by Gerard Mulreaney (@gerardmulreaney)
Republic of Ireland National team manager Martin O’Neill stirred something akin to a virtual hornets nest, with fans of the League of Ireland at least, on Saturday night following their 2-1 victory over the USA in the Aviva Stadium.
On the occasion of stalwart John O’Shea’s final game for his country, Shamrock Rovers midfielder Graham Burke made his full International debut. Named in the starting line-up just an hour before kick-off Burke produced a display of worthy of the stage.
The 24 year-old former Aston Villa Man was immense, covering almost every blade of grass, whilst also finding space almost at will, albeit his more illustrious team-mates never managed to find him!
He was very comfortable on the ball throughout, rarely losing the ball, while his distribution from corners was excellent. One of those corners nearly creating a goal early in the game. Burke linked up well with both striker Jonathan Walters and winger James McClean. He also showed neat touches and plenty of composure on the ball.
The icing on the cake came in the 57th minute when he tapped home Darragh Lenihan’s goal bound effort to score.
It was a truly remarkable night for the Shamrock Rovers man, however in O’Neill’s after match interview he was extremely quick to downplay his contribution.
O’Neill said, “It was tough game for him tonight, really tough. It was lovely to see him score the goal. He’s a lovely kid. I’m sure this will give him a massive boost of confidence. In terms of his involvement tonight, it passed him by for about 20 minutes. The game was played in a quicker pace that he may have anticipated.” I’m not sure if O’Neill was watching the same game as everyone else! To say that the game passed him by when he looked one of the most impressive players on the pitch is baffling to say the least.
Whether his comments are being used to keep Burke’s feet on the ground or he’s just being disingenuous to the league here in Ireland, only O’Neill knows, but surely he could easily have put it better.
O’Neill was obviously impressed enough during training all week to give him a start, so must see potential there, whilst of Burke’s team-mates were very impressed with the quality he’s showed since linking up with the squad last week.
While O’Neill didn’t outwardly seem to be overly impressed, some former Irish Internationals were quick to praise the Shamrock Rovers man. Kenny Cunningham said, “We can get too caught up sometimes with the step-up from the League of Ireland. Give them the opportunity and some player rise the occasion, as Graham did."
Also, Keith Andrews said, “The confidence out of him. Wanting the ball. The ground he was covering just trying to impress!"
Burke himself was thrilled after the game, “It’s been a brilliant night for me. To start a Senior game for the Republic of Ireland is an unbelievable achievement for me, and to top it off with a goal, I can’t really put it into words what it means to me and how proud I am. It will stay with me forever.”
He now returns to Shamrock Rovers on Monday morning as he and his team-mates build up to Saturday night’s clash with Bray Wanderers in Tallaght Stadium.
Comments
Post a Comment