Eight years ago, pretty much every Ireland game at Lansdowne Road was interrupted five minutes before the end by the PA announcing “the eircom man of the match is Damien Duff”.
In the intervening years, much has changed. Lansdowne Road is now the Aviva Stadium. 3 have replaced eircom as the team sponsors. But oh, the joy to see Damien Duff once again play a starring role for Ireland, as Giovanni Trapattoni’s men brushed aside Wales 3-0 in the Carling Nations Cup opener on Tuesday.
Duff capped off a fine individual performance with a goal on 67 minutes, having also hit the post in the first half, whilst his intelligent wing play was a constant worry to first Neal Eardley and then Chris Gunter in the Wales’ right-back position.
The Fulham star stretched the whole of the Wales’ backline with his incisive running, and he remains the only truly two-footed attacking player for Ireland, with an unheralded ability to cut inside and deliver accurate crosses with his right foot.
He will be crucial for Ireland when the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign resumes at the end of March with a home fixture against Macedonia. Trapattoni’s liking for two deep-lying central midfielders means that the wingers need to connect with the forwards if Ireland are to create any attacking threat at all. Duff seems to be back in form after a series of injuries, whilst Seamus Coleman impressed on his debut on the right, so it would not be a huge surprise should Aiden McGeady find himself on the bench on March 26.
Darron Gibson may also be feeling pleased with life, after his wonderful goal on the hour mark. He would be well advised to think again. It is unlikely that he will have impressed Trapattoni, who has overlooked the Manchester United midfielder from recent competitive matches because of his poor distribution and ball retention. He was wasteful again against Wales, and it really is a worry that Gibson does not seem to be progressing as a player.
Trapattoni advised Gibson recently to leave Old Trafford and hone his skills with regular first-team football. Gibson was publicly furious at the intervention, but Trap made the suggestion with his best interests at heart, and the Derryman’s reaction was churlish.
Gibson is 23 now, and the improvement he needs to make to become a certain starter for Ireland will not be brought about by the odd ten minutes of Premier League action at Old Trafford. Sir Alex Ferguson obviously rates his potential, but Gibson is perhaps hoodwinking himself by putting such faith in his club manager’s judgement.
The former Liverpool winger Richie Partridge recently did an interview where he lamented spending six years at Anfield, and not seeking a new challenge lower down the football pyramid. The Dubliner admitted that, despite only playing three League Cup games in that time, the faith that Gerard Houllier showed in him kept him at the club.
Ferguson has shown similar faith in Gibson, and has afforded him chances in League Cup games, the Champions League and the odd Premier League starting berth. And yes, the approbation of one the world’s greatest managers is hard to resist. But he should realise that Trapattoni, with ten league titles in four different countries and success in every European club competition, knows what he is talking about as well.
If he sticks at United, Gibson may find himself in a couple of years with half his career gone, and only 70 or so games to show for it.
He would be advised to look at what happened to Partridge. Just 30 years old, he is no longer a full-time professional, but turning out for Welsh Premier League side The New Saints as a part-timer.