Cathal Dervan, Editor
A trip back to his holiday home in Dunfanaghy in a Champions League week was hardly on Martin O’Neill’s wish list at the start of the season - it can be now.
The Dunfanaghy Jazz and Blues festival is a staple on the Irish music festival calendar for men and women of a certain age, an age group that Martin definitely falls into.
It’s up there with the brilliant Rory Gallagher festival in Ballyshannon that is currently clinging on for dear life after the organisers were left high and dry by a ticket agency that’s gone bust.
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Close call
And it’s on a par with the Harvest Time Blues Festival in Monaghan next weekend that features Jimmy Smyth of Bogey Boys fame and Mr Commitments himself Andrew Strong amongst others.
Martin probably won’t be able to make Monaghan. Celtic have a game at St Mirren that Saturday night and needs must.
But he does have a few holes in his calendar now for the following week when Celtic were supposed to play in the group stages of the Champions League ahead of an Old Firm derby at Ibrox on the Sunday, September 13th.
So Martin might allow himself a day or two off to revisit Dunfanaghy and catch aptly named acts like The Hitmen and Her, We Are Ghosts and the Renegade Blues Bands. Based on the evidence of Tuesday night’s €20million capitulation in Austria against LASK, Celtic could do with a hitman or two and a few renegades if they are going to banish their CL blues - and the ghosts of 1967 that will always be the yardstick for any European adventure.
From what I know and have witnessed, Martin O’Neill is more into true crime than rock and roll but the excuse to visit Donegal again should not be missed.
Indeed, he should make contact with Donegal sooner than that and pick up the phone to Seamus Coleman, last seen training with his local GAA club and enjoying the summer sun in his native Killybegs.
When Celtic needed a manager in the summer, they threw Robbie Keane’s name out there to get a sense of the public reaction to any such appointment. Some of the public said no so Celtic went for the tried and trusted and brought O’Neill back to Parkhead for a third time.
It looked a safe bet, too safe in the eyes of some Celtic fans and that’s exactly how it has transpired. Celtic were out-played at their own game in Austria on Tuesday night, beaten 5-4 on aggregate by a team full of running, overloaded on vigour and overdosed on heart.
LASK played exactly as Celtic fans want their team to play and O’Neill, bar one over zealous reaction to a throw-in decision that got him booked, looked like a man with precious few answers either in his head or on his bench.
That’s on O’Neill and, it can be argued, that’s on those who went for safety first when it became obvious some Celtic fans would block the appointment of a younger manager simply because he once took a team in Israel to the title.
The Celtic board may have reacted very quickly last season when it became clear that another of their great appointments, Wilfried Nancy, was in way over his head but they will never admit to a Martin O’Neill mistake.
So either he goes of his own volition after this Champions League disaster or he does something, within the financial constraints imposed on him by said board, to turn things around.
Signing Seamus Coleman, available on a free transfer, would be a good start. When Heimir Hallgrimsson realised his Seamus Coleman mistake almost a year ago, the then Everton defender turned the Irish team’s World Cup fortunes around, saved the Icelander his job and helped Heimir to a new contract that should have been ripped up post Prague.
Coleman can rescue O’Neill now. He can bring some leadership and authority to this Celtic team and some counsel to a manager he knows well from their Ireland days together.
Donegal is calling for Martin O’Neill. It’s time to make the connection again - or sing the Blues for real.
AROUND THE HEADLINES
Hibernian sign Manchester United and Ireland Under-21 prospect on loan with option to buy - Irish Mirror
Sterling charged with dangerous driving after crash - BBC Sport
FAI confirms only National League champions can earn promotion shot to League of Ireland - Irish Sun
Croatian whistler set to take charge of KuPS v Shamrock Rovers Conference League play-off - Extratime.com
Celtic deficiencies laid bare on another night of Champions League pain - BBC Sport
Troy Parrott makes important contribution off bench in winning Real Betis debut - Irish independent
Greg Cunningham relishing ‘exciting’ Salthill Devon journey in new FAI National League - RTE Sport
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