COUNTED OUT!
I won’t walk away, insists embattled Trap Ireland suffer Aviva agony as Austria escape
GIOVANNI TRAPATTONI remained defiant and still refused to contemplate quitting after his side shipped a last-minute goal to allow Austria to escape Dublin with a draw.
Ireland were seconds away from taking four points from this World Cup qualifying week, which would have propelled them into second place in Group C.
But David Alaba’s drive in added time, which took the merest deflection off substitute Sean St Ledger to deceive keeper David Forde, has left Ireland sitting fourth.
They are significantly behind their rivals on goal difference, and Sweden still have a game in hand against the Faroe Islands.
But Trapattoni (right) vowed to fight on, and he looks likely to remain in charge for the final qualifier of the season when the Faroes visit Dublin in June. Asked last night if he would quit, he said: ‘Why? Why? We have the same table like the day before, it has not changed the situation. There is five or six games and matches against Sweden, Austria, Kazakhstan, Faroes and Germany. It has started now.
‘Why? We are Ireland. Do you think we are Germany or England? We have been a little unlucky this evening. The
goal was deflected. In the second half we were a little bit down and the players were tired. ‘I believed we could win but I knew Austria are in the table with us and I was afraid of them. I asked the team to play with the same personality and conviction as we showed against Sweden. ‘Think how disappointed the players are. They need support because we must be positive and teach them. I believe in this team and the new strength and revolution.’ The final whistle was again met with boos from an Aviva Stadium crowd at the end of their tether after five years of the 74-yearold Italian in charge. Despite the outcome, and the presence of former Reading manager Brian McDermott at the game, senior FAI sources remain behind the manager for the rest of the campaign, while Ireland retain a chance of qualifying. Austria and Sweden still have to play each other and a draw there would help Ireland in the race for second, but they came from behind to go to the verge of a valuable win last night that would have put them back on the road to Brazil. The impressive Shane Long was bizarrely sacrificed in the closing stages by the manager, who explained: ‘[Conor] Sammon stayed on because he is more physical.’ Jon Walters’ second of the night, and his fourth for Ireland, came from a Glenn Whelan corner which he nodded firmly off the post past Heinz Linder in the last seconds of the first half. But Ireland were fortunate at that stage that James McCarthy was not red-carded for a lunge at Zlatko Junuzovic which resulted in his substitution, and Austria’s loss of ground for a long period. ‘This is how the tackles are done here,’ said Austria’s coach Marcel Koller. ‘I don’t think he did it on purpose.’ But Austria had the better of the second period and an equaliser always looked likely as Ireland lost ground, and Koller and the Austrians were certainly the more satisfied leaving the Aviva last night. Trapattoni left to boos from the home crowd, again, while the Austria manager looked uber-cool and had marked Alaba’s dramatic late strike by dancing on the pitch with a very large entourage. He added: ‘There is no time for euphoria. We haven’t qualified yet but we are still close to the other teams in the group.’