I BELIEVE IN WHAT STEPHEN IS DOING
Former international David Meyler is giving his backing to Irish boss Kenny – for the moment – but warns that it’s going to be tough and hard to watch
AS a player, there was little subtlety about David Meyler. Just ask Joe Allen, who didn’t know what day of the week it was after running into the bricks and mortar of ‘Fort Meyler’ on a rugged World Cup night in Cardiff in 2017.
The Corkonian was as hard as nails, wholly committed, ferocious in the tackle.
If he lacked pace and guile, he compensated elsewhere and was the sort of player you liked to see in the Ireland XI, especially on foreign battlefields when the muck and bullets were flying.
Even on one good knee, Meyler could win a ball, and find a teammate with a pass. Martin O’Neill recognised his qualities and gave him the armband when Seamus Coleman was injured.
Meyler’s take on the Irish set-up under Stephen Kenny carries credence as he was only recently part of the scene, playing under Giovanni Trapattoni and O’Neill, for whom he delivered on away days in Germany, Austria and Wales over the course of 26 deserved caps.
Not yet 32, he’s younger than Darren Randolph, Coleman and James McClean, and remains close to a number of the current members in the squad.
Would he make the Ireland team now, if still playing?
‘I’ve one metal knee and I’ve one halfway gone, so I don’t know. Back in my prime, I’d have to back myself. I’d have to have faith to get into the squad, yeah,’ he said.
Cork to the roots – he’d be a very rich man if he got a euro every time he said the word ‘boy’ –
Meyler cares about all Irish teams, including the Under 17s where he has helped out alongside Colin O’Brien.
Almost retired two years, it’s not like he’s been out of the scene for 20 years, or pops up in Sky Sports studios every now and then when the subscription channel has the rights to Irish games.
On Thursday, rolled out by the FAI ahead of tomorrow’s eLOI Finals Night, he argued why the embattled Kenny (below) should be given time to put into practice his vision for Irish international football.
‘Martin was there to get results, Giovanni was there to get results, they had to get us to major tournaments. I think there’s more to this (the Irish job) than a lot of people see.
‘I believe in what Stephen is doing but it is going to be tough. It’s going to be hard to watch. We have a lot of young players. People call for change and change doesn’t happen overnight. We have to remember that. Rome wasn’t built in a day.
‘If Ireland had won their first two (World Cup) group games, you’d be asking the question differently.
‘We’re trying to identify a philosophy through the ages to take Ireland forward through a number of years, not just get caught up in the next World Cup in Qatar; let’s be looking at the bigger picture that goes on for the next 10-12 years. So that when the day comes that Stephen either loses his job or decides to move on, the next person comes in and there’s a foundation put in place that he can just continue on.’
‘You want a conveyor belt from the under-age teams to the seniors. From my time with the U19s, I was the only one who played in the Premier League and represented Ireland at senior level.
‘Why weren’t there four or five David Meylers? I believe the work we’re doing now will see us get a lot more players through.’
The pragmatic side of Meyler acknowledged that if the World Cup campaign ‘went to pot’ a change of manager would be inevitable.
‘As long as we see a natural progression and the philosophy working then I’m fully supportive but if all went to smithereens, went to pot, then of course you’d look for change. That’s only natural.
‘If we were to have an awful campaign in these World Cup qualifiers, then Stephen knows people are going to put pressure on him.
‘I think Stephen would be the first to admit that himself. If he feels that he can’t affect this team or group of players in a certain positive way then of course he would be honourable enough to step aside and think: “It’s not working”.’
As the curtain falls on the regular English club season this weekend, Meyler has been on the knife-edge before.
‘I’ve got two promotions on my CV, but most people talk about the two relegations. Roy Keane was relegated with Nottingham Forest, people forget about that, and he won seven Premier League titles,’ he said.
John Egan and Enda Stevens of Sheffield United have been relegated; Dara O’Shea and Callum Robinson (West Brom) could join them, as could Ciaran Clark and Jeff Hendrick (Newcastle).
Meyler feels for them.
‘When you get promoted, the first thing you do when the fixtures are released is you look for when you play the big six. You always have an affiliation with one of those teams – mine was Liverpool.
‘When you’re relegated that’s all gone. It’s no disrespect to any Championship side but you’re like “We’re going to play Luton, we’re going to Coventry, we’re going to play Wycombe”, as opposed to say the big six.
‘It’s just horrible, the feeling of it. And of course, 99 times out of 100 your wages get slashed in half, so you have to factor in the money aspect of it.’
■ eSports enthusiast David Meyler launched the first eLOI finals night. Tomorrow, eight of the country’s top FIFA 21 PS players will compete to be crowned the League of Ireland eSport champions.
‘PEOPLE CALL FOR CHANGE BUT IT DOESN’T JUST HAPPEN OVERNIGHT’