Paul Fennessy reports from the Aviva Stadium
BOOS COULD be heard at the Aviva Stadium as Will Smallbone was announced as man of the match.
The negative crowd reaction was not necessarily a reflection on the Southampton star — as the accolade suggests, he was one of Ireland’s better performers, certainly in the first half when the hosts were on top.
But it was ostensibly more frustration at the strange tradition of awarding an Irish footballer player of the match at every international game at the Aviva Stadium, irrespective of the outcome.
The mood was already bad as it became clear Ireland — excluding matches versus Gibraltar — were set to lose their 11th game from the last 14 competitive fixtures.
And now, the man-of-the-match announcement has almost come to feel akin to a blackly comic insult as yet another disappointment comes to its conclusion.
For sponsorship reasons, there is a pre-arranged obligation to award it to an Irish player. Still, as long as Ireland keep losing, that fact is unlikely to quell supporters’ unrest.
Smallbone said he understood the fans’ frustration afterwards.
“For sure. I’m probably as embarrassed as anyone, receiving a man of the match award when we’ve lost a game. I’m not sure why it’s done, but it is and I can’t control it. It’s not my decision. But we understand the fans’ reaction and we are working as hard as we can to turn it around, and I believe we will.”
Asked if he had a message for exasperated Irish supporters, the 24-year-old added: “I don’t need to tell them to stick with us because they give us unwavering support every time we turn up to the Aviva.
“And in the away games, they are always loud, they are singing, they are fully supporting us. It hurts us every time that we can’t give them a result and something back for their unwavering support to us. But I believe that we will in the near future.”
On Saturday, Smallbone struggled in a midfield overrun by a talented English outfit whereas he looked more comfortable in an advanced role on Tuesday evening.
The Premier League player said Ireland’s change to a 4-5-1 formation “benefited” him but emphasised the need for the team to be more “clinical” in attack.
He also backed new manager Heimir Hallgrímsson to turn things around after a difficult start.
“I think for sure that the more time you work with a manager the more you understand his ways, his philosophy, his ideas, and we can gel as a group together into being the team that he wants.
“I think in an ideal world it probably would have been done when we had the friendlies to work on that, but that’s not the way it’s turned out.
“We are coming together and we are trying our best, we are trying to do what the manager is asking of us and we will continue to do so.”
