While we can all be proud of what has been and is being achieved by our young soccer players abroad, it has to be admitted that there is also cause for concern. This concern centres around the fact that, with only a few exceptions, the young lads themselves are attached to English clubs and are lost to Irish soccer at a very early age.
This means that Ireland, north and south, is being used as a nursery for the fat cats in England and it is a form of exploitation which, if it were to happen in any other industry, would provoke a major outcry. The writer admits that this came home to him vividly in the local pub recently on the night that Northern Ireland were playing Germany and England were playing Poland. There were two television screens in the pub and both were showing the England match. When I pointed out the fact to the barman that our neighbours up the road were playing a very important match, but that nobody except myself seemed to have any interest in the outcome, he said he didn't give a damn for any of them.
What riled me also was that there were people in the pub who were actually urging the English team to greater effort and showing an intimate knowledge of the names and pedigree of all the England players. It has become painfully obvious within the last few years that when Irish people think of soccer they think of Manchester United, Chelsea, Spurs, Arsenal or Leeds. All of the English Premiership clubs and several also in Scotland have "supporters' clubs" here. What a pity that Shamrock Rovers or Shelbourne or Cork City or Sligo Rovers do not have the same support behind them. It will be recalled that some years ago Shamrock Rovers brought Johnny Giles back from West Bromwich Albion and installed him at Glenmalure Park with a view to creating an Irish club which could hold its own in European football. We all know how that ended in tears, tears which well up again whenever one passes by the old place. But the effort was a noble one and might have succeeded if the resources had been available to follow it to a conclusion.
To get back to the fate of young promising players, it is surely a pity that Irish soccer fans, the salt of the earth in many ways at home and abroad, are deprived of the joy of seeing the cream of our soccer crop play for their home clubs. Instead, at a very early age, they are packed off to Liverpool or Manchester or London or Leeds or Southampton. Now and then we get to see the finished product in the Irish jersey, over for a brief visit, but their inspirational presence on a more permanent basis is denied other youngsters who would be thrilled to see their heroes in the flesh at Dalymount Park or Richmond Park or Finn Park on a weekly basis. Of course it is true to say that this is the penalty we pay for being a small island off the mainland of Europe. Soccer is not the only aspect of Irish life to have suffered the brain drain or talent drain down the decades. That drain has been halted or even reversed in some ways in recent times following the birth of the Celtic Tiger, but our young soccer players, even before they start to shave, are still being lured away from us and we are a poorer sporting nation as a result.
In addition, many lads might do a lot better living at home with their families. Many who do go abroad tell of great loneliness and difficulty in making adjustment. What they would need, however, if they stayed at home would be top-class coaching and tough competition in order to realise their full potential. As a result, the standard of domestic soccer would be improved enormously. What domestic soccer needs is a constant injection of highly-talented young players. the rest would follow, including improved stadium facilities and increased attendances and the clubs would be able to afford to pay better wages.
Inevitably there would still be players who would go abroad to make their fortunes, but the transfer fees would be going into Irish football. As things stand at the moment the brightest and best are plundered, by English clubs mostly, and their talents are lost completely to the domestic game.
We can all be proud of our young players, some from Irish clubs it must be admitted, and wish them and Brian Kerr the very best of luck in their Nigerian effort. It would be even nicer, however, if we could see these young men come back home to play in Ireland.
