We’re not Brasil we’re Tuaisceart Éireann

Michael is not "the first Ulster-born Catholic to manage NI" - Magharafelt's finest, Peter "The Great" Doherty was our first ever manager, appointed in 1951:

Territorial wrote: Trap junior wrote: I can imagine not too many protestants from the north would want to play for EIRE.  That's why they aren't asked.   Hardly sectarian. So when eg Rangers refused to approach Catholic players, were you happy with the "explanation" that it was because they wouldn't have wanted to play for them? And Jock Stein was pissing against the wind when he tried to recruit Protestants. Remind me again, which team was the sectarian one? And what would be your reaction if the IFA were to decline to approach Catholic players and prefer Protestants, on the basis that the former would want to play for ROI? Indeed, extend that principle to the officers and employees at the IFA. We wouldn't have Catholics filling the position of Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Director of Marketing, Elite Performance Director, (ahem) Senior Manager. and a whole bunch of other senior roles. In fact, we would probably be accused of being a sectarian organisation. Oh, wait...   Trap junior wrote: Catholics are more likely to nationalist and have aspirations of playing for their country. It's political not sectarian.   Does he want the FAI to ask protestants now? Approaching one group of players who are (seemingly) Catholic, and declining to approach another group who are thought to be Protestant, is conducting a recruitment policy on sectarian grounds, pure and simple. No amount of blether or semantics will change that.

The FAI don't approach 6 county players, they wait for players to approach them. I'm sure if protestant players expressed an interest in playing for the Irish national team that they'd be considered in the exact same way as McClean, Duffy et al. I'd imagine they don't because they identify with the IFA team. Which is fine. If they want to play and are good enough they're more than welcome.

Territorial wrote: Trap junior wrote: I can imagine not too many protestants from the north would want to play for EIRE.  That's why they aren't asked.   Hardly sectarian. So when eg Rangers refused to approach Catholic players, were you happy with the "explanation" that it was because they wouldn't have wanted to play for them? And Jock Stein was pissing against the wind when he tried to recruit Protestants. Remind me again, which team was the sectarian one? And what would be your reaction if the IFA were to decline to approach Catholic players and prefer Protestants, on the basis that the former would want to play for ROI? Indeed, extend that principle to the officers and employees at the IFA. We wouldn't have Catholics filling the position of Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Director of Marketing, Elite Performance Director, (ahem) Senior Manager. and a whole bunch of other senior roles. In fact, we would probably be accused of being a sectarian organisation. Oh, wait...   Trap junior wrote: Catholics are more likely to nationalist and have aspirations of playing for their country. It's political not sectarian.   Does he want the FAI to ask protestants now? Approaching one group of players who are (seemingly) Catholic, and declining to approach another group who are thought to be Protestant, is conducting a recruitment policy on sectarian grounds, pure and simple. No amount of blether or semantics will change that.

How is it sectarian when half our players are probably protestant not that anyone gives a toss about religion anymore.  Loads of our players are English born and only have grannies that are Irish.  I wonder what religion Sheedy, Aldridge, Townsend and numerous other players were  when  Jack Charlton (a protestant) asked them to play for us.  I don't recall anyone go ''hold on there Jack they didnt go to mass''.   Nobody gives a toss about religion (at least down here).  the only reason Willian Cecil Mahood etc isn't approached is because they know damn well they are working class unionists and wouldnt play for us if asked.  As if Kyle Lafferty would line out under the tricolour!

I dont ask out supermodels on dates because I know they will say no.  It doesn't mean I am a bigot against hot women.

As for Rangers not signing Catholics.  It was their policy to not alllow catholics to play for them because them for sectarian reasons.  They weren't welcome nor wanted. Celtic ddn't discriminate against anyone.

The Republic will have anyone of any race or religion play for us. 

Michael O'Neill is talking out of his arse  and so are you.

Trap junior wrote: The Republic will have anyone of any...    ... religion play for us.

Then why don't they approach Protestant youngsters equally to Catholic ones?

Territorial wrote: Trap junior wrote: The Republic will have anyone of any...    ... religion play for us.  Then why don't they approach Protestant youngsters equally to Catholic ones?

See TJs point on supermodels above. Your argument is agruing for the sake of it and nonsense

Brilliant TJ!

Territorial wrote: Drumcondra 69er wrote: The FAI don't approach 6 county players, they wait for players to approach them. Simply not true. I have it on impeccable authority that the FAI are approaching the parents of schoolkids even, taking them out to dinner, offering them free tickets to the AVIVA (and doubtless making all sorts of promises). And of course they will instruct them to deny it, since it is in both parties' best interests to maintain the fiction. Which in turn makes it harder to prove definitively, even though it is known to be happening. Still, it occasionally seeps out where, for instance, the player has a reason* for revealing it: <h2 ="title" style="margin: 0px; padding: 5px 0px; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-stretch: normal; font-size: 2.2em; line-height: normal; font-family: Georgia; letter-spacing: -0.05em; border-bottom: 1px solid rgb221, 221, 221; border-top: 3px solid rgb221, 221, 221; color: rgb51, 51, 51;">FAI approach Shane Ferguson</h2> <div style=": rgb251, 251, 253;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">Yesterday [29 April 2011], former Irish under 21 boss Don Givens confirmed that the FAI had approached Derry-born Shane Ferguson about the possibility of playing for the Republic of Ireland.</span> <div style=": rgb251, 251, 253;"><p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">Ferguson, who has been a Northern Ireland international from under 17 level upwards, and has even played a friendly game at senior level, coming on as a substitute in a 3-0 loss against Italy. The fact that he has yet to play a competitive match for Northern Ireland allows him to switch allegiances and declare for another country. <p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">Ferguson has caught the eye of many Irish fans playing for Newcastle United in the Premiership this season, and yesterday Don Givens (now the FAI’s chief scout) confirmed that the FAI had approached the 19 year old in order to get him to change to the Republic of Ireland. <p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">“Shane is still kind of making his mind up but Mick Martin has spoken to him,” Givens told journalists. “I’m sure the North are not too happy with us. They have a small pool of players but in the long run, the less good results they get the more the dual players will want to come to us.” <p style="margin: 0px 0px 15px; padding: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">http://greenscene.me/2011/04/fai-approach-shane-ferguson/ * - Shane's reason being to dispel the notion that he wasn'r playing for NI because he was holding out for ROI (he had actually fallen out with Worthington, no more, no less)

Any actual evidence other than hearsay or whiskey soaked rhetoric? Nothing in that link says that Ferguson didn't initiate contact.

So was Alex Bruce poached by the North?

Territorial wrote: Drumcondra 69er wrote: Any actual evidence other than hearsay or whiskey soaked rhetoric? Nothing in that link says that Ferguson didn't initiate contact. 1. "<span style="color: rgb51, 51, 51; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;">Yesterday, former Irish under 21 boss Don Givens confirmed that the FAI had approached Derry-born Shane Ferguson about the possibility of playing for the Republic of Ireland."</span> <span style="color: rgb51, 51, 51; font-family: Arial, Helvetica; font-size: 12.348px;"> </span> <span style="color: rgb51, 51, 51; font-family: Arial, Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 12.348px;">2.</span><i style=""> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i style="">'But my heart is with Northern Ireland and always has been. I've represented them since I was a kid and I want to play for them for as long as I can.</span> <p style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; min-height: 1px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><font style="" size="4">But I've shown everyone I want to play for Northern Ireland and that's not going to change. <div ="clear" style="margin: 0px; clear: both; width: auto; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; padding: 0px !imant; min-height: 0px !imant; height: 0px !imant; line-height: 0 !imant; : none !imant; border: 0px !imant;"> <p style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; min-height: 1px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><font style="" size="4">'I've got family from the south, but I just thought it was a good decision for me to stay with the country where I was born and raised.' <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px;">Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2062910/Newcastles-Shane-Ferguson-committed-Northern-Ireland.html#ixzz58oWfFgxQ </span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px;"> </span> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Work it out for yourself, Einstein...</span>

Read it again. That's a quote from the writer you've copied there, not from Givens.

What Givens actually said was "Shane is still kind of making his mind up but Mick Martin has spoken to him. I’m sure the North are not too happy with us. They have a small pool of players but in the long run, the less good results they get the more the dual players will want to come to us.”

You not think if there was an actual quote to back up your jaundiced, one eyed nonsense that they'd actually have used it, Einstein?