Identity of next boss not as important as pathways strategy
THERE were audible gasps when Ireland and England were drawn together in the Nations League in Paris last Thursday. Within minutes, WhatsApp groups and social media here were alive to what all of this will mean, particularly with regard to the chances of the FAI landing their number one target – and let’s be honest, the number one target of pretty much all of us – for the vacant manager’s job.
The thing is that the Nations League draw won’t make up Lee Carsley’s mind, one way or the other, as to whether now is the right time to take charge of his country. Those who believe that Carrsleywill be put off by the prospect of facing his former employer in his first competitive game know very much about the current England Under 21 manager.
We can only hope that Carsley
‘THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS THE NUMBER OF FIEFDOMS IN THE GAME’
is announced in the next couple of weeks, as the protracted process has become deeply irritating. However, even if it will be quite the coup for the FAI to deliver one of the most highly-regarded coaches in English football, the far more significant announcement in the coming days will be director of football Marc Canham’s unveiling of his Football Pathways plan, which has been mooted for months.
For almost two decades, the FAI has wrestled with the question of what to do with Irish football and how can we provide a properly functioning conveyor belt to ensure that football, which – as a certain former chief executive constantly reminded us – is the biggest participation sport in Ireland, can harness its vast potential.
Part of the plan emerged this week, as they want all leagues at senior and under-age level to be aligned in the same calendar year as part of the plan. In many ways, this seems like a no-brainer. Only this weekend, my eight-year-old son’s football match was cancelled because Dublin City Council decreed that all pitches were unplayable due to last week’s heavy rain. It isn’t the first time that it has happened – and every weekend, it is affecting kids a lot older than Dan.
So, summer football seems to make sense. After taking a while to find its feet, nobody can argue that it hasn’t worked for League of Ireland. And aligning with the senior game for all levels is rational – but sense and rationale often go out the window when it comes to Irish football.
For years, we have heard too many excuses about what is holding back Irish football – from the big bad monster across channel to the lack of facilities. But the biggest issue has always been the number of fiefdoms within the game, determined to hold onto whatever little power they have.
And it is something that the FAI director of football may find as he goes across the country with workshops explaining his Football Pathways Plan. Apparently, there was a little displeasure in the General Assembly yesterday as he outlined it.
One wonders why. Some of Canham’s ideas seem like no-brainers, and indeed borrowed from what worked well in the likes of GAA and rugby, which is what Irish football should have always been doing instead of trying to transplant the Dutch model.
The establishment of eight new regional football associations to manage affairs around the country, the introduction of a common rulebook for all leagues and the creation of an enlarged football pyramid of six tiers below the existing League of Ireland are all things we should get behind.
Finally appointing someone to the highest-profile job in Irish sport might seem like the most pressing matter for the FAI (apart from maybe securing a mainline sponsor). But the Football Pathways Plan, when we finally see it next week, will be of greater significance.