Analysis: McDonald’s man-management vindicated by sweet Munster derby success

Alan O’Brien 

On a night of sweet vindication for Neil McDonald, Limerick FC defeated champions-elect Cork City to pull five points clear of the relegation zone. Continue reading →

Analysis: Poch’s players prevail on postage-stamp playing-area

Alan O’Brien 

Tottenham Hotspur exorcised their Wembley demons, and added to Borussia Dortmund’s, by taking full advantage of this thriller’s defining characteristic. Continue reading →

Analysis: Profligate Palace spare parked Burnley bus

Alan O’Brien 

From a neutral perspective, Chris Wood’s 3rd-minute strike represented a worst-case scenario realised. So followed an eon of Burnley pressure-absorption, and a late Crystal Palace barrage, that the hosts were lucky to survive. Continue reading →

Analysis: Loose Galway licked by resurgent Limerick

Alan O’Brien 

This truly was the archetypal cup-tie. Free from the yoke of clear-and-present relegation danger, both Galway United and Limerick FC contested an incredibly open game that could have gone either way. Ultimately, it was the latter who punished the former for their shared looseness. Continue reading →

Analysis: No-nous O’Neill brutally exposed

Alan O’Brien 

With Wesley Hoolahan at its tip, the midfield diamond has been integral to most of the Republic of Ireland’s best football under Martin O’Neill. But a make-or-break qualifier, against a Serbian 3-4-2-1, was, unequivocally, not the time to revive it. Continue reading →