"Really, it was like eavesdropping on a clutch of bitter old codgers on bar stools.."

Neil3030

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By JOHN MEAGHER

Friday April 03 2009

Say what you will about Eamon Dunphy, but he can never be accused of capturing the mood of the nation.

After battling valiantly to force a draw against world champions Italy in their own backyard -- and nearly snatching all three points at the death -- there was a sense of jubilation and pride among the green-clad hordes at Bari's San Nicola stadium which surely matched that of the million-odd viewers back home.

But, true to form, once the action had moved on to the RTE studio, Eamon Dunphy was far from happy. In fact, Gary Cooke -- the actor who parodies Dunphy in Apres Match -- may have to start looking for new work: Eamon is doing an even better job caricaturing himself.

Referring to Giovanni Trapattoni as a sufferer of "negative football syndrome" and a "drunken gambler", Dunphy railed against Ireland's veteran manager in the gleefully belligerent manner he used to reserve for Jack Charlton.

"The bitter little man," as Charlton had once called him was living up to that description as he fought any impulse to find a single positive out of a draw that many in the punditry game had thought beyond us.

When asked about Trapattoni's game plan after we went down to an early goal, Dunphy could only sneer. "He got away with murder. It's a victory for the spirit of the Irish players."

Yet, just a year ago when Trapattoni got the job, Dunphy was telling anyone who would listen that it was the greatest coup in the history of Irish football. Citing the Italian's impressive CV, which includes seven league titles in Italy, three in other countries, and the European Cup, Dunphy thought Ireland could get to the Promised Land under his stewardship.

Now, despite being unbeaten in six qualifiers and sitting just two points behind Italy at the top, Dunphy was busy dismantling his unbridled enthusiasm of 12 months ago: "This guy is not a genius," he blurted out, while treating his audience to an inarticulate rant about Trapattoni's negative tactics.

Giovanni Trapattoni amassed the sort of honours to rival Alex Ferguson through a long-held belief in playing safe, defensive football. In his gushing tribute last year, Dunphy seemed happy to ignore the wily Italian's preferred style. Now that we are well into the campaign to reach South Africa, with Trapattoni's trademark tactics very much to the fore, Dunphy seems to have been taken completely by surprise. Maybe, just maybe, he didn't do his homework on the Italian when he succeeded Steve Staunton.

Seasoned students of Eamon Dunphy are unlikely to be surprised by his unfocused and seemingly ill-informed ravings. And they were on full show on Wednesday night. Instead of focusing on Ireland's achievements in an intimidating atmosphere and against several players with World Cup medals in their lockers, he found greater sustenance in talking about the "worst Italian side I've ever seen".

His fondness for comments that were as ridiculous as they were quotable continued unabated as he sought to drown out panellists John Giles and Ronnie Whelan and the increasingly hapless presenter Bill O'Herlihy. "I told you before the match that the Italians are capable of self-destructing at home and losing to Outer Mongolia," he guffawed, clearly relishing his ability with a one-liner, while being seemingly oblivious to the fact that Italy haven't lost a World Cup qualifier at home for 10 years.

Later, when dismissing the effectiveness of our inexperienced midfield, he suggested that he, Whelan, Giles -- and perhaps O'Herlihy -- could do a better job "even at our age." Incisive analysis? You've got to be kidding.

And that's the thing that sticks in the craw -- RTE likes to think it has the best football pundits in the business. But it patently doesn't. If Dunphy was his usual soundbite-happy, analysis-shy self, his colleagues were just as annoying.

John Giles has been giving Dunphy a run in the crotchety stakes of late. He looked so glum the other night that one might have been forgiven for thinking that Ireland had been hammered.

He's also got Dunphy's condescending sneer down pat: at one point, when Ronnie Whelan was suggesting that playing against 10 men wasn't as easy as it sounds, Giles laughed mirthlessly, before ruthlessly taking his colleague down a peg or three. Really, it was like eavesdropping on a clutch of bitter old codgers on bar stools at closing time.

While Ronnie Whelan hasn't met a single football cliché he hasn't fallen head over heels in love with, at least he was enthused about our exploits in Bari. He could sense that the performance had been imbued with passion and drive. His colleagues, by contrast, seemed to have stuck to the scripts written after the horror show against Bulgaria a few days previously.

Much of the blame for all of this must land on the lap of the veteran host, Bill O'Herlihy, who allowed proceedings to lapse into a turgid, stroppy mess.

But instead of chairing the discussion like the seasoned pro he should be after so many years at the helm, he seemed cowed by the forceful personalities around him. At one point he was even forced to apologise for not being an "expert", at another his speech was littered with that Apres Matchism, "okey-dokey''.

Of course, Trapattoni should be subject to the sort of scrutiny that comes with the job description and a €2m-a-year salary, but watching the well-paid gloom-merchants of Montrose was enough to make even the greatest defender of the national broadcaster wish Sky had been awarded the game. At least they would have been happy for us.

jmeagher@independent.ie

- JOHN MEAGHER

Absolutely spot-on article by John Meagher. I reckon this deserves a thread outside the Ireland V Italy thread, on the grounds that it extends beyond analysis of the game itself, highlighting a recent trend in RTE's coverage of both European and International football. As license payers we used to be treated to what was in my opinion the most critical analysis of football you could get on any station, but since Brady's departure (and I think this is the turning point imo - that man is sorely missed) it's become nothing short of a sham. Our (stealth) taxes are now funding a bunch of grumpy, ignorant, ill-researched old farts, who flagrantly avoid direct analysis of a game or result, instead opting to bloviate whatever loony agendas their senile brains have them clinging to at any given time. It really is an ominous summation of the current state of play, as Meagher points out at the end of his article, when you consider you probably would have gotten fairer analysis were the match on Sky :rolleyes:

But of course, television owners are forced by law to fund these muppets, ergo voting with our feet is simply not an option. :mad:

mirwillbeback

Dunphy used to be entertaining and sometimes cutting edge, now he's just a sad parody of himself - almost like he's trying to prove he's still able to ruffle feathers. It's just boring now listening - Souness is my favourite pundit by far.

herbieflowers

You'd almost think that Dunphy is encouraged by the producers to be as outrageous and myopic as possible, after all, people do find it entertaining, though it can hardly be classed as analysis. Judging by most, if not all, of his analysis over the years, I wonder does he actually enjoy the game at all! He, and Giles to a lesser extent, seem to espouse this persistent negativity.

Latchy

Dunphy ., a bitter little man who never played in any major finals and has a hang up beacuse it was two non irish born managers Charlton / Mc Carthy, who got ireland to major finals ( although Mc Carthy's dad was from waterford ) .Seems Dunphy is carrying on the tradition with Trapattoni .I hope Trapattoni goes all the way with Ireland and put Dunphy in his place .

keane2097

I quite like Dunphy most of the time. I think he's great when things are bad because he really does say what lots of people are thinking.

When he gets it wrong though, as he is at the moment, he gets it shambolically wrong.

We need someone with a bit more wherewithal between Giles and Dunphy than ROnnie Whealen imo.

jesus_thats_gre

Trap is the new Rafa for the RTE pundits..

therecklessone

Guys, just want to remind people that the rules on abuse also apply to TV personalities like Dunphy and co. Based on past experience some posters get a bit heated in their condemnation of certain people, there's a good topic for discussion here so if needs be, be critical without abuse. Thanks.

CiaranC

Its only TV lads, its not that important. Discuss the game with your mates afterwards instead.

Highsider

They all are non important from a footballing punditry prespective but as entertainment are second to none.

death1234567

keane2097 wrote: »

We need someone with a bit more wherewithal between Giles and Dunphy than ROnnie Whealen imo.

There's nothing wrong with Giles, he's usually spot on although his obsession with central midfielders can be a bit tiresome. Dunphy made his name by being over the top so you can't blame him for being sensationalist. If you look past the fluff his underlying point is usually very interesting and well informed. The problem is whelan, instead of having a more sober pundit like Brady who keeps things balanced Whelan just sits there like a rabbit caught in the headlights.

Overall though the rte coverage is great and entertaining, IMO its usually only the sunshine fans who complain about it as they know little about the game.

therecklessone

I think most Irish punters have become so disillusioned with the Jamie Redknapp's of this world that the bluster of Dunphy and co is refreshing, if not too illuminating. I watch RTE's post-match coverage for the comedy value at this stage. I certainly don't watch for the critical analysis.

Dunphy knows his niche is to be controversial, to say things the others won't say, and so that is exactly what he offers up.

ntlbell

Dunphy goes a tad far sometimes but for the most part most of his critique for this campaign has been spot on imo

There's no doubting trap's previous and he's definitely IMO had a very positive impact on the players but he has made a lot of mistakes and wed night was no different.

There wasn't much Eamon said that wasn't true regarding the picking of the team the subs made (taken of doyle, just crazy stuff) we don't have a great team so he must always strive where possible to have our best 11 players on the pitch.

The media are getting all dunphy like by blowing things out of the water they're as bad as each other.

Headshot

CiaranC wrote: »

Its only TV lads, its not that important. Discuss the game with your mates afterwards instead.

exactly CiaranC

everybody has an opinion about soccer even Eamo and he's entitled to it

I dont get this Eamo hate,hes the best pundit on tv atm. I rather listen to him than to redknapp and setanta pundits

SectionF

I enjoy watching Dunphy in the same way as I enjoy watching Eoin Harris. Harris's rants have nothing to do with reality. Dunphy's have nothing to do with football.

Headshot

legend

LuckyLloyd

therecklessone wrote: »

I think most Irish punters have become so disillusioned with the Jamie Redknapp's of this world that the bluster of Dunphy and co is refreshing, if not too illuminating. I watch RTE's post-match coverage for the comedy value at this stage. I certainly don't watch for the critical analysis.

Dunphy knows his niche is to be controversial, to say things the others won't say, and so that is exactly what he offers up.

Yup. To be honest, there are virtually no TV pundits who I would make time to watch on the basis that they are capable of illuminating a game to a degree beyond my own little brain. Sky speak in meaningless cliches, their only 'brave' opinion being an incorrect estimation of the worth of the Premiership and English football. UTV are downright banal and idiotic. Occasionally, BBC will put some good stuff together. But only on MOTD when they've had hours to think about it - during a live game they slip down to Sky's level.

So, when faced with the choice of idiots that will bore me or idiots that are genuinely entertaining, the decision seems obvious enough.

Neil3030

LuckyLloyd wrote: »

Yup. To be honest, there are virtually no TV pundits who I would make time to watch on the basis that they are capable of illuminating a game to a degree beyond my own little brain. Sky speak in meaningless cliches, their only 'brave' opinion being an incorrect estimation of the worth of the Premiership and English football. UTV are downright banal and idiotic. Occasionally, BBC will put some good stuff together. But only on MOTD when they've had hours to think about it - during a live game they slip down to Sky's level.

So, when faced with the choice of idiots that will bore me or idiots that are genuinely entertaining, the decision seems obvious enough.

But surely that should be ringing alarm bells in the heads of the RTE producers that there is a serious gap in the market for objective critical analysis. They could easily be (and once were tbf) the gold-standard, not just the best of a bad lot.

therecklessone

Neil3030 wrote: »

But surely that should be ringing alarm bells in the heads of the RTE producers that there is a serious gap in the market for objective critical analysis. They could easily be (and once were tbf) the gold-standard, not just the best of a bad lot.

The only alarm bells likely to ring will be those associated with a drop in viewing figures. Is that happening?

Karmafaerie

Liverpool and to a lesser extent UTD fans have been aware of Dunphys bile for years now.

Perfect example.

19th Feb 2008 7:15 pm

Inter are too good for Liverpool.
They've won the Seria A for the last 2 years and are running away with it again.
Ibrahimovic is a great player
They will win.

19th Feb 2008 9:15 pm

Liverpool winning proves nothing.
Inter are a terrible team.
Sevilla are better than them
Ibra is a donkey.




/nuff said.

mike65

Imagine having the likes of James Richardson and Ralf Honigstein as TV pundits, it would never work. You'd think it would, but they are too smart and considered. TV needs short bursts of easily digested guff to fit between the ad breaks. The best punditry is either read or listened to.

_blank_

I posted this elsewhere today, but here it is again.

Just look at the reaction of *certain people* in the Soccer Forum when others dare criticize "their" team.

Some people are so ultra-defensive of "their" team that anyone with an opinion that even suggests that a player or manager or tactic employed is in some way negative that they get rabid about it.

It's why Eamo is on the TV, to rile these people up, and it works to an absolute "T", in my opinion.

People will say "stfu Eamo, you idiot wah wah wah", but that's why he's there. He's a planted troll. He's there to get a reaction.

Guaranteed there is someone in RTE who's job it is to trawl the message boards when the football is on, looking for just that kind of reaction.

They always fall for it, so RTE always put him on the tv.

How many people regularly say "I hate Eamo, but he's a million times better than Jamie Redknapp"?

mike65

Redknapp isn't a "pundit" though, he's just some ex player who somehow got invited onto Sky Sport one day and never left.

_blank_

mike65 wrote: »

Redknapp isn't a "pundit" though, he's just some ex player who somehow got invited onto Sky Sport one day and never left.

...but Dunphy IS a pundit?

He's just some loudmouth who got invited into RTE in the 80s and never left.

mike65

Well Dunph is a *cough* journalist, like him or not he does have an abilty to write and argue a point when pressed to. With Redknapp and nearly all the rest of that crowd they'd just shrug when pushed.

_blank_

mike65 wrote: »

like him or not

May as well lay my cards on the table here.

I really like Eamo.

His ability to rile up the television football watching public in this country is second to none.

I get a great laugh watching CL games with my Manchester United supporting friends especially. Getting angrier and angrier when he slates United, shouting at the TV telling him to STFU, then the next night having a big jolly laugh when he starts slating Liverpool. It's actually hilarious from the neutral standpoint.

mike65 wrote: »

he does have an abilty to write and argue a point when pressed to.

He will steadfastly stick to a point as long as it is annoying someone else. He takes standpoints he knows are controversial, and probably doesn't believe in them 100%, but he, and more importantly his employers, know it makes for excellent TV viewing.

next time Dunphy is on a rant, check out Bill when there is a wide camera angle, having a little chuckle to himself.

That's the difference.

Sky et al feed mushy love to the masses, non-offensive claptrap.

RTE feed trolls. Offensive claptrap. It makes people think though.

I know which I prefer. Rather than have some inoffensive goon spouting nicey-nice clichés which pander to my thinking, I like an offensive goon spouting bile, making me actually argue with myself.

mike65

He can be amusing to watch but its a thin enough joke, as Karmafaerie suggets above Liverpool before a game will be crap and the opposition clearly superior, 100 mins later it turns out the opposition were in fact a bunch of charlatans or unaccountably poor for that particular game.

Mr Alan

Des wrote: »

It's actually hilarious from the neutral standpoint.

Neutral?

good one:cool::p

Warper

Don't forget that other idiot - George Hamilton - who thought Pizzini's sending off was obvious and that it was a blatant elbow????? He even ridiculed Beglin for questioning the red "You must be wearing an Italy jersey tonight".

The studio boys lack of knowledge when it comes to foreign leagues is laughable but despite all of this they are much more entertaining than the rest namely BBC/UTV/SKY/SETANTA who are afraid to say anything in the least controversial though Pat Dolan is trying.

Mr Alan

the one thing that annoys me about him, is that he pretends to be an expert on certain things, for example, he refers to himself as the panels La Liga expert, he tipped Athletico to be dark horses in this years competition.....then when it came to one of their games, he said, he wasnt familiar with any of the back line so they must be average, and then said Maxi Rodriguez was nothing but an average journeyman!?! :eek:

I dont mind controversial opinions, Rafa is negative, Ronaldo is ****e, etc etc, but dont pretend to be familiar with something you quite clearly arent. THATS annoying.

_blank_

mike65 wrote: »

its a thin enough joke

Not that thin Mike, just look at the reams of threads and posts on this forum devoted to the man and his rantings, countless newspaper articles, blog posts and Joe Duffy callers too.

Nope, he has carved himself a pretty successful niche, if truth be told.

_blank_

Mr Alan wrote: »

THATS annoying.

not as annoying as missing apostrophes.

here - '

Mr Alan

correcting grammer?

Des i thought you were above that

_blank_

Mr Alan wrote: »

correcting grammer?

Des i thought you were above that

one low blow deserves another.

Mr Alan

fair enough

Quint

Neil3030 was dead right about Brady. The panel have gone downhill without him. He was the only one that would stand up to dunphy.
Fair enough to criticize the irish team after a bad performance, but after the one against Italy and still slate trap really proves big jacks point about him being bitter.
Same with Liverpool, I mean after the 2 wins against Real Madrid and he still slates them is just crazy.
It's just funny the way he blames Trap when Ireland play terrible, but when we play well it's the players. In that case we don't need a manager eamo!

JerryHandbag

I always think Dunphy is good entertainment, but he crossed the line the other night....calling Trap names like a drunken gambler and a lunatic is just wrong...if we had the best manager in the world he'd still find fault.

If it was raining doughnuts, he'd only see the holes. :rolleyes:

Mr.Nice Guy

Good article. Enjoyed reading it and it articulated how I felt watching the programme. Usually I enjoy listening to the RTE pundits for the entertainment value but the other night was OTT.

anonymous_joe

The real problem is, Dunphy's only human, he has his likes and his dislikes. I'd much rather listen to Dunphy express an opinion even if I disagree than listen to BBC or Sky Sports' bland and soul-destroyingly tepid commentary.

Dunphy had a point on Wednesday. He might have gone way too far, but he had a point. He says things when no-one else will, and that takes balls and stubborness, things he has. He might be a bit of a pain sometimes, but at least we know he won't sugar coat things.

Latchy

anonymous_joe wrote: »

He might be a bit of a pain sometimes, but at least we know he won't sugar coat things.

Unless it's a social occasion ........along with a pint .

herbieflowers

bah, who needs punditry anyway, I've been watching the game long enough.

Latchy

punditry is very overated ,specially if your getting paid well to talk ......shyte .

Suppose dunphy feels he has to enlighten the public because the publlic need his insight .Not like we could figure it all out for ourselfs .:(