Wales v Republic of Ireland: Emmet Maloneon how Don Givens' side are playing for more than pride and points.

It's not always been entirely clear that the current crop of players share the view expressed again by Don Givens that there are no unimportant games when you are playing for your country. As they prepare for this afternoon's encounter in Cardiff, though, the Irish might just realise that, apart from pride and three points to count towards their seeding not just in two weeks but in two years, they are also auditioning for their next manager.

Andy Reid spoke this week about the Welsh game marking the beginning of the next campaign because the outcome can help to put them in the right frame of mind for the challenge to come next autumn.

More pressingly, a strong performance may help the FAI to persuade a manager of real standing that there are players of character and quality to work with in this Ireland squad. Prospective candidates could be forgiven for doubting it if they take the time to review the campaign as a whole.

It remains uncertain precisely what stage of the recruitment process the association is at. But John Giles' suggestion yesterday that he met with Paul Jewell with the organisation's blessing rather than at its behest in order to properly brief the former Wigan boss on the potential here before he accepted a club job in England makes it sound less well advanced than did Thursday's original news of a meeting having taken place.

You might question the wisdom of the balancing act Giles appears to have taken on by involving himself in the process and suspect that his role is more significant than he would like the outside world to believe but it's hard to argue with his suggestion in his Evening Herald column yesterday that Jewell would now have a little more to "chew on" as he watches the weekend's international action unfold.

With several serious candidates on the radar at present, there will be others too casting an eye over events at the Millennium in order to gauge the potential of a spell with the Irish to enhance their reputations.

Though he doesn't want it himself, Givens insists the post remains an attractive one, albeit one with cons as well as pros.

"The positives," he says, "are that we've got some decent players. Relatively speaking, it's a transition period but at the moment we have a lot of young players in the squad and a lot of them are young boys with talent. I think a lot of people would want to work with them.

"From the point of view of somebody who knows the job," he continues, "you are basically allowed to get on with it. There's not too much interference from the FAI, which isn't necessarily the situation in other countries. They do give the manager a free rein.

"The negatives are that the expectations are off the wall. And sometimes you lot (the media) aren't too helpful, it's got to be said. You might not think so but from the point of view of a neutral some of the coverage has been a little over the top. That's part and parcel of what somebody from outside is going to look at. It can have a bearing on whether a candidate takes it or not."

Asked whether he sees the likes of Jewell as having the potential to thrive in the position, Givens insisted that the question is premature at a stage when any number of people are still being mentioned in connection with the vacancy.

If Giles really is involved in finding the new man, he observes, however, and that involvement extends beyond a single meeting with a prospective candidate, then the association has made a significant step in the right direction.

"There isn't anybody in my time in the game who knows football as well as John Giles," he says. "As a manager he was absolutely fantastic. He was a great manager, a great player who says what he has to in a very short space of time. He's very knowledgeable and it certainly couldn't be a bad thing if that is the case."

The senior squad members, meanwhile, are set to make their opinions on the matter known at a meeting with John Delaney even if nothing so formal as an actual consultation process has been suggested.

"If they ask us then it's not a problem," said Robbie Keane. "We're going to have a chat with John Delaney, some of the senior players, and whatever they want to ask us is fine. We'll give them our opinion, our fair opinion, but that's all we can do. It's up to people above us to get someone in place."

The players deserve their say and it is important that they respect the man appointed to succeed Steve Staunton but more important still, perhaps, is that they provide evidence that they are still capable of doing some serious talking on the pitch.

One of the more absurd aspects of the criticism heaped upon Staunton from some quarters during his time in charge was that the players deserved none of the blame for performances like those turned in against Cyprus, both home and away.

In reality, key players completely failed to exert the sort influence over games they should have been capable of. Experienced senior professionals who should know how to defend without receiving instruction during the three day build up to an international game. They looked inept at times while elementary distribution and ball retention consistently proved to be a problem for Ireland over the campaign.

The talk in Wales this week has been of quotas on foreign players in the Premier League providing some sort of miracle cure for the problems of the game in these parts but nobody in Merrion Square will bother with that sort of self-delusion.

The association have outlined their plans to develop a system to properly nurture the most talented young players and the results of this long term project can not come soon enough. In the meantime, though, we are at least better equipped on the talent front that our opponents this afternoon.

Staunton used 34 players in the 11 competitive games he oversaw as manager and while his eagerness to fast track the likes of Andy Keogh, Alan O'Brien and Darron Gibson to that level when they are still learning the game at club level sometimes proved a failing, several of his selections - Paul McShane, Shane Long and Stephen Ireland in particular - provided the basis for hope for the future.

His successor's task will not be an easy one. A win today and a third place finish would leave Ireland having outperformed its seeding while losing out on qualification to two of the world's top 10 sides but the overwhelming sense is one of failure.

Next time around the Republic will almost certainly be third seeds but only one team will qualify automatically, while eight of the nine runners up will progress to play-offs. Nothing about the look of the likely pots of first and second seeds would inspire confidence that the team will find itself in South Africa in the summer of 2010 and progress during the next two years may have to be gauged on a rather more modest scale.

A clear sense that the team is moving more cohesively forward would be a start. No more Nicosias could be the team's new motto.

Regardless of who is appointed, though, the players themselves would have to do their bit to make sure they live up to it.

Republic of Ireland: The present and the future

Whatever his failings, Steve Staunton certainly looked to cast his net wide during his two years in charge. The Louth man capped 34 players in Ireland's 11 competitive games alone.

His successor may have to cope with one or two retirements, but will, for the most part, be working with the same pool of talent.

His key task will be to get more out of the squad he has while judging which of the younger players have the greatest potential to make a positive impact on the pitch . . .

Goalkeepers

Having worked with almost all of the young contenders, Don Givens' contention that we need Shay Given to stay fit for the next five years or so is a little bit worrying.

Ireland have probably never had so many goalkeepers involved with sides playing in England's top two flights, but Given is a long way ahead of the rest, none of whom has yet managed to fulfil the potential shown as they came through the ranks.

Colin Doyle's (left) success during the latter part of last season suggested he could emerge as the first amongst equals, but a poor start to Birmingham's English Premier League campaign resulted in his demotion to third choice at City.

Darren Randolph and Wayne Henderson need to play more first-team soccer, while Joe Murphy is doing that again with Scunthorpe after a long absence, but not at a level that will impress the next manager.

Defence

Richard Dunne's development in the Premier League's top division has been a crucial boost to Ireland and he looks set to be the man around whom the defence is built for the foreseeable future.

Paul McShane has come a long way in a short time to establish himself as his first-choice partner, but the Sunderland striker still has a good deal to learn and is unlikely to be the finished article by the time the Republic are facing their leading qualification contenders in the next World Cup campaign.

Darren O'Dea (right) is a major prospect whose progress has been knocked back slightly by injury during the recent pre-season. Andy O'Brien is also likely to return once fit again, but despite a decent start to his Bolton career it is hard to see him starting so regularly again for the Republic.

Steve Carr mentioned Kevin Foley in the statement confirming his retirement this week, but the young right back would be well behind Joey O'Brien or even Stephen Kelly in the pecking order for Steve Finnan's place. Keeping the Liverpool defender on board will be a priority for the new man.

Left back remains a problem, with John O'Shea still the most obvious solution (assuming he is not needed elsewhere) at the moment.

A breakthrough for Aston Villa's Stephen O'Halloran at club level would be a major boost.

Midfield

If the likes of Liam Miller, Damien Duff, Andy Reid, Stephen Hunt and Aiden McGeady were all fit and in form at the same time then troubling opponents from midfield certainly wouldn't be a problem. Defensively, though, the extent of Lee Carsley's importance to the team is a little worrying at present.

Kevin Kilbane's astonishing run of competitive appearances, even before his recent switch to left back, has been down in no small part to his willingness to chip in defensively. Miller is well capable of contributing on this front too, while Hunt is a decent tackler for a wide man and Steven Reid's return would be a considerable help.

There are no real replacements for Carsley coming in the short term, but the Everton player seems keen to stay on for the next campaign.

Darren Potter and particularly Darron Gibson (right) have the potential to make an impact over the years to come if they fulfil their potential. The latter continues to develop particularly well, but at just 20 still seems unlikely to come of age for a while yet.

Strenuous efforts, meanwhile, will have to be made to bring Stephen Ireland back into the camp. The Manchester City midfielder looks set to be high maintenance for the next manager, but has the ability to reward the effort made.

Attack

For all the grief Robbie Keane gets at times, the front two pretty much pick themselves at the moment, with the likes of Shane Long, Daryl Murphy and Anthony Stokes still some distance behind.

All three look potentially useful to the next manager. Long and Murphy have already provided glimpses of what they can do at this level, while Stokes is a little more raw looking.

They need to get more experience under their belts at top flight level in England, though, if they are to develop into players of truly international class.

There are a handful of other young contenders, most notably Andy Keogh (above) whose recent efforts on the right side of midfield for Ireland bolstered the suspicion that he should be considered only for duty around the opposition box at this level.

Viewed as our most exciting prospect in the longer term, meanwhile, Terry Dixon has suffered a succession of injuries since the start of last season and his latest knee operation is seen by some as offering his last chance of a making a full recovery.