Get real, Ireland

Roy Keane had a point when he derided the Irish Football Association’s conduct during Henry-gate. Accepting bad luck is part of sport and the revelation that Ireland have requested that they be granted an extra place in the 2010 World Cup finals has confirmed that they cannot get to grips with the concept.

Sure, losing to France in the way they did was disappointing and frustrating. However, the fact a major infringement was not spotted in the build-up to a crucial goal in an important match should be used in the debate about goal-line technology, not as a prompt for fanciful notions of a replay or bonus qualification.

If Fifa do have a collective brain meltdown and try to change the course of a football match’s outcome, they should perhaps set up a committee to review old incidents.

Then perhaps West Germany would be awarded the 1966 World Cup and Spain and South Korea could replay their 2002 quarter final (a linesman wrongly thought the ball went out of play during the build-up to a Spanish ‘goal’ in a 0-0 draw that ended in Korean penalty shootout victory).

The Irish have made themselves look petty, unsporting and rather desperate – it seems ridiculous to claim they would definitely have won a match that would have been level without the Henry goal. If goal-line technology is used at next year’s finals and it does make an important adjudication or two, it will be good for the game and Ireland can feel they that they haven’t suffered in vain.