There was a time, often referenced here previously, when there was only access to Irish television in the home place. One of the saving graces of the time, though, was the fact that RTE had coverage of a game in the old English First Division.
Liverpool and Arsenal appeared to get preferential treatment when it comes to broadcasting. However, that was probably understandable given the amount of Republic Of Ireland internationals domiciled between both clubs.
In the London corner, there was David O’Leary and Frank Stapleton and Liam Brady and Niall Quinn, while Liverpool had Steve Staunton, Ray Houghton, Ronnie Whelan and John Aldridge. Thereafter, the tricolour was kept flying in the Anfield dressing room.
The baton then passed to Phil Babb, Jason McAteer, Mark Kennedy, Steve Finnan and Jeff Kenna. Other than those already mentioned, as far as this writer can recall, the last Irish man to don the famous red was Robbie Keane.
Until now. It is not over egging the pudding to suggest Irish football has itself a new hero. Step forward Caoimhin Kelleher. The Cork man has made the most of the opportunities afforded to him by Jurgen Klopp.
Considering how pivotal Klopp’s other ‘keeper Alisson Bekker has been to the success garnered under the German’s guidance, it is truly a statement of the confidence his manager has in the young Irishman that he was retainef between the posts for Sunday’s Caraboa Cup Final against Chelsea.
Thus ensuring the rising star would be pitched into the biggest game of his burgeoning career on the hallowed turf of Wembley. Luckily for him, if you look at it a certain way, the initial 90 minutes was more notable for what didn’t happen rather than what did.
Stuart Attwell and his team of officials disallowed three goals during the 120 minutes. In all three cases VAR being the ultimate adjudicator. But here’s a thing, does the referee have to go by the VAR ruling or can he, or she, stick to their own judgement?
All the kerfuffle with disallowed goals – two for Liverpool, one for Chelsea, meant that, as is increasingly common now, by the end of normal and extra time, the teams were still at stalemate.
Meaning yet again a Cup competition would be decided by the cruel but entertaining lottery that is the penalty shoot out. Another thing which is becoming very obvious is that teams are routinely practising for shoot outs.
For, the quality of striking from spot kicks has improved markedly in more recent times. With the result that, again yesterday, both teams had gone all their outfield kickers and the issues still wasn’t resolved. Which meant that yet again it came down to the goalkeepers. Kelleher was, in terms of the rudiments of his specialist position, very unlucky in that he went the right way for every one of Chelsea’s penalties but didn’t manage to save any of them.
The history of goalkeepers taking kicks on each other, in my experience, generally doesn’t end well for the netminder needing to score. I recall David Seaman missing and thus handing Manchester United victory in the Charity Shield – as it was then – in the early 1990s and much more recently, of course, David De Gea had the misfortune of sending his effort skyward as United lost out to Villareal in the Europa League Final.
Whether the 23-year-old ever played Gaelic football with his local club Dohenys – home of former Cork defender Mark Farr – I don’t know, but he certainly buried the crucial final kick for his team with some aplomb, driving it high and hard to the roof of the Chelsea onion bag. There’s almost something ironically fitting about what transpired thereafter.
Thomas Tuchel obviously had a very deliberate ploy in putting Keppa – I’m not even going to attempt writing his surname – on for the penalties, but it blew up spectacularly in his face. Firstly because, just like Caoimhin, he didn’t keep out any Liverpool penalty attempts, where the Irishman wrote himself into history and immortality.
In any sport, but especially for a goalkeeper, a pat on the back is only six inches from a boot in the backside. For Kelleher, for now, the world is his oyster.
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