Ireland sinking in a swamp of sadness
THERE’S AN emotional, tear-jerking scene in the children’s movie ‘The NeverEnding Story’ when Atreyu’s horse Artax is swallowed up by the swamp of sadness during the quest to save Fantasia.
The secret to making it through the testing terrain is not to let the sorrow overcome you, as if you allow the sadness to sink in you will disappear without trace.
The key to survival is the ability to remain positive when surrounded by almost suffocating negativity, not an easy task I’m sure you’ll agree.
When I was a child, a tear or two trickled down my fresh face as I saw the noble steed lose his battle with the overbearing sense of melancholy, but as a greying forty-something those same sombre feelings of desperation are evoked when I watch Martin O’Neill’s Republic of Ireland team take to the field, with the Aviva Stadium pitch proving to be our own personal swamp of sadness.
There’s absolutely nothing but pessimism surrounding our senior soccer team at present and it’s nigh on impossible to escape that mindset.
From manager Martin O’Neill down there’s more negatives than in an old-school photographer’s workshop, with the most negative thing of all being the uninspiring brand of football they produce.
After Saturday night’s insipid display against Denmark, it doesn’t look like there will be an upturn in fortunes any time soon.
Okay, the bare result may look a hell of a lot better than the 5-1 humbling at the hands of the same opposition in the World Cup playoff last November, but the manner of the performance was about as depressing as football can be.
Christian Eriksen, who did most of the damage in the last meeting, was out injured and the Danes are decidedly average without their star man pulling the strings.
Surely it was an opportunity to go for the jugular? Not a bit of it as Ireland followed a similar tried and trusted, tired pattern, as cagey as an aviary, as they hardly mustered a shot in anger throughout the 90 minutes.
Why would anyone be bothered to tune in when even the highlights of the highlights would be a decent substitute for maximum strength sleeping tablets?
The number of empty seats in the stadium told its own story as Ireland plodded to a goalless draw in a game that, thankfully, will quickly fade from memory.
It goes without saying that the Irish were defensively sounder than in their previous pounding by Denmark and their 4-1 reverse to Wales in the opening fixture in this competition, but where was the energy and attacking verve that would get the home fans on the edge of their seats?
The players looked like they were lacking confidence as they struggled to string a couple of passes together and poor Matt Doherty, making his competitive international start, must have felt like a fish out of water compared to what he is used to at his club Wolves.
Ireland were certainly successful in denying the more technically proficient Danish the space to shine, but offensively they showed little or nothing as the visitors dominated possession.
There hasn’t been much talk about the Irish side on the streets in recent times, given the complete lack of connection between the struggling team and the wider public.
In fact, international football in general has retreated very much back into the shadows after all the hullabaloo of an exciting World Cup, with the more casual observer seeing the break from the likes of the Premier League as being little more than an annoyance.
Maybe it’s due to the fact that the jury still seems to be out regarding the newly-established UEFA Nations League, with many supporters viewing the games as glorified friendlies.
If they are to be seriously looked on as competitive fixtures, the games should be available to all to view on our national broadcaster as when they’re hidden away on Sky Sports, which many don’t subscribe to, it only adds to the disconnect and general disinterest.
That said, many would probably still choose to watch Coronation Street or some other frivolous frolics ahead of our international team given the complete dross that they’re serving up at present.
Of course, there’s always a slim chance that Martin O’Neill’s outlook might change and we’ll soon be bouncing in positivity, but unlike the ill-fated Artax I won’t be holding my breath.