Fun with country codes

With tonight's game taking up more real estate in our collective mindspace with every passing minute, we took a break from teams, players, goals and so on to look at something a bit silly.
You might not know this, but the three character codes that appear on the scoreline at the top of your screen while watching a game are defined by FIFA. You can see the list of countries, and each country's code, on wikipedia here: List of FIFA Country Codes
These are also the codes that make up the hashtag for a game, e.g. Republic of Ireland V Denmark tonight is IRLDEN.
With that in mind, we wondered what actual words can be made from the combination of codes?
So, we consulted the list of six letter words on yourdictionary.com and came up with this list, along with links to the dictionary definition of each word

Angola(ANG) v Lesotho(LES) = ANGLES

Bangladesh(BAN) v Germany(GER) = BANGER

Bangladesh(BAN) v Netherlands(NED) = BANNED

Belgium(BEL) v Lesotho(LES) = BELLES

Belgium(BEL) v Uganda(UGA) = BELUGA

Bermuda(BER) v Thailand(THA) = BERTHA

Cambodia(CAM) v Bermuda(BER) = CAMBER

Cambodia(CAM) v Peru(PER) = CAMPER

Canada(CAN) v Chad(CHA) = CANCHA

Canada(CAN) v Netherlands(NED) = CANNED

Chile(CHI) v Australia(AUS) = CHIAUS

Chile(CHI) v Lesotho(LES) = CHILES

Chile(CHI) v Netherlands(NED) = CHINED

Chile(CHI) v Russia(RUS) = CHIRUS

Colombia(COL) v Liechtenstein(LIE) = COLLIE

Comoros(COM) v Bermuda(BER) = COMBER

Comoros(COM) v Ethiopia(ETH) = COMETH

Comoros(COM) v Malaysia(MAS) = COMMAS

Cyprus(CYP) v Russia(RUS) = CYPRUS

Denmark(DEN) v Netherlands(NED) = DENNED

DR Congo(COD) v Germany(GER) = CODGER

Estonia(EST) v Russia(RUS) = ESTRUS

Finland(FIN) v Estonia(EST) = FINEST

Finland(FIN) v Germany(GER) = FINGER

Finland(FIN) v Netherlands(NED) = FINNED

Gabon(GAB) v Bermuda(BER) = GABBER

Gabon(GAB) v Lesotho(LES) = GABLES

Gambia(GAM) v Bolivia(BOL) = GAMBOL

Gambia(GAM) v Estonia(EST) = GAMEST

Gambia(GAM) v Malaysia(MAS) = GAMMAS

Gibraltar(GIB) v Bermuda(BER) = GIBBER

Guam(GUM) v Malaysia(MAS) = GUMMAS

Guinea(GUI) v Lesotho(LES) = GUILES

Honduras(HON) v Estonia(EST) = HONEST

Hungary(HUN) v Germany(GER) = HUNGER

Iceland(ISL) v Andorra(AND) = ISLAND

Kenya(KEN) v Netherlands(NED) = KENNED

Lesotho(LES) v Senegal(SEN) = LESSEN

Macau(MAC) v Lesotho(LES) = MACLES

Madagascar(MAD) v Denmark(DEN) = MADDEN

Panama(PAN) v Netherlands(NED) = PANNED

Paraguay(PAR) v Angola(ANG) = PARANG

Paraguay(PAR) v Lesotho(LES) = PARLES

Paraguay(PAR) v Tanzania(TAN) = PARTAN

Puerto Rico(PUR) v Estonia(EST) = PUREST

Puerto Rico(PUR) v Germany(GER) = PURGER

Puerto Rico(PUR) v Palestine(PLE) = PURPLE

Samoa(SAM) v Palestine(PLE) = SAMPLE

Samoa(SAM) v Panama(PAN) = SAMPAN

Sierra Leone(SLE) v Azerbaijan(AZE) = SLEAZE

Singapore(SIN) v Germany(GER) = SINGER

Singapore(SIN) v Netherlands(NED) = SINNED

Solomon Islands(SOL) v Andorra(AND) = SOLAND

Somalia(SOM) v Bermuda(BER) = SOMBER

South Korea(KOR) v Malaysia(MAS) = KORMAS

Suriname(SUR) v Estonia(EST) = SUREST

Sweden(SWE) v Venezuela(VEN) = SWEVEN

Tanzania(TAN) v Netherlands(NED) = TANNED

Trinidad and Tobago(TRI) v Libya(LBY) = TRILBY

Trinidad and Tobago(TRI) v Palestine(PLE) = TRIPLE

Tunisia(TUN) v Netherlands(NED) = TUNNED

Turkey(TUR) v Bangladesh(BAN) = TURBAN

Turkey(TUR) v Botswana(BOT) = TURBOT

Turkey(TUR) v Netherlands(NED) = TURNED

Vanuatu(VAN) v Netherlands(NED) = VANNED

Wales(WAL) v Russia(RUS) = WALRUS

First caps under Trapattoni

Here are the 37 Irish players handed a debut by Trapattoni during his five year reign, and the games in which they received their first cap.
Note: the numbers in brackets refer to the ranking of the side at the time of the game

Date	Level	Home Team	Score	Away Team	Debut(s)
24 May 2008	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(41)	1-1	Serbia(31)	Damien Delaney Glenn Whelan
29 May 2008	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(41)	1-0	Colombia(19)	Wes Hoolahan
15 October 2008	World Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland(38)	1-0	Cyprus(80)	Caleb Folan
19 October 2008	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(36)	2-3	Poland(32)	Keith Andrews Noel Hunt
29 May 2009	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(34)	1-1	Nigeria(30)	Liam Lawrence Kevin Foley Leon Best Eddie Nolan Sean St Ledger
12 August 2009	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(37)	0-3	Australia(16)	Keiren Westwood
8 September 2009	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(38)	1-0	South Africa(73)	Darren O'Dea
2 March 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(37)	0-2	Brazil(2)	James McCarthy
25 May 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(43)	2-1	Paraguay(30)	Paul Green Keith Fahey Cilian Sheridan
28 May 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(41)	3-0	Algeria(30)	Greg Cunningham
11 August 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(36)	0-1	Argentina(5)	Keith Treacy
17 November 2010	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(32)	1-2	Norway(12)	Jonathan Walters
11 February 2011	Carling Nations Cup	Republic of Ireland(35)	3-0	Wales(116)	Ciaran Clarke Marc Wilson Seamus Coleman
24 May 2011	Carling Nations Cup	Republic of Ireland(34)	5-0	Northern Ireland(65)	David Forde Simon Cox Stephen Ward
29 February 2012	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(20)	1-1	Czech Republic(29)	James McClean
11 September 2012	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(26)	4-1	Oman(93)	Darren Randolph Robbie Brady David Meyler Alex Pearce
6 February 2013	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(41)	2-0	Poland(56)	Conor Sammon Jeff Hendrick Richard Keogh
2 June 2013	Friendly	Republic of Ireland(39)	4-0	Georgia(96)	Stephen Quinn
14 August 2013	Friendly	Wales(46)	0-0	Republic of Ireland(44)	Paddy Madden
6 September 2013	World Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland(44)	1-2	Sweden(30)	Anthony Pilkington

Of these, James McCarthy was the youngest player to make his first appearance, who was 19 years and three months when he came on against Brazil at Emirates Stadium. At the other end of the age scale, Galwegian David Forde was 31 when making his debut against Northern Ireland in the Carling Nations Cup.
Only two players made their debuts in competitive games - Caleb Folan and Anthony Pilkington, while Paddy Madden has the honour of being the only player given his first cap in an away game*
To compare with previous managers, Steve Staunton awarded 23 new caps during his reign, with no less than 11 of these coming in the same game - VS Ecuador in New York in 2007. During his tenure, Brian Kerr gave 15 players their first caps.
*Note that the games against Colombia, Nigeria, Brazil and Oman are treated as home games, as designated by their listing on fifa.com

The history of Ireland competitive victories over higher ranked opposition

In order to qualify for the World Cup in 2014, the Boys in Green will more than likely need to accomplish something not yet achieved under the current regime - defeat a higher ranked opposition in a competitive international*. At the time of writing, Trapattoni's men have fallen two places to 41st in FIFA's rankings, while opponents Sweden are ranked 27th in the world, a drop of three places from their previous ranking, and Austria are 76th after falling five places.

Looking at the history of internationals since the rankings system was first introduced in 1993, there are only six occasions when a superior ranked opposition fell to the Green Army

Date	Level			Rank			Rank
18 June 1994	World Cup Finals	Italy	0	4	Republic of Ireland	1	14
10 September 1997	World Cup Qualifier	Lithuania	1	42	Republic of Ireland	2	55
5 September 1998	European Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland	2	48	Croatia	0	4
1 September 1999	European Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland	2	38	Yugoslavia	1	22
1 September 2001	World Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland	1	25	Holland	0	10
28 March 2007	European Cup Qualifier	Republic of Ireland	1	51	Slovakia	0	37

Previous managers Jack Charlton, Mick McCarthy and Steve Staunton all claimed the scalp of higher ranked opposition. Charlton's solitary win was arguably the most high profile, the 1-0 win over Italy in Giants Stadium during the group stages of World Cup '94. Although it has to be remembered that rankings were introduced towards the end of his tenure. McCarthy has four of the six wins, including the only away win in Lithuania (Charlton's win over Italy was at a neutral ground), with the memorable 1-0 victory over Holland with ten men the outstanding result. Steve Staunton's win in Croke Park over Slovakia, who were ranked 15 places ahead of the Dundalk man's side, completes the short history. Brian Kerr failed to defeat an opponent ranked higher than his own side during his three year tenure.


An interesting statistic of the wins is that four of the six wins all came in September, and three of those in odd-numbered years which hopefully be a positive omen for the coming game against Sweden.

* Giovanni Trapattoni's side did manage to beat France in 90 minutes in the infamous World Cup Play Off in 2009. At the time, Ireland were ranked 34 to France's 9th ranked side. The result is recorded as a draw after extra time on fifa.com, so is not included in the list.

FIFA World Cup 2014 UEFA Qualifying Group C Permutations and Combinations

Following the conclusion of the 2012/13 season, qualifying group C remains open, with Germany looking likely to win the group, with only goal difference separating the following three sides. Having compiled permutation and combination tables for previous qualifying groups, I've compiled the same for this group.

First, some assumptions

1. Germany win all four remaining qualifiers:
• 6 September 2013 - Germany v Austria
• 10 September 2013 - Faroe Islands v Germany
• 11 October 2013 - Germany v Republic of Ireland
• 15 October 2013 - Sweden v Germany
2. All teams win remaining games against group minnows:
• 10 September 2013 - Kazakhstan v Sweden
• 15 October 2013 - Faroe Islands v Austria
• 15 October 2013 - Republic of Ireland v Kazakhstan

This results in the following table:

	P	Pts
Germany	10	28
Ireland	8	14
Sweden	8	14
Austria	8	14

The following fixtures remain

• 6 September 2013 - Republic of Ireland v Sweden
• 10 September 2013 - Austria v Republic of Ireland
• 11 October 2013 - Sweden v Austria

The combinations of the possible results from those fixtures are

		Sweden beat Austria	Sweden draw with Austria	Sweden lose to Austria
Ireland beat Sweden	Austria beat Ireland	Ireland 17 points Sweden 17 points Austria 17 points	Austria 18 points Ireland 17 points Sweden 15 points	Austria 20 points Ireland 17 points Sweden 14 points
	Austria draw with Ireland	Ireland 18 points Sweden 17 points Austria 15 points	Ireland 18 points Austria 16 points Sweden 15 points	Ireland 18 points Austria 18 points Sweden 14 points
	Austria lose to Ireland	Ireland 20 points Sweden 17 points Austria 14 points	Ireland 20 points Sweden 15 points Austria 15 points	Ireland 20 points Austria 17 points Sweden 14 points
Ireland draw with Sweden	Austria beat Ireland	Sweden 18 points Austria 17 points Ireland 15 points	Austria 18 points Sweden 16 points Ireland 15 points	Austria 20 points Ireland 15 points Sweden 15 points
	Austria draw with Ireland	Sweden 18 points Ireland 16 points Austria 15 points	Ireland 16 points Sweden 16 points Austria 16 points	Austria 18 points Ireland 16 points Sweden 15 points
	Austria lose to Ireland	Ireland 18 points Sweden 18 points Austria 14 points	Ireland 18 points Sweden 16 points Austria 15 points	Ireland 18 points Austria 17 points Sweden 15 points
Ireland lose to Sweden	Austria beat Ireland	Sweden 20 points Austria 17 points Ireland 14 points	Sweden 18 points Austria 18 points Ireland 14 points	Austria 20 points Sweden 17 points Ireland 14 points
	Austria draw with Ireland	Sweden 20 points Ireland 15 points Austria 15 points	Sweden 18 points Austria 16 points Ireland 15 points	Austria 18 points Sweden 17 points Ireland 15 points
	Austria lose to Ireland	Sweden 20 points Ireland 17 points Austria 14 points	Sweden 18 points Ireland 17 points Austria 15 points	Ireland 17 points Sweden 17 points Austria 17 points

I've marked the possibilities where Ireland finish second in the group in green for clarity.
Note that in cases where Ireland finish level with one or more teams, I've marked the group with yellow. The final group placings will be dependant on goal difference.

The first conclusion is that beating Sweden will give us the best chance of finishing second, and losing to the Swedes will almost certainly result in failure to reach the play offs. Four points from the two games would seem to all but guarantee a play off spot, assuming all other results finish as expected in the list above.

Finally, it is important to remember that the worst placed second team, after results against the weakest team in the group are discarded, will not participate in the play offs. In qualifying for Euro 2012, the worst second played team was Turkey, who had 11 points after their results against Kazakhstan were discarded. Assuming Ireland win their final game against Kazakhstan, the Boys in Green will have six points removed to determine their final position in the second placed teams