DREAMS GO UP IN SMOKE
END-OF-TERM ASSESSMENT ON CAMPAIGN THAT FADED BADLY AFTER PROMISING SO MUCH
THE SURPRISES David Meyler 7/10
A PRIME example of mind over matter. Relegated from the Premier League with Hull City, he persevered rather than wilted in the face of adversity and blossomed into captain material under O’Neill by the end of the Group D qualifying campaign.
He led by example in the vital 1-0 win away to Wales but a late booking ruled him out of the first leg of the play-off with Denmark and he was substituted at halftime of the return fixture as the World Cup dream slipped away. Regardless, for sheer determination his contribution should be admired.
Darren Randolph 8/10
BACKED up his Euro 2016 experience by becoming the undoubted No.1, despite his woes at club level where he lost his place at West Ham United and dropped back to the Championship for regular game time with Middlesbrough.
It was hard not to feel sorry for him as the Christian Erikseninspired Denmark tore Ireland to shreds in Dublin. If it hadn’t been for his display against Wales in Cardiff, though, Ireland would not even have been in the reckoning.
Ciaran Clark 7/10
FOR a long time his name on the team sheet provided a sense of dread, like a toddler eating chocolate — you know it will end messy and badly.
One of the abiding memories of Euro 2016 was his attempt at a kamikaze sliding tackle to clear out Belgium’s Eden Hazard as he raced down the wing. He missed, ending up on his backside. So to see him regroup this year and look assured alongside Shane Duffy was a major surprise. Sadly, after standing firm in Copenhagen, everything unravelled in the second leg of the play-off.
Callum O’Dowda 6/10
HELPED Ireland get on the front foot in the two games against Moldova but looked like a fish out of water when O’Neill thrust him into the spotlight during the first leg of the play-off in Copenhagen.
Currently injured, he is part of a Bristol City team which is in the reckoning for promotion to the Premier League. He has a spark of adventure in his play and could develop into an exciting regular on the wing.
THE DISAPPOINTMENTS Robbie Brady 4/10
A ROTTEN year ended in misery for the Dubliner with a serious knee injury ruling him out for a prolonged period of time in 2018. If there wasn’t such a dearth of Irish talent operating at the top level his place in the starting XI would have been under severe pressure. Still only in his mid-20s, the chastening experiences of the last 12 months in a green jersey should only act as a way of strengthening his resolve.
Brady (top left) certainly has the ability. He faces a gruelling recovery process but Sean Dyche, his boss at Burnley, is a guiding light.
Jeff Hendrick 5/10
HIS show of persistence and quality in the build-up to James McClean’s goal in Cardiff was the saving grace for a poor campaign that started so promisingly. He scored a crucial goal in Serbia — so scruffy it was almost beautiful — but his influence on the Ireland midfield was minimal.
Shane Long 5/10
HE’S going through the type of goal drought that would warrant a Trocaire collection just to buy him a shot on target.
His endeavour and honesty are traits to be encouraged but he has scored just four times in 2017 — the last of which was in February — and the only hope now is that he enjoys his finest days during his 30s.
James McCarthy 4/10
THERE will be little chance of him linking arms and clinking champagne glasses come time to sing Auld Lang Syne.
Instead, the midfielder will most likely be under his bed covers, hoping to make it safely past midnight and start afresh in 2018. Injuries — knee, hamstring and thigh — decimated any chance of him building on a solid ending to Euro 2016 and a 60-minute appearance against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup in October was his first taste of action since March.
THE STANDOUTS James McClean 9/10
THE general public’s decision to vote him the RTÉ Irish Sportsperson of the Year was the catalyst for the disaffected to bathe in a bubble bath of bile.
Spewing cheap insults and denigrating the ‘West Brom reserve’, it’s almost as if they forget soccer is actually the biggest sport in this country and unites the masses more than any other. McClean’s goal
against Wales was a sensational moment at a time when the team needed inspiration. He was the man who provided it more than most over the course of the whole campaign.
Shane Duffy 9/10
NO Irish player had a better year in terms of progress and impact for club and country.
As well as firmly establishing himself as the leader at the heart of Ireland’s defence, the Derryman also gained promotion to the Premier League with Brighton and has looked right at home since the opening day.
His performance in Cardiff will be rightly lionised but failure to qualify for Russia and the team’s play-off collapse means it will never quite gain the same status as other Irish masterclasses when backs were against the wall.
THE OTHERS Daryl Murphy 6/10
HE is the forward the Ireland manager trusts most to lead the line but the 34-year-old’s time is coming to an end.
His sublime header against Moldova was one of the few highlights on home soil in 2017 but the fact it was just his third goal of the campaign — making him the top scorer among the strikers — shows just how big a problem Ireland have in that department.
Harry Arter 5/10
A REAL mixed bag. Showed awareness and guile with his dummy for the McClean goal against the Welsh and was such a nuisance away to Austria that it totally disrupted their flow.
But he was dreadful away to Georgia and was hooked at halftime in Dublin against Denmark because of his failure to show composure in possession or discipline with his defensive duties.
Cyrus Christie 5/10
THROWN in at the deep end following Seamus Coleman’s double leg break. Had to contend with constant comparisons and provided the Ireland captain can return to his previous level, the Middlesbrough man should revert to understudy.
Jon Walters 6/10
SCORED a crucial equaliser against Austria in Dublin and led by example while far from matchfit out in Vienna. Injuries caught up with him towards the end of the year when Ireland needed his presence most.
Stephen Ward 6/10
WILL have nightmares about his display in the 5-1 defeat to Denmark. Usually so reliable — he started 11 of Ireland’s 12 games — he also earned a new contract with Burnley.
Seamus Coleman 6/10
HIS cruel injury left teammates in a state of shock but he has showed his determination to return and might just add to his solitary goal which came at a crucial point at home to Georgia as Ireland struggled.
Wes Hoolahan 5/10
BEST performance came away to Moldova but his influence waned and he started just four games during the entire campaign.
Glenn Whelan 5/10
A TRUSTED lieutenant for O’Neill but he is unlikely to start as many games — six — during the UEFA Nations League next year. If he hangs around.
John O’Shea & Richard Keogh 6/10
BOTH started the same two games — away to Serbia and home to Wales — and while they helped muzzle Gareth Bale in Dublin, they looked on from the bench for the rest of the campaign. In O’Shea’s case, he will soon call time on his distinguished international career.
Kevin Long 5/10
GIVEN a surprise start at home to Austria but wasn’t seen since as he had to make do with being a squad player. Aiden McGeady, Stephen Quinn, David McGoldrick, Conor Hourihan, Sean Maguire and Eunan O’Kane all played bit-part roles.
McClean inspired more than any other