Roy still seems to have, um, issues

Judging by his comments yesterday, the former Ireland captain might do well to follow his own advice, writes MARY HANNIGAN

THE BIG news from Roy Keane’s press conference at Ipswich Town yesterday was that the club’s Dutch centre half, Pim Balkestein, has joined Brentford on loan. Other than that? Quiet enough.

Well, apart from the bit where the manager was asked for his views on what happened in Paris, the gist of his message to Ireland being: get over it.

But, it would seem, he’s still to get over Saipan.

“I’ve been amazed at the commotion that’s been going on,” he said. “Of course he handled the ball, but I’d focus on why the Irish defence didn’t clear it, I’d be more annoyed with my defenders and my goalkeeper than Thierry Henry. How can you let the ball bounce in your six-yard box? How can you let him get goal-side of you? If the ball goes into the six-yard box, I’d be saying ‘where the hell is my goalkeeper?’.”

Keane, it should be noted, has “previous” with Shay Given; he once criticised the goalkeeper for wanting to appear in every international friendly, rather than allow his understudy gain some experience, suggesting all he wanted was “200 caps” and “a pat on the back”.

Do you not feel the integrity of the game has been damaged?

“No. No, not one bit,” he said, reminding his audience that Ireland had benefited from a refereeing error back in February when, a goal down with 17 minutes to go, they were wrongly awarded a penalty against Georgia at Croke Park.

“It was one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen, it changed the whole course of the game,” he said. “Robbie scored the penalty and Ireland went on to win it. I don’t remember the FAI after the game saying we should give them a replay.

“Ireland had the chances in the two games (against France), they never took them in the first, they never performed. The manager was speaking after the first game about none of the players getting booked – maybe that was the problem, because we stood off France. We had opportunities to score and we didn’t take them. But the usual Irish, FAI reaction – we’ve been robbed.”

But the FAI are now asking for the game to be replayed?

“Who, John Delaney? He’s on about honesty and integrity . . . I would not take any notice of that man. No. People seem to forget what was going on the last time Ireland were in the World Cup. I was one of the players, he didn’t have the courtesy to ring me. All he said was, ‘I don’t know where he is, he’s on the island somewhere, I think’. I have been involved with Ireland since I was 15 years of age but that man didn’t have the decency to even make a phone call.”

Did he know where to contact you?

“He could have found me, of course he could have. He could have tried my hotel room.” (Laughter) “You can laugh. That was the World Cup. And he’s on about the honesty of the game?

“He didn’t want to listen to my side of the story. I had a disagreement with Mick (McCarthy), but he didn’t have the courtesy to speak to me. Even when I went back playing for Ireland it was the same. He walked past me in a hotel corridor.

“And this man’s on the television talking about the integrity and honesty of the game, and what football’s all about? What goes around comes around. I’m a great believer in that.”

He wasn’t, he insisted, “on a personal crusade against the FAI”.

“I have been involved with Ireland since I was 15. I didn’t just jump on board when I was 24 because they had qualified for a tournament. I’m Irish-born and reared, so I’m entitled to my opinion.

“It’s the same old Ireland, the world’s against us, and because it was a handball it’s a great excuse. We’ve even had English managers being interviewed about it. As if they are bothered. Do you think they were lying awake the other night worrying about Ireland? It’s nonsense. If it was England, do you think I would be worried? It’s a farce. It is an over-reaction from everybody, which is usual in Ireland.

“This idea that Ireland were robbed and they deserve a replay – no. The Irish supporters probably deserve better, I think the manager and probably most of the players deserve better, but I’m not sure the FAI deserve better.”

Describing Henry as “a top, top player who took advantage of the situation”, Keane said he believed the handball was purely the French captain’s “instinct”.

“Sometimes you go for the ball, you stick your leg out, your hand out, whatever it might be. Would I call him a cheat? No, I wouldn’t think so. Did he bend the rules a little bit? Yeah, but we see cheating going on all the time in games, players diving, and when I’m asked about it I say, yeah, the game’s full of it.

“It’s just the usual reaction. Ex-players getting involved, obviously getting a few bob for their interviews, the media selling newspapers. If that was my team I’d go in to the dressingroom and I wouldn’t even mention the handball, I’d just say, ‘why didn’t someone put their head on it? There’s only one ball, just go and head it! Where’s my goalkeeper?’ At every level, whether you’re nine, 10 years of age, every defender is told don’t let the ball bounce, particularly in your own box, and play to the whistle.

“And Ireland had chances anyway. They’d chances in Croke Park and Paris, they didn’t take them. France were there for the taking and Ireland never grabbed it. The usual stuff.

“Afraid of that next step. Mentally not strong enough. They can complain all they want, all these players, it’s not going to change – France are going to the World Cup, get over it. We don’t want sympathy.

“It’s the usual, the usual carry-on, boring. Bore you to death, they would. Boring.”

The Ipswich reporters, you’d assume, found it less than boring. Poor Pim Balkestein was relegated to a footnote.

Pim? Get over it.