Tom Cannon

https://twitter.com/EmiratesFACup/status/1743632873410720099

horsebox wrote: Wasn't there a bit of an issue before with the under age teams whereby the English lads were preferred over home grown Irish players to try and prevent them from switching.

TooOldForThis wrote: The O'Shea wrote: TooOldForThis wrote: The O'Shea wrote: TooOldForThis wrote: I'm sure most of us don't just support Ireland, we support our club teams as well. But my support for Ireland is very different from my support for my club. I couldn't care less about the national backgrounds of the club players. But I want the Ireland team to actually reflect something about our country. So I want the players to have a sincere prior connection with Ireland, in whatever form that takes, if at all possible. I'd imagine you'll be devastated by Finn Azaz playing for us given his background then. It's hard to believe that in this day and age we're still wrestling with all of this blood purity sh*te when it comes to our national team, but then again there always has been a weird amount of derision towards the diaspora. Why would I be devastated? The lad is English born of both Irish and Israeli heritage. It seems he has the choice of 3 nations. If he has a sense of Irishness as part of his mixed heritage, welcome aboard! And what if that sense of Irishness came with a strong sense of also being Israeli - would that pass your "purity of the soul" check, seeing as our players apparently are only legitimate Irishmen if they represent all of your own views on Irishnes? The only requirement is that they pass their own sense of Irishness, not mine. I have German, Italian and English heritage. But I'm Irish.

TooOldForThis wrote: The O'Shea wrote: TooOldForThis wrote: I'm sure most of us don't just support Ireland, we support our club teams as well. But my support for Ireland is very different from my support for my club. I couldn't care less about the national backgrounds of the club players. But I want the Ireland team to actually reflect something about our country. So I want the players to have a sincere prior connection with Ireland, in whatever form that takes, if at all possible. I'd imagine you'll be devastated by Finn Azaz playing for us given his background then. It's hard to believe that in this day and age we're still wrestling with all of this blood purity sh*te when it comes to our national team, but then again there always has been a weird amount of derision towards the diaspora. Why would I be devastated? The lad is English born of both Irish and Israeli heritage. It seems he has the choice of 3 nations. If he has a sense of Irishness as part of his mixed heritage, welcome aboard!

Green Cockade wrote: Professional footballers are all mercenaries. I do not blame them for that. It’s a short career where you have to maximise your opportunities before it’s all over. Doesn’t make a lot of sense to for instance extol the performances of Mikey Johnston for Ireland if you’re annoyed about him taking years to declare in the first place. Or lament the defections of Rice and Grealish if you weren’t happy about their selection in squads ahead of Ireland born players. Whatever their motives or mindsets, professional players want to play well when they’re on the field and it really is down to putting out the best team possible under the rules that pertain at any given time.

Professional footballers are all mercenaries. I do not blame them for that. It’s a short career where you have to maximise your opportunities before it’s all over. Doesn’t make a lot of sense to for instance extol the performances of Mikey Johnston for Ireland if you’re annoyed about him taking years to declare in the first place. Or lament the defections of Rice and Grealish if you weren’t happy about their selection in squads ahead of Ireland born players. Whatever their motives or mindsets, professional players want to play well when they’re on the field and it really is down to putting out the best team possible under the rules that pertain at any given time.

Edited by Green Cockade - 05 Jan 2024 at 2:37pm

Wasn't there a bit of an issue before with the under age teams whereby the English lads were preferred over home grown Irish players to try and prevent them from switching.

The O'Shea wrote: TooOldForThis wrote: I'm sure most of us don't just support Ireland, we support our club teams as well. But my support for Ireland is very different from my support for my club. I couldn't care less about the national backgrounds of the club players. But I want the Ireland team to actually reflect something about our country. So I want the players to have a sincere prior connection with Ireland, in whatever form that takes, if at all possible. I'd imagine you'll be devastated by Finn Azaz playing for us given his background then. It's hard to believe that in this day and age we're still wrestling with all of this blood purity sh*te when it comes to our national team, but then again there always has been a weird amount of derision towards the diaspora.

Edited by SeaSharp - 05 Jan 2024 at 1:44pm

TooOldForThis wrote: I'm sure most of us don't just support Ireland, we support our club teams as well. But my support for Ireland is very different from my support for my club. I couldn't care less about the national backgrounds of the club players. But I want the Ireland team to actually reflect something about our country. So I want the players to have a sincere prior connection with Ireland, in whatever form that takes, if at all possible.

Edited by The O'Shea - 05 Jan 2024 at 1:36pm