IRELAND PLAN ROUGH NIGHT FOR BALE
GARETH BALE very nearly signed for Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2009. That is according to Republic of Ireland forward Kevin Doyle. The two players meet in a World Cup qualifier in Dublin tomorrow night with Wales talisman Bale the centre of attention. But Doyle says they could well have been team-mates at Molineux. ‘I remember he nearly came to us on loan in one of the transfer windows,’ said Doyle, who joined Wolves in 2009. ‘But I think someone got injured at Spurs and the deal fell through.’ Had the deal materialised Bale would have also been a teammate of Stephen Ward, the Irish left back who will be charged with stopping the Real Madrid winger at the Aviva Stadium. Ireland assistant boss Roy Keane has suggested his players use legitimate force in a bid to unsettle Bale, but what does Ward think? ‘It’s a difficult question,’ said the Burnley defender. ‘He’s obviously one of the best players in the world. I think Roy said that it’s very difficult to have a gameplan against these people. ‘I think that we just have to try not to let him have time on the ball and make it uncomfortable for him.’ Meanwhile, Joe Ledley is hoping he can enjoy a double celebration this weekend with the birth of his third child due after the crunch World Cup qualifier. The Crystal Palace midfielder has been inseparable from his phone in case his wife Ruby goes into labour earlier than expected. Wayne Hennessey, Ledley’s longterm club and international room-mate, said: ‘He’s hoping he doesn’t get the call until the day after the game. But he’s not been nervous. He’s been really calm and it’s their third so he’s used to it now.’ Ledley also had a close call at Euro 2016, almost having to rearrange his wedding because of Wales’s run to the semi-final at the tournament in France.
SCOTLAND were last night held to a 1-1 draw in a friendly against Canada at Easter Road. Fraser Aird opened the scoring for the Canadians, who are ranked 117th in the world, after only 11 minutes. Steven Naismith equalised 10 minutes before half-time in what was a frustrating night for the Scots. They currently sit fifth in their World Cup qualifying group.