Roy Keane Picks at Old Scab
Nov 23rd, 2009 | By Seconds Out | Category: soccerThierry Henry’s hand of frog goal in Paris has re-opened the wounds of Saipan.
Roy Keane, caricatured in the tabloids as a cravat-wearing, moustache-sprouting French man last Friday, has rowed straight into the debate. The former Man United captain, ignoring Henry’s cheating – such is the moral ambiguity of pro sport – laid the finger of blame firmly at calamity McShane and Irish keeper Shay Given for the goal.
Keane pointed out that McShane should not have allowed Henry to get behind him, and asked, rhetorically, where Given was when the ball bounced in the six yard box?
So far so good. If we accept that winning at any cost is the raison d’etre of pro football, that football is above morality and fair play, then Keane is right. McShane was away with the fairies and Given, a world class keeper, should be in control of the traffic going in and out of his six yard area.
If Keane had stopped there then we could see where he was coming from, up to a point. But the Corkman couldn’t resist re-visiting Saipan, one of a South Pacific archipelago from where Enola Gay was launched to nuke Hiroshima in WW2.
For those unfamiliar with the events of Saipan, Keane stormed out of the Irish training camp there on the eve of the 2002 World Cup finals in Japan and South Korea, citing the Football Association of Ireland’s (FAI) lack of professionalism and sub-standard facilities as the prime motivation for his departure.
The walk-out, arriving after a chart topping rant at Irish boss Mick McCarthy, made front page news all over the world. His departure from Saipan also split opinion down the middle in Ireland. Personally, I backed Keane, although I felt he should have held his power dry. He should have lined out for his country on the biggest stage of them all and then let rip at the FAI after the tournament.
Meanwhile, seven years down the line, whilst telling us to get over the events of last week – Keane, one of the greatest midfielders of his generation and a man once described as the heartbeat of Manchester United, doesn’t appear to have gotten over the events of 2002 – and he couldn’t resist another swipe at the FAI.
He said: People seem to forget what was going on in that World Cup, and that man (FAI chief executive John Delaney) is on about honesty. I was one of the players and he didn’t have the courtesy to ring me.
I’d been involved with Ireland since I was 15 years of age and that man didn’t have the decency to make a phone call. He could have phoned me, of course he could have.
And the Ipswich Town boss raised the controversy over a dubious penalty Ireland were awarded against Georgia in the qualifying group.
He added:
I think the supporters deserve better, the manager deserves better and probably most of the players deserve better, but I’m not sure the FAI deserve better.
What goes around comes around.
Ireland had their chances in the two games against France, and they never took them. But it’s the usual FAI reaction – ‘we’ve been robbed, the honesty of the game…
There was one match against Georgia where Ireland got a penalty and it was one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen which changed the whole course of the game.
I don’t remember the FAI after the game saying we should give them a replay.
On the case for the defence Keane said:
I’d focus on why they didn’t clear it. I’d be more annoyed with my defenders and my goalkeeper than Thierry Henry. How can you let the ball bounce in your six-yard box? How can you let Thierry Henry get goal-side of you?
If the ball goes into the six-yard box, where the hell is my goalkeeper?
Responding, Delaney, who has issued more press releases than Barack Obama in the last seven days, advised Keane to “get over it” and described Keane as sad.
He said: It’s time for him now, in my opinion, to learn from the past – not live with it. I really thought the images shown around the world on Friday were very sad – it’s sad to see a great former player reflected in the manner as he did. It’s time to forget about Saipan and move on – because everyone else has.
Keane walked straight into that one. It’s game set and match for Delaney but his outburst also gives a unique insight into the mindset of the top players and managers in the game.
The former Celtic midfielder doesn’t see any problem with cheating per se. He sees cheating as part of the game and blames Ireland for not having proper security measures in place. It’s a bit like telling a householder that it was his fault that he was robbed because he left the window open.
Meanwhile, if you want a good laugh tune into Grannygate on RTE 1 at 7.30 tonight.
The programme looks back on the events of 2007 when Stephen Ireland, the poor man’s Roy Keane, walked out on the Irish squad before a European Championships qualifier in 2007.
Ireland claimed that he had to go home because one of his grandmothers died. But she was very much alive. Ireland then claimed that it was his other granny that had kicked the bucket.
But it was found that she was alive also. You couldn’t make it up.
Have to say I agree with Keane. Henry did what any pro footballer would do to win a game and get to a world cup. That doesn’t make it right, I just accept that it happens and will continue to happen. Delaney strikes me as a slimey individual with more in common with FF that the ethos of the FAI, however I also agree with him, time to move on Roy. Come to think of it Delaney seems ideally suited to the workings of FIFA.
It’s not cheating Mr Out.
State of Keano !
Looks a bit like that Van Gough self-portrait.
Is that your phone ringing Out, no not ringing out, but is that your phone ringing Mr Second ? mumble mumble manners on this blog,
FIFA have called an extraordinary general meeting for December the BBC are reporting They will discuss Henry’s
hand ball and betting irregularities and refs – are all three related? Bock might be proven 100%
correct on France knowing they were going to SA yet.
The FAI have given this response.
In relation to this evening’s announcement that FIFA President, Sepp Blatter, has called an extraordinary meeting of the FIFA Executive Committee to discuss incidents at the play offs, the FAI confirmed that it heard about this meeting today through FIFA’s press release. Should we be asked to make any contribution, the FAI would be happy to do so for the improvement of the game.
Alive Alive Oh
Alive Alive Oh
Stephen Irelands Two Grannys
Alive Alive Oh
Heard in Paris last week!
Brilliant Mark
We heard the line of the decade on tonigh’t programme on Ireland.
Joe Duffy finally caught up with one of the “dead” grannies.
And he asked her how did she feel when she read that she was dead?
“I felt very nervous Joe,” she replied……..
Priceless
So, Roy; how’s the managerial career going? Wait, you’re not in the premier league? You’re not managing Man United yet? Or sorry, I thought you actually had some substance to back up the fighting talk. Go learn your trade and get back to us when you’ve won some credibility, will ya? And please get over the fact that John Delaney didn’t phone you back in 2002 after your hissy fit. Twitter it if you have to, post in on your facebook wall, whatever; but stop behaving like a fucking tweenage girl. Do you ever wonder why nobody’s afraid of you anymore?
And he has since apologised for saying what he said, even though there is a grain of truth in there, we should never have been even playing that match, we should have already qualified. So he can’t even stand by his convictions?
Personally I’ll never forgive him for not having the professionalism to play for his country in what was arguably our best chance to get to the semi finals of a World Cup ever. He walked out on the team and his country and as far as I’m concerned he doesn’t even deserve to have his opinion on this matter voiced.
We get it already. The FAI let you down. Mick McCarthy let you down. And in response, you let an entire country down. Great example there Roy, when the going gets tough, quit!
Fair enought Steve. But there were a lot of factors to Saipan and his walk out did lead to the Genesis report which had done a lot of good – and remember we wouldn’t have even been at the World Cup if it wasn’t for him. There were times when he was playing teams by himself.
He apologised at an Ipswich Town meeting when one of the fans told him his out burst against Delaney and etc ( originally on Sky) was embarassing.
Fine post Seconds.
Steve said it like it is though.
I was a Dev man myselkf, a good Limerick man. I never trusted those Leesiders, especially Collins.
He was sent home!
That’s what McCarthy said in the press conference.
That’s what the FAI said at the time.
Jeez!
He should have held his counsel many a time.
He’s Roy Keane though, so that’s just not him.
Sometimes Roy is hard to love, but that makes me love him all the more!
Up the Rebels!
2 fuckin cork cunts if you ask me
i’m amazed by the amount of people who say roy left saipan. he was told by mick to fuck off. okay he may have been out of line with the manager, but the situation was created by mccarthy. why not speak to him in a one to one situation? the article in the irsh times seemed pretty tame to me. i read nothing offensive or objectional in it. what was micks issue? both of them took a stance and neither were prepared to back down. which, considering the way the results went at that world cup was a real shame. keane seems to say whats exactly on his mind, regardless of the outcome. ferguson knew that, and it strikes me that the manner in which he left old trafford was very similar to his departure from saipan. seems to me alex gave him more than enough rope.
Yes you’re right gerrryo and Mairead, Roy of the range Rovers was sent home.
Sent home for being a Prick.