Cult of Stephen Kenny

Boards doing it's best to prove the point of the OP.

No thread permitted to discuss the next potential new Irish manager!

Has anyone ever heard the like? You would swear it is going to upset Kenny or cause a spilt in the Irish camp or something? It has to be the funniest reaction to a thread I have seen in a long time.

I honestly thought it was a wind up at first. You would think such a thread would free up non manager related discussion in the main thread?

What harm is there in discussion of a potential new manager?

Charlton : WC x 2, Euros x1

McCarthy : WC x1

O’Neill : Euros x1

Kenny…. Almost 4 years managing Ireland now… under his management we’ve won 10 matches out of 36. Qualified for nothing , our win & loss rate under him….

Win 27.78%

Loss 41.67 %

not good enough. There is ZERO to be gained or achieved by keeping him as Ireland manager. It’s not down to his lack of effort or application… it’s his lack of ability, know how and experience at this level, or at any professional level. He doesn’t have the necessary ability or skillsets to succeed.

with every match that passes his record and reputation is getting worse…

people criticised John Delaney but he at least was pro active, accessible and not shy in acting when required.

this Gerry McAnaney fella doesn’t seem to have much about him at all. Almost invisible.

I thought there is big crossover between PL fanhood and LOI fanhood? That is my impression based on soccer fans I've met, could be wrong though.

Well I don't follow one of those British super clubs/brands or whatever you want to call them.

The Barclay's PL had two different adverts one for those not from England.

'Long distance relationships are the hardest' was the slogan.

And another for those from England - completely different spin on it.

'To follow is to love'

It seems very cynical to me. Most 'Irish' supporters of EPL teams seem to fool themselves that they are local like the English, and not just foreigners following an English brand like the Africans, Asians or Americans.

As regard the LOI fans I would regard them as 'proper fans' 'proper community' - I am more into GAA but I know a proper fan when I see one. Like that local auld fella in that advert above.

That is why I would never use the term 'LOI fanboy' etc that is really insulting on so many levels.

But my theory is it is not the LOI fans that are driving the defence of Kenny - it is the media driving the defence of Kenny, influencing a section of the Ireland fanbase. And now they don't know how to backtrack from it.

It can't be just LOI supporters that are defending Kenny, because unfortunately there are not many of them in comparison to lads who only support the big British teams.

I would like to see a poll on the age group of people who support Kenny to the hilt - I am convinced it is a generational thing. Mostly lads in their 20's/30's who were in primary school/secondary school when the 2016 euros was on?

Why should the national team manager be concerned with the Irish League?

Players playing in that league won't win international matches.

This is just not the case. Very few of the best players to have played for Ireland have played in the League of Ireland or, if they had, they had very limited time there before going to England or elsewhere. The majority of transfers from the LoI do not go to Premier League or Championship clubs.

League of Ireland level is probable bottom of League 1-Top of League 2 in England. It makes sense to monitor the progress of players AFTER they've left for England or elsewhere with it dependent on how much playing time they're receiving.

1 win, 1 draw. Bottom of the group in Europa League. If that’s doing well I’d hate to see failure.

Some good ones?? Beating Scotland is the only decent result he’s had. He’s a loser and deserves the boot.

That is actually really good, them teams had 10 times the budget Dundalk had.

You were "brought to a match"? What age are you?

And no, you're not better than Mark McNulty. The callowness of youth...

And he's still living off of that "success".

Yes, it was great for Dundalk, but unfortunately that level of football was way off the pace for his current role.

No doubt he'll be back at LOI before long where his level is at.

Sack Kenny and give it to Stephen Bradley he has won the last 3 LOI's and is top of the table heading for a 4 in a row.

He's a winner at his level would be a better way to put it. That level in comparison to the level he is now expected to operate at are worlds apart. He is currently a loser at this level overseeing a complete failure. What's more is he doesn't seem to have any appetite to try and change the results. Void of any ideas which might change it up. That is the most glaring of weaknesses.

Well done, you’re about as good as Stephen Kenny at getting points.

We don’t currently have the players at senior level to play expansive football. So playing those tactics are destroying us, our rankings and our future chances of qualification. When players come through that are able go play that system, fair enough. Until then, play to the current squads strengths.

We’ve a decent goalie. Decent defence. No midfield. Quick wide players.

Playing to our strengths would be getting the ball wide, quickly and hitting crosses, cutting the ball back and set pieces. Our set pieces under Kenny, bar when Eustace and Barry were there, are absolutely atrocious.

Playing the ball from centre half to centre half to pump the passing stats is pathetic, lets the other team regroup and stops us playing to our strengths. We’ve Sammie Szomdics sitting on his arse in Blackburn when he should be playing AM for Ireland if we want a MF who can play.