News

Harry Arter was in Premier League action for Cardiff City who went down to an undeserved two one defeat by visitors Chelsea this Sunday afternoon. The ‘Bluebirds’ performed very well with Arter impressive in midfield and took the lead in the first minute of he second half. The Chelsea equaliser was clearly offside and it is quite stunning how it was missed by the officials. The referee also missed two quite blatant fouls in the penalty area which should have led to penalty kicks for Cardiff. All in all a poor performance from the officials. The veteran goalkeeper Brian Murphy was on the substitute bench for the hosts.

The usual Scottish Premiership battle between Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers took place in Celtic Park with a noon kick-off and ended in a two one victory for the hosts who go thirteen points clear of their bitter rivals at the summit off the league table. There was a surprise Glasgow Celtic start for Jonny Hayes but he was withdrawn at half-time.

Portsmouth lifted the EFL Trophy following a 5-4 penalty shoot-out success over Sunderland at Wembley Stadium this Sunday afternoon. ‘Pompey’ striker Ronan Curtis, who recently suffered a severe hand injury, was named in the starting eleven but showing signs of rustiness was withdrawn on fifty six minutes. Aiden McGeady started for the ‘Makems’ and opened the scoring on thirty eight minutes but Portsmouth equalised on eighty two minutes to force extra-time. ‘Pompey’ took the lead in extra-time but with just one minute remaining, McGeady equalised for Sunderland to send the contest to the penalty shoot-out. 

Fulham included Cyrus Christie in their starting eleven as they went down to a two nil defeat by visitors Manchester City in the Premier League at Craven Cottage early on Saturday afternoon. Shane Duffy and his Brighton & Hove Albion colleagues suffered a one nil home defeat by South Coast rivals Southampton at the Amex Stadium later in the afternoon. Injury ruled Shane Long out of the visitors squad. Jeff Hendrick started for Burnley in their two nil victory over Turf Moor visitors Wolverhampton Wanderers for whom Matt Doherty was a fifty ninth minute substitute. Robbie Brady and international retiree Stephen Ward remained on the substitute bench while Kevin Long was not included in the matchday squad. The late kick-off saw West Ham United go down to a two nil home defeat by visitors Everton captained by Seamus Coleman.   

Following the international break, the Championship resumed on Saturday afternoon with impressive midweek performer Glenn Whelan starting for Aston Villa but Conor Hourihane was relegated to the bench in their two one victory over Blackburn Rovers at Villa Park which propelled them into a playoff position. Darragh Lenihan started for Blackburn while Derrick Williams was an unused substitute. Richard Keogh captained Derby County who crushed  Rotherham United by six goals to one at Pride Park while Alan Judge and Ipswich Town suffered a two nil defeat by visitors Hull City at Portman Road. Rumoured Ireland target Patrick Bamford was in action  for Leeds United in their three two success over visitors Millwall for whom Aiden O’Brien was a very late substitute at Elland Road. Callum Robinson returned to the Preston North End starting eleven following his lengthy injury absence and was joined by Sean Maguire in their two one defeat at Reading. Midfielder Alan Browne missed out through injury. John Egan, Enda Stevens and David McGoldrick started for Sheffield United in their three two home defeat by visitors Bristol City for whom Callum O’Dowda missed out through injury. Loanee Scott Hogan was introduced for the ‘Blades’ at half-time and scored on seventy one minutes. James McClean and his Stoke City colleagues played out a scoreless draw with visitors Sheffield Wednesday for whom Keiren Westwood was on net minding duties at the Bet365 Stadium. Fellow goalkeeper Darren Randolph and his Middlesbrough colleagues went down to a one nil defeat by current leaders Norwich City in the late kick-off at the Riverside Stadium.

League One leaders Luton Town included James Collins in their starting eleven and he scored in their two one victory over Bristol Rovers in the Memorial Grounds while Charlton Athletic loanee Josh Cullen was in action in their one nil victory over visitors Bradford City at The Valley.

The EFL Trophy Final between Portsmouth and Sunderland is set for Wembley Stadium at 2.30pm on Sunday afternoon. ‘Pompey’ striker Ronan Curtis who recently suffered a severe hand injury may be in line for a return to action while Jimmy Dunne and Aiden McGeady are expected to start for the ‘Makems’.

The Airtricity League Premier Division continued this Friday evening with all ten teams contesting match series eight. Shamrock Rovers maintained their seven point lead at the summit with a three one victory over UCD in Tallaght Stadium with last week’s Ireland squad member Jack Byrne scoring twice in an excellent performance. The ‘Hoops’ have of course played two matches more than their pursuers.  Second place Dundalk maintained their challenge with a one nil victory over Cork City in front of the live RTE 2 cameras at Oriel Park. Third place Bohemian scored the only goal in their Dublin Derby meeting with St Patrick’s Athletic in Dalymount Park. Derry City defeated North West rivals Sligo Rovers by two goals to nil in the Brandywell while struggling Finn Harps made the lengthy journey to face Waterford in the RSC where they crashed to a four nil defeat. 

                            P  W  D  L   F   A   G/D   Pts
Shamrock Rovers             9  7  1  1  15   3   12    22
Dundalk                     7  4  3  0  11   3    8    15
Bohemian                    7  4  2  1   6   3    3    14
Derry City                  7  3  2  2   9   7    2    11 
Waterford                   7  3  1  3  11   9    2    10
Cork City                   7  3  1  3   8   8    –    10 
St Patrick’s Athletic       7  2  2  3   3   5   -2     8
Sligo Rovers                7  2  1  4   5  10   -5     7
UCD                         7  1  1  5   6  12   -6     4
Finn Harps                  9  0  2  7   6  20  -14     2

Just three points separated the top eight teams in the Airtricity League First Division table as they entered match series six this weekend. Joint leaders Bray Wanderers scored the only goal to defeat visitors Cobh Ramblers in the Carlisle Grounds while Athlone Town went down to a two nil defeat by Limerick in the Markets Field. Stradbrook hosted the meeting of Cabinteely and Galway United with the hosts scoring the only goal for victory while Wexford, who shocked Bray Wanderers last weekend, went down to a two one defeat by Drogheda United in United Park.
Longford Town are set to face Shelbourne in the City Calling Stadium at 7.30pm on Saturday evening. 

                            P  W  D  L   F   A    G/D  Pts
Bray Wanderers              6  4  0  2   7   3     4    12
Limerick                    6  3  2  1   7   4     3    11
Cabinteely                  6  3  1  2  10   9     1    10
Drogheda United             6  3  1  2   8   8     –    10
Shelbourne                  5  3  0  2  11   7     4     9
Athlone Town                6  3  0  3   6   7    -1     9
Longford Town               4  2  2  0   5   1     4     8
Cobh Ramblers               6  2  0  4   9  11    -2     6 
Galway United               5  1  0  4   6   6     –     3
Wexford                     6  1  0  5   6  19   -13     3

Our Republic of Ireland Schools international side, with Head Coach William O’Connor at the helm, commenced their 2019 Centenary Shield challenge with a one all draw against their Scottish counterparts this Thursday evening in Somerset Park the home of Ayr United FC.
Next up for our side is the home contest with England, which is set for Dalymount Park at 7pm on the evening of Friday the 12th April.
We then travel to Belfast where we will face Northern Ireland in Queens University at 6pm on Thursday the 18th April before completing our schedule against Wales at Home Farm FC, Whitehall on Thursday the 25th April at 7pm.

 

 

Senior
Ireland scored the only goal to defeat Georgia in their second European Championship qualifying contest and head Group Four with a maximum six points. There was a significantly improved performance from Ireland in the Aviva Stadium this evening and the victory was fully merited despite a couple of very scary moments. Ireland were quickly out of the blocks, putting pressure on the visitors and created some early scoring chances which were not realised. The breakthrough arrived on thirty six minutes from an exquisite free kick converted by Conor Hourihane, his first goal for Ireland. Just prior to the break there was quite a scare for Ireland with a lack of concentration allowing the visitors a strike on goal which was brilliantly saved by Darren Randolph. Ireland were less dominant for a twenty five minute spell at the start of the second half, with the visitors controlling possession for long periods, but we stayed resilient, save for one long range effort which clipped the post. Lone frontman David McGoldrick was unquestionably our ‘man of the match’ with his excellent control and technique. There were also notable performances from skipper Seamus Coleman and the evergreen midfielder Glenn Whelan. Mick McCarthy made two late changes, with Aiden O’Brien replacing Robbie Brady on seventy three minutes and Matt Doherty coming on for the exhausted David McGoldrick after eighty one minutes.
The stunning news from Basle that Denmark, trailing by three goals with six minutes remaining, recovered to secure a three all draw with their hosts Switzerland means that Ireland top the fledgling Group Four table.
Next up is a visit to Copenhagen to face Denmark on the 7th June before we welcome Gibraltar to the Aviva Stadium three days later.

Group Four             P W D L  F  A  G/D  Pts
Republic of Ireland    2 2 0 0  2  0   2    6
Switzerland            2 1 1 0  5  3   2    4
Denmark                1 0 1 0  3  3   –    1
Gibraltar              1 0 0 1  0  1  -1    0
Georgia                2 0 0 2  0  3  -3    0
————————————————————–
Mick McCarthy has named his starting eleven for this evening’s European Championship qualifier against Georgia. The side shows two changes from the starting eleven in Gibraltar last Saturday with Robbie Brady and Glenn Whelan replacing Matt Doherty and Sean Maguire.

Team: Darren Randolph; Seamus Coleman(C), S Duffy, R Keogh, E Stevens; G Whelan; J Hendrick, C Hourihane; R Brady, David McGoldrick, J McClean

——————————————————————–
Our senior international side take on old foes Georgia in our second contest of the 2020 European Championship qualifying campaign in the Aviva Stadium at 7.45pm on Tuesday evening. Saturday’s contest in Gibraltar was far from beguiling but the three points were claimed,  so we move on and hope for better post match vibes this time.
The ankle injury sustained by Shane Duffy is the only slight concern but against a side that seeks to play constructive football on the ground, his absence should it occur, may not be significant. In light of the conditions, it is difficult to assess the merits, or otherwise, of the individual performances on Saturday last but some changes are likely. The holding midfield role is likely to be more relevant against this opposition which could signal the inclusion of Glenn Whelan in that position. It will also be interesting to see if Matt Doherty is given another opportunity in front of Seamus Coleman with weather conditions expected to be much more appealing. James McClean must also be under pressure, with the greater technical skills of Robbie Brady or Alan Judge offering a challenging alternative. One also wonders if a more physical presence might be employed up front with the possibility of a debut for James Collins. We will also be casting a glance in the direction of the other Group D qualifier taking place this evening in Basle between Switzerland, two nil victors over Georgia in Tbilisi on Saturday, and Denmark.   

Under 19
With qualification for the 2019 European Championship finals in Armenia already secured, Head Coach Tom Mohan gave the remainder of his little or unused U19 squad members an opportunity in their final Elite Stage Group Four contest against mini-tournament hosts Russia in Krasnodar at 2pm (Irish time) on Tuesday afternoon. The players did not let him down, securing a two nil victory with goals from Arsenal defender Mark McGuinness on the stroke of half-time and Bohemian striker Ali Reghba after fifty nine minutes.
With the finals scheduled for July, Mohan and his backroom team will continue to monitor his players, with of course the option of recalling the five players who were unavailable because of their involvement with our successful Under 21 side.
We join hosts Armenia in the July Finals, together with the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Norway, Portugal and Spain.

Group 1             P W D L  F  A  G/D  Pts
Republic of Ireland 3 3 0 0 10  1   9    9
Romania             3 1 1 1  4  5  -1    4
Russia              3 0 2 1  0  2  -2    2
Azerbaijan          3 0 1 2  1  7  -6    1

 

Under 17 Women
Head Coach Colin Bell saw our Under 17 Women conclude their  European Championship Elite Stage involvement with a one nil victory over mini-tournament hosts Scotland in Ainslie Park Stadium, Edinburgh at 2.30pm this Tuesday afternoon. The winning goal came on thirty two minutes and was scored  by Wexford WFC striker Blessing Kingsley. Ireland finished an excellent second in the Group behind Germany and their performances augur well for the future.

Group 4             P W D L  F  A  G/D  Pts
Germany             3 3 0 0 11  0   11    9
Republic of Ireland 3 1 1 1  2  3   -1    4
Norway              3 1 1 1  2  5   -3    4
Scotland            3 0 0 3  0  7   -7    1

 

 

Head Coach Colin O’Brien was seeking a much improved performance from his Ireland U17 side when they again took on Turkey in Tallaght Stadium early this afternoon and while there was significant improvement they again suffered defeat.
The sides had met in the RSC Waterford on Saturday afternoon with Ireland some way below par in a one nil defeat. Ireland made an excellent start, scoring after just three minutes through Charlie McCann and dominated the early proceedings until the latter stages of the first half when Finland scored twice to secure the victory.
Colin O’Brien expressed satisfaction with the improved performance of his charges and felt that they did not deserve to lose the match.
These contests form part of the preparation for the upcoming European Championship Finals which will be hosted by Ireland during May 2019.
Team:
16.Jimmy Corcoran; 2.Seamas Keogh(C), 4.Luke Turner, 5.Andrew Omobamidele, 3. James Furlong; 10.Charlie McCann, 8.Joe Hodge, 18. Sean McEvoy; 7.Ademipo Odubeko, 9.Conor Carty, 11.Sean Kennedy
Substitutes:
Matt Everitt for Kennedy 55′
Timi Sobowale for McEvoy 55′
Ronan McKinley for Odubeko 71′