Five questions that must be answered
Was O’Neill right to axe Robbie Keane?
The Irish captain took the hit on the chin but he must have been reeling at the decision to leave him out of a team which included two forwards in a qualifier for the first time under O’Neill. Between them, Jon Walters and Shane Long have 15 internationals goals; Keane has 50 more. The fox in the box was missed.
Should O’Neill have picked James McCarthy?
Had it been a club game, O’Neill said he’d probably have started McCarthy, so why didn’t he? When any player reports for international duty, the manager in charge has the final call. McCarthy’s scan was clear and he should have been stripped, at least. His absence fuelled suspicions his heart may not have been in the game although O’Neill was having none of that as he dismissed this theory.
Is Roy Keane a hindrance or a help?
Between clubs beating a path to Keane’s door, book revelations and coffee table rows, O’Neill has spent far too much time defending his No 2, who fell foul of the referee on Friday night in Glasgow. Would Keane be so tolerant if he had a similar headline-grabbing assistant? Not likely. This alliance could yet end in a messy divorce.
Was this a Euro 2016 opportunity lost?
Scotland had a sprinkling more flair than Ireland, especially the trio of Ikechi Anya, Steven Naismith and Shaun Maloney, and shaded the play. But even so, the goal was a sucker punch. Allowing Maloney space to take a short corner was coupled by the failure to track Scott Brown into the box. The sloppy defending cost Ireland a potentially precious point.
Where now for Ireland in Group D?
Next up are the rampant Poles, who come to Dublin on Sunday, March 29. It’s the first of four games at home in a run of five, before the finale, away to Poland. It’s still in Ireland’s hands to qualify, or reach the playoffs, but the home form at the soulless Aviva has been woeful. Not one decent team has been put to the sword there in competition.