevor Welsh that was to blame.
Irelands’ away match against Macedonia was postponed because of the conflict, hence the Spring calendar being jam-packed with friendlies. Croatia and Yugoslavia also had to rearrange games. But we’ll get to that. Home comforts first.
Yugoslavia were due to play in Dublin first but with tensions building in Kosovo and subsequent attacks by NATO on Belgrade and other Yugoslavian areas, the Irish government had decreed the game be postponed. UEFA were of the view that it shouldn’t. There were also tensions in Leinster House apparently. Not for the first time and not for the last future Taoiseach Bertie Ahern would get his speak in for the good of the Irish game, declaring that entrance visas would not be allocated to the Yugoslavian squad.
Said Macedonians came to town in June. A very settled team by now, Ireland held their nerve against a side who had little attacking intent. Quinn scored on the hour to earn the three points.
There would be another long wait for the next tie but the rearranged Yugoslavia fixture was a barnstormer. Buoyed on by a rabid Lansdowne crowd the team were emboldened and the younger Keane inspired. After lots of initial promise he announced himself here with a fantastic goal. A well worked equaliser was greeted with eerie silence five minutes later but then the crowd almost collectively shook off their disappointment and insisted upon the victory. After laying siege for a few more minutes Mark Kennedy aimed a speculative but inaccurate shot at goal. A beautiful deflection diverted the ball into the net. At last our luck had changed.
Or had it? This was September and traditionally a team might expect to have two group games left. We still had three. First up was Croatia away. And if you thought the heartbreak in Belgrade wasn’t enough, Davor Suker popped up in the 91st minute to deny us another vital point. That was four points dropped after the 80th minute. And more horror was to come. Yugoslavia for their part had benefited from the postponements, knowing full well what they needed to do the next night against Macedonia. They beat them 3-1 at home and followed it up with 4-2 win in Skopje a month later. Winning in Macedonia was how you qualified. Croatia had only got a draw in the summer so we knew if we could win in Valletta, that it was all in our hands for the rescheduled game. After Robbie Keane and Gary Breen scored early it was relatively calm before the inevitable drama. The team lulled and stalled and before we knew it we’d thrown away a two goal lead against Malta. The nation sighed and began making alternative plans for the next Summer. But then Staunton made us dream again. Three two. Three points. Such torture.
Onto the final night of qualification. Croatia still a mathematical chance of finishing first but if they could better Ireland’s score would beat them for second. We, on the other hand would hope that Yugoslavia would lose but preferably draw and let us do our thing with a win away to the Macedonians. Simple right?
Ah Jaysus…
Quinn’s early goal kept us ahead for well over an hour. The game rumbled on, as Macedonia half heartedly tried to make their way back into it. The clock ticked by. Trevor promised that Coronation Street would follow. Or maybe it was the news. 91min ticked. Stavreski scored. Ah here.
With the draw meaning that A) we’d blown a chance of winning the group and B) Croatia were out , all hopes were now pinned on the playoffs. For the third tournament in a row. We’d lost the previous two.
So who would we get? The draw was open and looking at the list they weren’t really any gimmes. At a push we might have accepted Slovenia but guess what? They qualified, beating Ukraine over the two legs. Ireland got Turkey and maybe more important than anything, the first leg was at home.
Belgium/Netherlands seemed far away for a lot of fair weather fans. Myself included. I didn’t have faith in the lads. Those late goals away from home were scars that didn’t heal easily. Then there was the previous campaign with more disappointment. But still we gave it a lash and Lansdowne obliged. In a carbon copy of the Belgium draw two years before, Ireland scored first. Thankfully even later this time, Robbie again on 79. Just hold on now, for 12 min…ah FFS.
The Turks attacked and as Carsley blocked a shot in the box he lost his footing, ending up on his back only to see the loose ball bounce onto his arm. A lousy penalty really. A draw it was and them with the away goal.
Turkey were not the team of old. They looked bigger and stronger than the previous incarnation and their club sides were enjoying more success in Europe. Galatasaray and Trabzonspor had got the better of Premier league sides a few years back and the former would end up with their greatest English scalp in the 2000 Uefa Cup final.
This game seemed a step too far. It certainly was a price too far for Irish broadcasting. A cheeky hike in price for live rights meant most homes couldn’t secure coverage and just a few pubs managed to twist the satellite in the right direction.
It was a bad omen but maybe it was better we didn’t see it live. Nil all. Dour, depressing, horrible, frustrating. Cascarino ended up in a fracas and we would spend another summer in the US Cup.
rayhyland.com 
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