The Brief and Colorful History of Ireland: Part 2

September 23, 2009

On the eve of the must win game against the Czechs, Ireland approached the management team requesting permission to return home on compassionate grounds as he had just been informed that his maternal grandmother had died.The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) agreed instantly to his request and laid on a private jet for his return home.

However, it soon became apparent that Mrs Ireland’s mother had not passed away and was very much alive. The media requested clarification on the issue and Ireland then stated that it was in fact his paternal Grandmother that had passed away. “Ah fair enough, sorry for your loss son” was the general consensus from the media, the FAI and the Irish public.

So, there was to be yet more surprise when it turned out that Mr Ireland’s mother was too, still very much alive. A further statement was only released when legal action was threatened against the newspaper that printed the article reporting the death.

The player cleared up the reason yet again and this time he confirmed that one of his grandfathers, who had divorced his grandmother, and had re-married and it was indeed this woman who had passed away.

As eyebrows were well and truly raised at this stage, it became clear very soon after, that yet again, this also proved to be untrue. And so the plot deepened in what was very quickly developing into a soap opera being acted out in real life.

If this had not happened in real life, and instead on a TV set in your front room, nobody would have believed it and would have switched channels at the last ad break.

Everyone wanted to know what the real reason for his sudden departure was. The media soon realised that the real reason behind it was that Ireland’s young girlfriend had suffered a mis-carriage and wanted her partner at her side.

It was indeed a tragic loss, especially considering how young both he and his partner were. Under the circumstances, a young girl wanting the support of her partner while going through such an ordeal would have been deemed completely acceptable.

The question had to be asked though, why didn’t he just say this in the first place? No one would have denied him the time off and support he needed.

Maybe it was down to panic and youthful inexperience. Or maybe, as time would tell, it was a very good reason to leave a team that he just wasn’t happy in.

By the time the incident had blown over, the Irish team had failed to qualify for another major championship. Staunton was swiftly removed from the coaching team and the search began for a more credible successor.

In February of 2008, the FAI had pulled a very rare masterstroke by installing Italian Giovanni Trappatoni as head coach.

With Trapattoni came a long and glittering history of glory and success. As a player he was best known for his career with AC Milan as a defensive midfielder which brought modest levels of success.

However, as a coach and manager he flourished and has been at the helm of some of the biggest teams in world football; Juventus, Fiorentina, Bayern Munich, Benfica, both sides of Milan, AC and Inter and of course the Italian national team. Instantly recognisable teams and all of the highest calibre.

Perhaps even more impressive is the list of trophies won by teams under his guidance: 7 Italian Seria A titles, 2 Italian Cups, 3 European Cups, 2 UEFA cups, 2 UEFA Cup Winners Cups, the European Super Cup, 2 Intercontinental Cups, oh and he’s also won the leagues in each of the other three countries he coached in; Germany, Portugal and Austria.

Both the Irish media and public were rubbing their hands in anticipation of the great man’s arrival. The FAI had pulled off a major coup in getting him to take the reins of the national team.

Surely the good times were on the way again. Surely Don Giovanni could lead Ireland to a fourth appearance in the World Cup finals, and surely this great leader of teams could make Stephen Ireland return to the squad?

Well as with everything involved in this tale, nothing was straightforward, and I will discuss that in part 3 tomorrow.

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