Just prior to the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) concluding a lengthy 231-day interval from the time they separated from Stephen Kenny and then appointed Heimir Hallgrímsson as the new “head coach” of the Republic of Ireland, Damien Duff hosted a press briefing at Tolka Park on Wednesday afternoon.
Duff, the current manager of Shelbourne FC, has frequently voiced his criticism over the FAI’s “humiliating” selection method, which is spearheaded by its football chief Marc Canham.
An inquiry regarding Shelbourne being compelled to reduce the size of the Tolka pitch in preparation for their Thursday evening Europa Conference League qualifier against Gibraltar’s St Joseph’s led to Duff’s most recent barb: “Hey, the Uefa rule book is thicker than Marc Canham.”
Duff characterised the FAI as obsolete. Hallgrímsson’s appointment is seemingly not going to mitigate the growing consensus among the Irish populace who concur with the ex-Chelsea midfielder.
However, the Icelandic coach meets Canham’s extensive requirements. Authentic international expertise–done. Field-based coach–done.
Hallgrímsson, at 57, possesses sufficient charisma to captivate a room full of players, media, even fans, and is evidently a competent operator. His club performance in Iceland and Qatar is mediocre at best, as his teams suffered more losses than wins. But the feats of Iceland under his co-management at the 2016 European Championship and sole leadership at the 2018 World Cup are near incomprehensible.
A catchy phrase used by the Second Captain about “Sigthórsson’s” goal that defeated England in the Euro’s creating their most impressive tournament comeback under Gareth Southgate, will probably resurface this week. As will the 1-1 standoff with Argentina in Moscow when Lionel Messi failed to conquer Hannes Halldorsson.
More importantly, his tenure as Jamaican manager until recently brought balanced results: 10 victories, 10 losses with 37 goals scored and conceded.
Regardless, the FAI have secured their preferred candidate and according to their press announcement, Hallgrímsson was always Canham’s top pick. Not Lee Carsley. Not Roy Keane. Not Willy Sagnol, Gus Poyet, Chris Hughton, Duff or even acting manager John O’Shea.
“Earlier this year, we identified Heimir as our top choice whose abilities and experience matched our criterion.,” Canham stated.
Before March 4, when he mentioned “existing contractual obligations” as the reason for delaying the appointment to “early April”, Jamaica had already secured its place in the Copa America back in November 2023.
Despite previous claims of inappropriate conduct by male coaches towards Irish female footballers during the 1990s and a desire not to overshadow the women’s team before their upcoming game against England in a Euro 2025 qualifier, FAI executives reacted with cheerfulness as they eagerly provided brief comments.
David Courell, the acting chief executive, stated, “This is a groundbreaking day for Irish football.” Tony Keohane, the chairperson of the board, added that this was “A splendid selection for our association.”
However, the current FAI president, Paul Cooke, was the one to offer some new insights, “I would like to express my gratitude to my fellow recruitment panel members, David Courell, Aoife Rafferty, Packie Bonner and Marc Canham, our Director of Football, for conducting an exhaustive and discreet selection process that focused on the candidates and identified and secured the most outstanding candidate.”
This implies that all is back on track in Irish football. Yet the reality of the ambiance that Hallgrímsson is entering involves Duff’s outspoken wish to “demolish Abbotstown completely” and “dismiss 90% of the staff.”
Hallgrímsson confided to the New York Times in 2018, “Accomplishment isn’t a final point, it’s an on-going journey. That’s the only perspective for an underdog.”
The former dentist turned football manager is on the verge of finding out that the 20-year construction endeavour that enabled Iceland to create a football industry is currently in its negative first year on the adjacent Atlantic island. A warm welcome to Ireland, Heimir.