France v Rep of Ireland ,WC Playoff 2nd leg,[Mod Warning Post #1/988/1169/1400]

x in the city

Stargate wrote: »

Yes , very nice to hear him speak like that !

Id like to think that is the way i would feel if it happened the other way round ,
Id gladly say give them a replay in the act of fairness , no good going to the world cup as cheats ,when you dont really deserve it and have the public against your country !

Can you imagine how Henry is feeling today/tonight ,his reputation in tatters , i dont think he will be able to handle that sort of shame for too long , even rememebering back to last nite when he was head to head with Gallas celebrating you could almost see the 2 of them mumble to each other ...
Henry......> i handled it / Gallas........> i know .

Go look at it !!

Within a millisecond after the ball left Gallas head he instantly turned around to see did the linesman flag !! Gallas had the best view of the handball than most and he KNEW when he headed it home that Henry had handled it , not once , BUT TWICE .

I read a great piece today about Henry having 5 seconds to decide to go to the ref and say i handled it or say nothing ,

Just found it ..............> i think it says it all really ...



Thierry Henry had about five seconds in which to decide to join the immortals. While William Gallas wheeled away from the point-blank header which gave France the lead over the Republic of Ireland during extra time in their World Cup play-off last night, Henry's reaction could have gone one of two ways.
In the act of controlling the ball before providing Gallas with a perfect cross, France's captain had handled it. Not once, but twice. The first time might have been almost inadvertent, a pardonable reflex action as it was about to go out of play. The second, in which he scooped the ball with his left hand, redirecting it to drop nicely on to his right foot, was clearly intentional.
Even there, it could be argued that an element of reflex was involved. But in the few seconds that followed, Henry had two options. He could pretend that he had not broken the most basic law of outfield play. Or he could take the opportunity to neutralise the effect of his reflexes. To erase an error. To right a wrong. To be a man.
The world, or quite a lot of it, was watching. His president was in the seat of honour in the Stade de France. Almost everyone important in French football had assembled to cheer the team on in this vital match. It was the perfect stage for an act of unselfishness, of honesty, of genuine sportsmanship.
Such incidents are not confined to the pages of history. In 1997 Robbie Fowler unsuccessfully pleaded with the referee to rescind the award of a penalty to Liverpool at Highbury after the whistle had been blown for a perceived foul on him by David Seaman. In 2000, while playing for West Ham, Paolo Di Canio stopped play by catching the ball when he saw that the opposition's goalkeeper, Paul Gerrard of Everton, was lying helpless in the penalty area after twisting his knee while clearing the ball. Last March, during a Romanian first division match between Rapid Bucharest and Otelul Galati, Costin Lazar of Rapid refused to take a penalty because he did not believe he had been fouled, and eventually the official agreed with him.
I don't know anything about Costin Lazar, but I do know that Fowler was a streetwise scally and that Di Canio, who once pushed the referee Paul Alcock to the ground after being shown a red card, was in the habit of exchanging Fascist salutes with his hometown supporters at Lazio. Those incidents shifted our perception of them. Some seed of goodness had to lurk within men capable of such essentially unselfish acts. And they are there forever, in black and white, on the public record.
We all know which way Henry decided to go. With a broad, exultant beam on his face, he raced away from the scene of the crime to join Gallas and their team-mates in celebration of a goal that all knew was likely to be decisive in the battle for a place in next summer's World Cup finals.
For this was no ordinary piece of cheating. National pride and tens of millions of euros were at stake. So much greater, then, would have been the admiration of a decision to own up. Instead Henry chose to go down a path which exposed not just his own human frailty but the paranoid fear of failure running through a French squad (and their manager) haunted by comparisons with the glories of the recent past.
Henry was a hopeless captain at Arsenal and he is a hopeless captain of France. On Wednesday he did not have the gumption to say, "OK, that wasn't a goal" – an admission on which the referee would have been obliged to act – "but we'll use the remaining quarter of an hour's play to demonstrate that we are better than the Irish and more deserving of a place in the final 32 in South Africa next year."
And, being Henry, he reacted to the final whistle not by celebrating with his team- mates but by making a show of going over and sitting down on the turf to commiserate with the dejected Richard Dunne, the most heroic of Irish players. He told Dunne that the Irish had deserved to win, and admitted that he had handled the ball. "But," he added, "I am not the referee."
No, mon brave, but you are the captain of France, the country that gave us the World Cup, and here you had the chance to show us what sport can mean – or, at least, what we tell our children it means.
To rank the incident in Paris alongside Diego Maradona's "Hand of God" in 1986 is misleading. That was a street kid's instinct, acclaimed by his compatriots as revenge for Antonio Rattín and the Malvinas. Henry may come from Les Ulis, a quartier difficile outside Paris, but he is a sophisticated man, and a much decorated one. A chevalier of the Legion d'Honneur should have done better – by his opponents, by himself, and by the game.

good article

my own stance on this fiasco is simple

FIFA, are corrupt. simple as.

An issue that has not been raised is why the name of god did the ref not consult his linesman when the Irish demonstrated so furiously, I mean wtf.

If this happened in a blue square league game it might be not made much about, but for such a high profile game watched globally, for the ref to dismiss the incident with a whiff is just....

not normal.

sprinkles

Firstly I don't blame Henry for either hand ball. It's instinct. It happens in a split second. I don't blame Henry for not running up to the ref after the goal to explain his handball and demand the goal be disallowed. It's a tough call but I can't honestly say that I wouldn't make the same decision, therefor I can't deride him for it. I do however have a problem with what he did instead, and that is his celebration. If he had any remorse for his actions he would not have celebrated the goal as he did. I can honestly say that I wouldn't have reacted the same.

I also have a problem with his response to the media afterwards and indeed his response to Richard Dunne. "I am not the ref". The first word out of his mouth should have been "Sorry". I have yet to see that quote attributed to him anywhere. For this I have lost respect for Henry, not as a player, his skills and record are undesputable, but instead as a man. Admiting your mistake is one thing. Apologising for it is another.

Regarding the ref, I think if there was any doubt over the goal, and there cleary was, every Irish player was screaming bloody murder, the ref should have questioned Henry about it. If Henry admits the handball then the ref should have to take action and disallow the goal (and possibly yellow card Henry). If Henry denies the handball the ref can make whatever decision he likes, however should the replays show that Henry lied there should be a ban imposed on the player for cheating. And that's what it would then be. Cheating.

The rules need to be looked at. The role of the ref needs to be looked at. And the conduct of the players, not just in this instance but the same should apply to diving and any other form of unsportsman like conduct, needs to be addressed and deterents put in place.

N'Gog, Eduardo, Henry, these are but 3 high profile cases in the UK and Ireland that have brought the game into disrepute. They will continue to happen unless the governening bodies put an end to it. For teh sake of football somethign needs to be done.


"If I hurt someone I'm sorry"

That just shows a complete lack of sensitivity for his actions. His actions in the penalty area were dispicable but his actions (or lack of) since have been worse, in my opinion.

newballsplease

x in the city wrote: »

good article

my own stance on this fiasco is simple

FIFA, are corrupt. simple as.

An issue that has not been raised is why the name of god did the ref not consult his linesman when the Irish demonstrated so furiously, I mean wtf.

If this happened in a blue square league game it might be not made much about, but for such a high profile game watched globally, for the ref to dismiss the incident with a whiff is just....

not normal.

Im nearly asure the ref DID consult the linesman(blindsman/assistant ref)

sprinkles

ps: there appears to be a complete over reaction to this. I mean boycotting french food and resturants etc is childish to say the least and shows Ireland up to be just that. Protest, petition etc are all fine as long as they are dignified. And for Gods sake, lets not drag this out too long!!!

newballsplease

il be shot for saying this, but few months ago- there was a programme on RTE for 'top irish or favorite all time sporting moments' something like that..voted by irish public.

The hand of God was up there in the top 10.

Stargate

sprinkles wrote: »

Firstly I don't blame Henry for either hand ball. It's instinct. It happens in a split second. I don't blame Henry for not running up to the ref after the goal to explain his handball and demand the goal be disallowed. It's a tough call but I can't honestly say that I wouldn't make the same decision, therefor I can't deride him for it. I do however have a problem with what he did instead, and that is his celebration. If he had any remorse for his actions he would not have celebrated the goal as he did. I can honestly say that I wouldn't have reacted the same.

I also have a problem with his response to the media afterwards and indeed his response to Richard Dunne. "I am not the ref". The first word out of his mouth should have been "Sorry". I have yet to see that quote attributed to him anywhere. For this I have lost respect for Henry, not as a player, his skills and record are undesputable, but instead as a man. Admiting your mistake is one thing. Apologising for it is another.

Regarding the ref, I think if there was any doubt over the goal, and there cleary was, every Irish player was screaming bloody murder, the ref should have questioned Henry about it. If Henry admits the handball then the ref should have to take action and disallow the goal (and possibly yellow card Henry). If Henry denies the handball the ref can make whatever decision he likes, however should the replays show that Henry lied there should be a ban imposed on the player for cheating. And that's what it would then be. Cheating.

The rules need to be looked at. The role of the ref needs to be looked at. And the conduct of the players, not just in this instance but the same should apply to diving and any other form of unsportsman like conduct, needs to be addressed and deterents put in place.

N'Gog, Eduardo, Henry, these are but 3 high profile cases in the UK and Ireland that have brought the game into disrepute. They will continue to happen unless the governening bodies put an end to it. For teh sake of football somethign needs to be done.


"If I hurt someone I'm sorry"

That just shows a complete lack of sensitivity for his actions. His actions in the penalty area were dispicable but his actions (or lack of) since have been worse, in my opinion.

Great post , thank you i Enjoyed reading it !

TheJesusWarrant

This is getting way out of hand now, the fact is no matter how bad someone feels now they will not feel as strong in even a day or two, let alone a week or month, so it's time for what trap called for before the game, cold minds that deliver calculated statements. Delaney shouldn't have done it, we're throwing away the moral high ground and are going to end up looking like whining sore losers, it's a real shame. Besides, I can't help but feel a bit silly for expecting fairness from a game that doesn't demand it of its own players and officials.

Pro. F

sprinkles wrote: »

ps: there appears to be a complete over reaction to this. I mean boycotting french food and resturants etc is childish to say the least and shows Ireland up to be just that. Protest, petition etc are all fine as long as they are dignified.

You're bang on there. Let's not forget that plenty of the French agree with us. We shouldn't vindictively and childishly throw that back in their faces. FIFA are the ones we should be complaining about. And, as you say, above all we should be dignified.

podge018

The French done nothing wrong. It's the officials that should be lambasted. How 4 of them missed that is bizarre. The ref didnt even have a word with any of them.

DeepBlue

Dunno if it was mentioned already. Probably was.

http://www.fiannafail.ie/page/s/fairplay

The cute hoors never miss a trick...........:D

Stargate

DeepBlue wrote: »

Dunno if it was mentioned already. Probably was.

http://www.fiannafail.ie/page/s/fairplay

The cute hoors never miss a trick...........:D

ages ago

McGrath5

I think the phrase GUBU could be used to describe the Henry handball.

x in the city

newballsplease wrote: »

Im nearly asure the ref DID consult the linesman(blindsman/assistant ref)

nope...

x in the city

podge018 wrote: »

The French done nothing wrong. It's the officials that should be lambasted. How 4 of them missed that is bizarre. The ref didnt even have a word with any of them.

thats what i said a bit ago also

just watched the goal again

****ing corruption that is, im still seething over it

DeepBlue

Stargate wrote: »

ages ago

Thought as much but wasn't going to search nearly 2000 posts to find it. :pac:

ccosgrave

I was just watching the post-match analysis on the RTE website, which I unfortunately missed after storming out of the pub in frustration on Wednesday. Seeing the lads take off their jerseys, vests, boots and everything else and throwing them to the Irish fans after the game is an utterly beautiful sight, I'm absolutely delighted we have people like that representing our country.

CCCP^

Pro. F wrote: »

You're bang on there. Let's not forget that plenty of the French agree with us. We shouldn't vindictively and childishly throw that back in their faces. FIFA are the ones we should be complaining about. And, as you say, above all we should be dignified.

Ah, you have a point. Emotions are still running pretty high right now, but I still won't be buying any products that Terry Henry endorses. Also I have no reason to buy any of those products so that works for me!

I also won't be buying anything to do with FIFA. They have enough money.

x in the city

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thierry_Henry&oldid=326715091

epic wiki......

pistolpetes11

TheJesusWarrant wrote: »

This is getting way out of hand now, the fact is no matter how bad someone feels now they will not feel as strong in even a day or two, let alone a week or month, so it's time for what trap called for before the game, cold minds that deliver calculated statements. Delaney shouldn't have done it, we're throwing away the moral high ground and are going to end up looking like whining sore losers, it's a real shame. Besides, I can't help but feel a bit silly for expecting fairness from a game that doesn't demand it of its own players and officials.

Its the first time I have ever said this about Delaney , but I respect him for what he has done ,

Stand up and be counted is what he has done, so proud of the team and supporters last nite , Only starting to calm down now , hence my first post on the matter !

Melion

Christ i cant wait for Saturday for the premier league to come back so we can all get over this.

Happy Monday

People who follow football week to week will understand that this happens a lot of the time.

I think a lot of the contributions over the last day or so have been from people who believe every indiscretion is punished.

The Irish reaction is completely out of proportion.

joe123

Happy Monday wrote: »

People who follow football week to week will understand that this happens a lot of the time.

I think a lot of the contributions over the last day or so have been from people who believe every indiscretion is punished.

The Irish reaction is completely out of proportion.

In fairness its not just the Irish reaction. Seems pretty much all over the place that this is big news.

I know that theres not a hope of this getting replayed but I like the fight weve shown.

me-skywalker

waht really annoys me is the theory that it was 'instinct'! now tell me how is instinct for a striker to use his hand??

he is not a goal keeper.

his instinct would have been to use his knee or throw his leg up and miss it.

it was not instinct it was blatant cheating.

Happy Monday

me-skywalker wrote: »

waht really annoys me is the theory that it was 'instinct'! now tell me how is instinct for a striker to use his hand??

he is not a goal keeper.

his instinct would have been to use his knee or throw his leg up and miss it.

it was not instinct it was blatant cheating.

Henry has made the point that Henchoz handled twice without sanction in the 2001 FA Cup final.

Doesn't make it right but the point has to be made that it's only when your own team is affected do people complain.

The Joe Jordan incident attached is a good comparison with this.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/international/article6922630.ece

lintdrummer

x in the city wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thierry_Henry&oldid=326715091

epic wiki......

Thanks for that, I feel a lot better now!

me-skywalker

Happy Monday wrote: »

Henry has made the point that Henchoz handled twice without sanction in the 2001 FA Cup final.

Doesn't make it right but the point has to be made that it's only when your own team is affected do people complain.

The Joe Jordan incident attached is a good comparison with this.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/international/article6922630.ece

you completly missed my point. thank you for being as ignorant as the same ppl im questioning in my 'instinct' point.

lintdrummer

Has anyone seen this yet? Apparently Henry told the ref he handelled the ball:

Henry admitted after the game that he handled the ball. “It was a handball, but I`m not the ref. I told (the referee) but he told me the same: `You are not the ref.`"

From an article on an asian site: http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=070000&biid=2009112071248

GLaDOS

emmettogara wrote: »

Has anyone seen this yet? Apparently Henry told the ref he handelled the ball:



From an article on an asian site: http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=070000&biid=2009112071248

I imagine the ref would have taken him more seriously if he hadn't just been celebrating

LizT

emmettogara wrote: »

Has anyone seen this yet? Apparently Henry told the ref he handelled the ball:



From an article on an asian site: http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=070000&biid=2009112071248

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/8367588.stm

that came out about the morning after the match

Pro. F

Happy Monday wrote: »

People who follow football week to week will understand that this happens a lot of the time.

I think a lot of the contributions over the last day or so have been from people who believe every indiscretion is punished.

That is an epic assumption on your part.


Also, the fact that this happens a lot of the time does not make it right. Football has a serious problem. This incident proves that. Also, fans saying 'ah sure that's the way it is' proves that.

Happy Monday wrote: »

The Irish reaction is completely out of proportion.

Out of proportion to the level of the injustice? Not in my opinion. Out of proportion to the normal level of reaction - maybe. But you have to consider the blatancy of the illegal goal, the importance and profile of the match and the injustice of the end result. Also there is a pretty big reaction in france too, that should tell you something of how bad this is.

m@cc@

Might have been done, but.....

SuprSi

x in the city wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thierry_Henry&oldid=326715091

epic wiki......

That's hilarious!

efb

It's bad when even Mr Wenger saw it!
Quote in today's Indo

rocco

"Originally Posted by x in the city
http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?...ldid=326715091
"

Legend mate just when I had got p1ssed off listening to all this andother jem pops up . Seriously but the calls for a replay need to be dropped lads.

Mitch Connor

emmettogara wrote: »

Has anyone seen this yet? Apparently Henry told the ref he handelled the ball:



From an article on an asian site: http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=070000&biid=2009112071248

1. He was talking about Richard Dunne, not the ref.
2. He did tell the ref, but admits he told the ref AFTER the final whistle. So it is completely meaningless.

NukaCola

Truth of the matter is if you have an ''umpire'' behind the goal many of these costly mistakes would be wiped out and you'll still keep the human side of football in and it wont cost a lot to implement, really no excuse not too, a decision like that happens in big games, too much is at stake to put on the shoulders of a man 40 yards away from the incident.

Spiritoftheseventies

Racing Flat wrote: »

Ginola speaking out against the French is a bit like Whelan speaking out about Liverpool tbh. You'd have to question the motives. I wouldn't take too much from it.

Yes thought the opening "Subutteo" re-enactment of the hand ball incident using Liverpool players was a bit Monty Pythonesque TBH. I think the best comment made yesterday was by Paul Lennon from the Star who said on Vincent Browne show last night that the solution to cheating would be to hand out heavy bans after games to people who engaged in this kind of behaviour. eg give Henry a two match world cup ban.

PCPhoto

bayviewclose wrote: »

Yes thought the opening "Subutteo" re-enactment of the hand ball incident using Liverpool players was a bit Monty Pythonesque TBH. I think the best comment made yesterday was by Paul Lennon from the Star who said on Vincent Browne show last night that the solution to cheating would be to hand out heavy bans after games to people who engaged in this kind of behaviour. eg give Henry a two match world cup ban.

2 match ...make it 6match and we'll see how many players will do it again.

RTE Showed him in a game against Spain - "going down easy" diving France get a free kick and Viera scores as a result of free kick to knock Spain out of European Championship or World Cup (not sure when the game was played)

what I cant understand is that they player admitted handball (after the game), and yet FIFA have not brought a charge against him - it seems...actually forget that ...its obvious that theres one rule for whoever FIFA want in and another rule for the countries they want out.

On the subject of a replay:
in 2006 www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/germany2006/news/newsid=27212.html

its not like it hasnt happened before (A match to be replayed)...so it is possible for FIFA to order a replay and cancel the result.

even if the match is not replayed - at this point FIFA must make changes to the game - ie video replays or add the extra referees at the end of the pitch, or maybe even do as they do in lower levels of "soccer" in USA - have 2 referees on the pitch.

FIFA promote "Fair Play" infact thats what they are all about and FIFA Fair play was brought in with the help of Sir* Bobby Robson 23yrs ago after the "Hand of God" goal - at present by allowing France through to the world cup they are promoting cheating - telling kids throughout the world that its OK to cheat if you dont get caught....

Henry was quick to say that its not his fault its the Referees fault for not seeing it - which would mean that he deflects some of the blame at match officials, but he isnt accepting any blame himself.

FIFA have the ability and power to punish a player for incidents which have happened on the pitch but which were not spotted by the referee and IN THIS CASE - they need to do it.

at the very least Henry should not be able to play in the world cup, if FIFA offered a scenario of Henry not playing in the World Cup or play a replay at a neutral venue (England)....I'm sure they would take the replay option.

*= for those that dont recognise the knighthood by the British Crown

Spiritoftheseventies

Replay option is very much down to whether the French federation agree to it and FIFA then agreeing to it.
What will happen soon is we will have an elitist world cup and a Europa type World cup for smaller nations.
As has been said on numerous occasions its all about marketing and money. We dont fit in to FIFA dream.
But I think the knock on effect is that club managers are going to get very cynical about the whole thing especially after the Henry affair
There is so much stuff going on that must really annoy them. Players coming back injured, players not being selected etc,

gandalf

To be honest if they had any willingness to stamp out gamesmanship they should be introducing extreme bans for blatant cheating like Henry did. A 6 Month ban would be justified and would concentrate the minds of those players tempted to cheat. A 2 or 3 Match ban is not an adequate deterrent at all for this kind of behaviour.

That and the fourth official being consulted like in Rugby for contensious decisions would go a long way to righting this wrong.

Leiva

bayviewclose wrote: »

Replay option is very much down to whether the French federation agree to it and FIFA then agreeing to it.
What will happen soon is we will have an elitist world cup and a Europa type World cup for smaller nations.
As has been said on numerous occasions its all about marketing and money. We dont fit in to FIFA dream.
But I think the knock on effect is that club managers are going to get very cynical about the whole thing especially after the Henry affair
There is so much stuff going on that must really annoy them. Players coming back injured, players not being selected etc,

Well said Bay ...Its been about 15yrs now that the marketing power has taken over FIFA in a detrimental way .
The then come out with a guise called FAIR PLAY (weighed heavily on the player & Ref ) yet they seem to hold no responsibilities themselves to this policy ?
I dont think a replay will happen but i do think a line is drawn in the sand for improvements to help out Refs , either Video (doubtful) or behind goal Refs (Plattini's pet)

M

cruiserweight

FIFA say pfo

http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/newsid=1137489.html#fifa+statement+fai+request

FIFA has today, 20 November 2009, replied to the request made by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) to replay the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ play-off match held on 18 November 2009 between France and the Republic of Ireland in Paris.

In the reply, FIFA states that the result of the match cannot be changed and the match cannot be replayed. As is clearly mentioned in the Laws of the Game, during matches, decisions are taken by the referee and these decisions are final.

Spiritoftheseventies

Yes a boycott of all things FIFA is the only way round this. Thats includes all FIFA playstation games. Will hurt but the sacrifice will be worth it

Samba

Done with this now. Talking to a brick wall gets tiresome after a while

SlickRic

i must say, i've calmed down now.

all things in perspective, it was disgusting to see my favourite footballer cheat his french hiney off to get his country through to the world cup.

but we'll have to move on at some point.

i'd love a replay, obviously.

but it's not going to happen.

i think what would give me all the closure in the world on this subject, is if FIFA and/or the FFF just come out and tell it like it is; publically acknowledge the damn incident properly.

tell the people it's not realistic to have a replay and make a dangerous precedent. tell them that video technology is now being seriously considered, so that incidents like this rarely, if ever, happen again. tell people in a reasoned and logical fashion why there cannot be a replay, and what will be done in the future so this sort of sh*t doesn't happen again.

until then, we should keep pressure on for all it's worth and not let them away with sweeping this under the carpet.

token56

Quote from Henry
"It was not a beautiful match. It was just neccesary to exploit what was exploitable"

Source: http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,12098_5706080,00.html

Tbh this does nothing to help him at this time so I dont know why he would say it

LostinBlanch

One thing about all this furore. We're in danger of creating a rod for our own backs. Imagine the sh*tstorm if we ever get a dodgy goal or penalty?

SlickRic

token56 wrote: »

Quote from Henry
"It was not a beautiful match. It was just neccesary to exploit what was exploitable"

Source: http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,12098_5706080,00.html

Tbh this does nothing to help him at this time so I dont know why he would say it

is it just me or is he f*cking enjoying this now?

BaZmO*

LostinBlanch wrote: »

One thing about all this furore. We're in danger of creating a rod for our own backs. Imagine the sh*tstorm if we ever get a dodgy goal or penalty?

But that's just dealing with what if's. We can only deal with the here and now.


The bigger picture on this issue is that FIFA need to get the finger out and introduce a video ref, and if us piling on the pressure on FIFA achieves this well at least some good will have come from the whole mess.

Dave!

Strong words from Shay
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,12098_5706090,00.html

Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Shay Given believes he may have been cheated out of his last chance to play at a World Cup by Thierry Henry.

Ireland's World Cup dream was cruelly crushed in Paris on Wednesday night as William Gallas' extra-time goal secured France a 2-1 aggregate success.

However, Henry's handball in the build-up to the decisive goal has prompted impassioned calls for Fifa to sanction a replay of the second leg of the play-off.

Given is convinced Henry cheated to win the tie for Les Bleus and the 33-year-old fears a chance to appear at a second World Cup may never materialise.
Heart-breaking

"It could be the last time, it could be," said Given. "I don't know what's around the corner, I don't know if I will make another one, and that makes it even more heart-breaking.

"I have only played in one and we were the better team and deserved to go to the World Cup. But we are not going, so it is hard to take.

"I don't know if he [the referee] spoke to the fourth official or the linesman or someone. It was so blatant and we were so strongly protesting because we just felt somebody must have seen it, it was so blatant.

"How he didn't see it was beyond belief - maybe he did see it, I don't know.

"The seeding thing was bad enough, but then to go out of a World Cup like this is extremely hard to take.

"We do feel as if we have been cheated, not to go to the World Cup finals.

"He [Henry] cheated to win the game. I don't often say that, but that's how it was.

"He clearly cheated and they won the game from that."

Disgusting

Henry initially indicated the ball had hit his chest, exactly the view taken by Swedish referee Martin Hansson, although Given greeted the suggestion with a snort of derision.

He said: "I have seen the replays - he stopped it and then he pulled it in again.

"You saw it at the time - I don't know if you have seen my reaction, but it was so blatant, it wasn't even close to his chest or anything.

"The ref tried to say it was his chest - it was nowhere near his chest. It was disgusting.

"It's a disgrace, to be honest. How the ref or the linesman can't see it is absolutely ridiculous.

"I never normally have a go at referees or linesmen, but it is so blatant, it's disgusting.

"He handballed it twice - he stopped it and then pulled it back in. It's remarkable.

"We feel cheated by both Henry and the officials. It's disgusting.

"We were the better team and we are going home with nothing. In a few weeks, Uefa and (Michel) Platini will be happy up in the stands or wherever they will be.

"France are going to the World Cup, they are a big nation and we as a small nation have been cheated not to go to the World Cup."