Noel Hunt about to kill Robbie Keane for Claiming his Goal. Thank God for the equaliser in Bari. It was looking dodge there for about 75 minutes. Football is a funny old game. We might not have scored at all but we could just as easily have won it. Trap is right, games are won and lost on the little details. The only thing is that over the course of the campaign the best teams will come to the fore. What you will get away with in one game, you'll be caught out in another and in the end over the course of the 10 games all the oohs and aahs should stack up equally on all sides.
It would have been very harsh on Traps team if we had gotten only one point from six in the last two games. By drawing with the Italians we have kept them in check and within reach. It's a pity we didn't win though isn't it? If only we had been a little bit more composed in front of goal. I'm loathe to criticise Robbie Keane but was it just me or was he really milking it on the celebrations?I know it's football which is different and the players are more dramatic in all senses than our rugby or GAA players.
All the same I thought the hands out in a "worship me I am your saviour" sort of a way was a bit over the top. There is a theory in GAA circles at least and probably in Rugby as well that excessive celebrations can cause you to lose focus on the game. A bit like when a player has a barney with the referee and then makes a costly mistake 5 minutes later because he was still distracted.
I only say it because in spite of my unbridled joy at getting a point against the 10 man world champions in their own back yard, I'm very disappointed we didn't win the game. Robbie's chance at the death when he blazed over off his shin was a golden opportunity to win the game. It was a bit like his equaliser against Ze Germans all those years ago. Italy hadn't lost a home game in three years and then it was Denmark who did the business, last night it should have been us.
I wouldn't have even minded if Noel Hunt had celebrated like he was the Messiah for it would have been the height of the former Shamrock Rovers and Dunfermline strikers career but when Robbie does it, you sort of wonder when is he going to give the ball away next. Who knows, maybe a certain Rafael Benetiz was sitting at home sipping on his Napoleon Brandy nodding knowingly to himself as the ball ballooned into the stand and the Greasers got off the hook.
Robbie rushed the shot and our lack of composure in front of goal has been a constant since Trapatonni took over (and it should be said long before). It's as if whenever one of our players are faced with two choices in front of goal, we will invariably make the wrong one and the chance goes awry. It is only when we have no time to think about it that it might go in. Think about it, Hunt and Keane last night just took a swipe at it when it dropped, Big Richard against the Bulgars powered in, Robbie from a yard against Cyprus. The only really well taken goal we've scored was Doyle's against Georgia.
We've made a balls of any number of chances. Players getting in each others way. McGeady and Doyle were both culpable against the Bulgarians on Saturday. It's not a criticism of the individual players for their task is a great one but I wonder is it something Trap could address in training between all the drills on sitting back and defending.
Whether the goal was Robbie or Noel's last night, I don't really care. I suspect the Waterfordian is correct that it was his shot. Notice how the cameras followed Robbie for the celebration therefore leading us all the think it was him. That's not important though and I'm sure Rafa will agree with me when I say that what is absolutely vital is keeping your concentration for the remainder of the game so that just in case another chance presents itself in this extremely tight and difficult group that you will be in the right frame of mind to put it away.
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