ANOTHER PLAYER HAS decided to switch allegiance from Northern Ireland to the Republic.
Liam McAlinden, a 19-year-old striker who plays his club football with Wolverhampton Wanderers, has been capped for Northern Ireland at youth and U21 level but will declare for the Republic in the hope of one day playing for the senior team.
The English-born teenager, who qualifies for the Republic through his parents and the North through a grandparent, joins the likes of James McClean, Shane Duffy and Marc Wilson in doing a U-turn in his international career.
The BBC are reporting that Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill met with McAlinden and his agent to but failed to persuade him to change his mind.
English born, declares for Norn Iron….. and then changes his mind again to join the Republic.
I know some our best players are UK born but it is getting a bit silly at this stage.
You’re dead right, its our league that’s the problem not enough interest, it has produced colman, hoolahan, mcclean, long, doyle and forde. But it should and could produce alot more.
The LOI has an image it just cant seem to shake. It should mimic the GAA and have one team per county, that encapsulates the whole county rater than a town/city.
Its crazy for a medium European size city like Dublin having 5 teams – 2 at most, the league will never prosper with these small Parochial clubs! Like limerick, derry & sligo – 1 team per county!
The fai need to step up, Delaney makes more than the champions of the LOI.
One team per county would not work as Monaghan United would testify. Ambitious league of Ireland clubs need money and county areas in this country are’nt big enough to guarantee a solid support eg Sligo Rovers try and attract support from Mayo, Leitrim and north Roscommon(also possibly south Donegal) while clubs like Athlone Town and Longford Town are probably competing for the attentions of all midlands soccer fans. We’re a small country with four team sports competing for attention, a soccer club in Kerry would probably struggle to survive against Gaelic football and there’s no sign of Kilkenny City FC making a return either.
Dont buy it, other EU countries of similar population have way better leagues and have far more PROFESSIONAL sports to contend with! In essence we have only 4 fully fledged professional teams i.e. the 4 rugby provinces.
The fact that soccer in Irl cant compete with other sports is nonsense. Go into any school and ask the kids what do they want to play for PE, 9 times outta 10 its soccer.
Its just not being run in a proper way, i feel that the county representation would revitalize the league rather than these small parochial clubs, get Delaney out and get sky involved!
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Parents from the republic, Irish to me.
Just have 1 association for both countries and your problem is sorted, makes complete sense
English born, declares for Norn Iron….. and then changes his mind again to join the Republic.
I know some our best players are UK born but it is getting a bit silly at this stage.
You’re dead right, its our league that’s the problem not enough interest, it has produced colman, hoolahan, mcclean, long, doyle and forde. But it should and could produce alot more.
The LOI has an image it just cant seem to shake. It should mimic the GAA and have one team per county, that encapsulates the whole county rater than a town/city.
Its crazy for a medium European size city like Dublin having 5 teams – 2 at most, the league will never prosper with these small Parochial clubs! Like limerick, derry & sligo – 1 team per county!
The fai need to step up, Delaney makes more than the champions of the LOI.
One team per county would not work as Monaghan United would testify. Ambitious league of Ireland clubs need money and county areas in this country are’nt big enough to guarantee a solid support eg Sligo Rovers try and attract support from Mayo, Leitrim and north Roscommon(also possibly south Donegal) while clubs like Athlone Town and Longford Town are probably competing for the attentions of all midlands soccer fans. We’re a small country with four team sports competing for attention, a soccer club in Kerry would probably struggle to survive against Gaelic football and there’s no sign of Kilkenny City FC making a return either.
Dont buy it, other EU countries of similar population have way better leagues and have far more PROFESSIONAL sports to contend with! In essence we have only 4 fully fledged professional teams i.e. the 4 rugby provinces.
The fact that soccer in Irl cant compete with other sports is nonsense. Go into any school and ask the kids what do they want to play for PE, 9 times outta 10 its soccer.
Its just not being run in a proper way, i feel that the county representation would revitalize the league rather than these small parochial clubs, get Delaney out and get sky involved!