Is a goalkeeping crisis not being discussed?

With the play-off for Euro 2020 a month away, a lot of the recent discussion on the squad Mick McCarthy is set to announce on March 13th has been on the strikers - will Troy Parrott be named, has Shane Long's recent form earned him a recall, will David McGoldrick be recovered in time, can Aaron Connolly get back into the Brighton starting XI, does Scott Hogan's recent good form count, etc.

However, we think another conversation should be happening - who is going to be in goals against Slovakia?

Since the final whistle was blown against Denmark in November, first choice Darren Randolph played once for Middlesbrough before a thigh injury sidelined him. On recovering, he earned a move to Premier League side West Ham during the January transfer window. Unfortunately the Bray native has only appeared three times for the Hammers since the move, with his last appearance coming a month ago against West Brom in the FA Cup.

Mark Travers was named on the bench against Denmark, and has had a similar player record to Randolph since November - appearing three times for Bournemouth, twice in the FA Cup and once in the Premier League. Fellow unused substitute against the Danes Kieran O'Hara has played more games than any other number 1 since then, he's named in the starting XI for loan side Burton Albion, 21 times since that night in Aviva stadium. The Brewers currently sit twelfth in League One.

Looking at the other Irish goalkeepers playing outside Ireland, only five men - James McKeown, Jack Bonham, Max O'Leary, Danny Rogers, and Conrad Logan - have ten or more appearances since November, and none of them at a higher level than mid-table in England's third tier.

Of the other players capped at, or called up to, senior international level, Joe Murphy has appeared six times for Shrewsbury Town, Kristiansund's Sean McDermott's season ended in early December, and the Norwegian 2020 season will not kick off until early April. Caoimhin Kelleher has played twice for Liverpool, but is expected to be on U21 duty, and Kieren Westwood clarified on Twitter recently why he has not appeared for Sheffield Wednesday since the end of November.

So, with all that in mind - do we have a goalkeeping crisis?
Who would you like to see named in the squad?

Summer 2019 Transfer Window - Transfers, Loans and Contracts

Transfers

Tuesday, 21st May

Following the end of his contract at Northampton, John Joe O’Toole signed a two year deal with Burton Albion: 📝

Tuesday, 28th May

Defender Carl McHugh signed a two year contract with Indian Super League side ATK: 📝

Friday, 31st May

Former League of Ireland Player of the Season Richie Towell signed a two year contract with Salford City: 📝

Saturday, 1st June

Sam Kelly returned to English football, signing for non league King’s Lynn: 📝

Sunday, 2nd June

Connor Smith returned to Wealdstone, where he was on loan during the 2011/12 season: 📝

Tuesday, 4th June

Following his release from Brentford, Jack Bonham signed a two year contract with Gillingham: 📝

Striker Joe Mason signed for MK Dons: 📝

Wednesday, 5th June

After two years with Luton Town, Alan McCormack signed a one year contract with Gillingham: 📝

Tuesday, 11th June

Midfielder Graham Carey left Plymouth Argyle to sign a two year deal with CSKA Sofia: 📝

Monday, 17th June

Former U21 striker Conor Wilkinson signed for Leyton Orient: 📝

Tuesday, 18th June

Limerick’s Paudie O’Connor made his loan to Bradford a permanent one, signing a three contract: 📝

Thursday, 20th June

Carlisle United’s Player of the Year for the past two seasons Jamie Devitt signed a two year contract with Blackpool FC, with the option of a further 12 months: 📝

Monday, 24th June

Roy O’Donovan signed a two year contract with Brisbane Roar: 📝

Andy Boyle returned from England to sign for former club Dundalk: 📝

Wednesday, 26th June

Free agent Stephen Ward signed a one year deal with Stoke City: 📝

Former U21 striker Rhys Murphy joined Yeovil Town on a two year deal: 📝

Friday, 28th June

Former international Darren Potter signed a one year contract with League One newcomers Tranmere Rovers: 📝

Jay O’Shea joined Roy O’Donovan at Brisbane Roar in Australia: 📝

Saturday, 29th June

Former U21 defender Emmanuel Osadebe signed for Macclesfield: 📝

Recent senior team call up Luca Connell signed a four year deal with Scottish giants Celtic FC: 📝

Monday, 1st July

Rene Gilmartin signed a two year contract with Bristol City: 📝

After two years at Cheltenham Town, Kevin Dawson signed a one year contract with Forest Green Rovers: 📝

Midfielder Adam McDonnell signed a two year contract with Boreham Wood: 📝

Former League of Ireland defender Paul Rooney signed for Dover Athletic: 📝

Tuesday, 2nd July

Following his release by Blackpool, John O’Sullivan signed a two year contract with Morecambe: 📝

Wednesday, 3rd July

Conor Masterson signed a two year deal with QPR: 📝

Thursday, 4th July

After winning promotion from League Two last season, Joe Murphy has signed a one year deal with Shrewsbury Town: 📝

Eoghan O’Connell signed a two year contract with Rochdale: 📝

Former U21 player Adam Barton moved from Scotland to Wales, signing a two year deal with Wrexham: 📝

Friday, 5th July

U19 striker Ali Reghba signed for Leicester City, where he had a trial earlier this year: 📝

Former Ireland under 19 midfielder Tom Holland signed for Waterford FC: 📝

Saturday, 6th July

Free agent Stephen Henderson signed a one year contract with Crystal Palace: 📝

Monday, 8th July

Fiacre Kelleher returned to Macclesfield Town, where he spent the 2018/19 season on loan, signing a one year deal: 📝

Liam Kelly joined former manager Jaap Stam at Feyenoord, signing for three years with the Eredivisie side: 📝

Friday, 12th July

Callum Robinson signed a four year deal with Sheffield United, becoming their record signing in the process: 📝

Monday, 15th July

U21 defender Corey Whelan signed for USL Championship side Phoenix Rising: 📝

Tuesday, 16th July

Anthony Stokes signed a two year contract, with an option for another 12 months, with Turkish second division side Adana Demirspor: 📝

Wednesday, 17th July

Defender Gavin Gunning will play for Billericay Town in the upcoming season: 📝

Thursday, 18th July

After declaring his intention to represent the Republic of Ireland at international level, winger Marcus Harness signed a three year contract with Portsmouth: 📝

Dan Crowley returned from the Netherlands to sign for Birmingham City: 📝

Friday, 26th July

After two years at Gillingham, Callum Reilly signed for AFC Wimbledon: 📝

Cork City defender Sean McLoughlin signed a three year contract with Hull City: 📝

Liverpool academy striker Glen McAuley returned to Dublin to sign for St Patrick’s Athletic: 📝

Monday, 29th July

Winger Jimmy Ryan signed a two year deal with Rochdale: 📝

Highly rated full back Trevor Clarke signed a three year contract with Rotherham: 📝

Wednesday, 31st July

After three seasons, and more than 100 appearances, with Rotherham, Anthony Forde signed a two year contract with Oxford United: 📝

Thursday, 1st August

Sam Foley was the fifth summer signing for St Mirren, signing a two year deal: 📝

Free agent Joe Shaughnessy signed a one year contract with Southend, with the option of a further 12 months: 📝

Wednesday, 7th August

After five years in Australia, Andy Keogh signed for Saudi Arabian side Al-Qadsiah: 📝

Thursday, 8th August

After almost six years with Everton, James McCarthy signed for Crystal Palace: 📝

Friday, 9th August

A day after turning 18, Tyler Toland signed for Manchester City: 📝

Loans

Saturday, 23rd June

Atlanta United player Jon Gallagher signed for Aberdeen on loan until the end of the 2019 MLS season: 📝

Thursday, 4th July

Pacy winger Simon Power signed a season long loan deal with Ross County: 📝

Friday, 5th July

Recent senior team call up Max O'Leary signed a season long loan deal with Shrewsbury Town: 📝

Monday, 8th July

After spending the 2018/19 season with Macclesfield, Manchester United goalkeeper Kieran O'Hara signed a season long loan deal with Burton Albion: 📝

After signing a two year extension to his contract with Brighton, U21 captain Jayson Molumby will spend the 2019/20 season on loan at Millwall: 📝

Wednesday, 31st July

Graham Burke returned to Shamrock Rovers, signing a 12 month loan deal from Preston North End: 📝

Thursday, 1st August

Canice Carroll signed a season-long loan deal with Carlisle United: 📝

Jake Doyle-Hayes signed for League Two side Cheltenham Town on loan for the 2019/20 season: 📝

Thursday, 2nd August

After signing for Hull City, Sean McLoughlin was sent on loan to St Mirren for the new season: 📝

Saturday, 3rd August

Rotherham forward Joshua Kayode joined Gateshead until January 2020: 📝

Tuesday, 6th August

Harry Arter signed a one year loan deal with Fulham, where he will work with brother in law Scott Parker: 📝

Wednesday, 7th August

Aston Villa’s Scott Hogan will spend the 2019/20 season on loan with Stoke City: 📝

After spending the 2018/19 season on loan with Charlton Athletic, Josh Cullen returned to the Valley for another season long loan: 📝

Thursday, 8th August

Aaron Drinan will spend the autumn season on loan with Swedish side GAIS: 📝

Cardiff defender Greg Cunningham will spend the 2019/20 season on loan with fellow Championship side Blackburn Rovers: 📝

Contract/Other

Monday, 20th May

U21 midfielder Connor Ronan signed a new two year contract with Wolves: 📝

Thursday, 30th May

Mark O’Brien signed a two year extension to his contract at Newport County: 📝

Wednesday, 19th May

Two years after first signing for Cambridge United, Gary Deegan extended his stay at Abbey Stadium with a new 12 month contract: 📝

Thursday, 20th May

Following her comeback from a long term injury, Megan Campbell signed a one year extension to her deal with Manchester City: 📝

Friday, 14th June

Rotherham academy player Jake Cooper signed his first professional contract: 📝

Tuesday, 25th June

Ryan Burke signs first contact at Birmingham 📝

Thursday, 27th June

Joe Redmond extends contact at Birmingham 📝

Kevin O’Connor extended his loan spell at Cork City until the end of the League of Ireland season: 📝

Friday, 28th June

Club legend Jim Goodwin returned to St Mirren FC as manager, signing a three year contract: 📝

Monday, 1st July

Jimmy Keohane signed a two year extension to his contract with Rochdale: 📝

Thursday, 4th July

Adam Idah signed a four year contract at Norwich City, and will wear squad number 35 for the 2019/20 season: 📝

Friday, 5th July

Harriet Scott extended her stay with Birmingham City until the end of the 2020/21 season: 📝

Tuesday, 9th July

Having made over 150 appearances for Sheffield Wednesday, Kieren Westwood extended his stay with the Owls with a new two year contract: 📝

Saturday, 13th July

After more than 100 appearances for Aston Villa, Conor Hourihane signed a contract extension with the midlands club: 📝

Monday, 15th July

Following his senior debut at the end of the 2018/19 season, Mark Travers signed a long term deal with AFC Bournemouth: 📝

Tuesday, 16th July

Reece Grego Cox extended his stay with Crawley Town until the end of the 2021-22 season: 📝

Wednesday, 17th July

Former Sligo Rovers player Seamus Keogh signed his first professional contract, a two year deal with Southampton: 📝

Friday, 26th July

After making his first team debut with Stoke City in the 2018/19 season, Nathan Collins signed a new contract keeping him with the Potters until 2024: 📝

Round Up for weekend of Friday, 2nd August 2019

Friday, 2nd August 2019

Championship

Luton 3-3 Middlesbrough

James Collins' late equaliser was his first goal in the Championship

Saturday, 3rd August 2019

Championship

Millwall 1-0 Preston North End

Alan Browne's start was his 150th appearance in the competition

Reading 1-3 Sheffield Wednesday

Keiren Westwood was sent off for the first time since February 2015
Josh Barrett's assist for Meite's goal was his first assist for Reading, and his first at senior level since November 2017

League 1

AFC Wimbledon 1-2 Rotherham

After signing for AFC Wimbledon over the summer, Callum Reilly made his first appearance for the Dons, and was booked for the first time since February

Burton Albion 0-1 Ipswich

John-Joe O'Toole's start for for new club Burton Albion was his first time starting a game since March
Stephen Quinn was sent off for the fourth time in his career, this was his first red card since December 2014

Coventry 1-0 Southend United

Joe Shaughnessy made his first appearance for new club Southend United

Doncaster Rovers 1-1 Gillingham

Ian Lawlor's start was his first appearance since January

Peterborough 1-3 Fleetwood

Paddy Madden's second half introduction was his 350th appearance in English football

Shrewsbury 1-0 Portsmouth

Ronan Curtis made his 50th appearance for Portsmouth

League 2

Salford City 2-0 Stevenage

Richie Towell's open day booking was his first yellow card since October 2018

Bradford City 0-0 Cambridge United

Anthony O'Connor made his 50th appearance for Bradford City

Exeter 1-0 Macclesfield

Emmanuel Osadebe was booked for the first time in 11 months

Leyton Orient 1-0 Cheltenham

Conor Wilkinson's assist on the winner was his first assist in almost a year

Scottish Premier League

Livingston 0-0 Motherwell

Jake Carroll made his 200th appearance since leaving Irish football

Sunday, 4th August 2019

Scottish Premier League

Aberdeen 3-2 Hearts

Jake Mulraney was booked for the first time since Saturday, 11 August 2018

Monday, 5th August 2019

Championship

Huddersfield 1-2 Derby County

Jason Knight came off the bench late in the second half to make his senior club debut

Round Up for weekend of Saturday, 22nd December 2018

Saturday, 22nd December 2018

Premier League

Arsenal 3-1 Burnley

Kevin Long's assist for Burnley's only goal of the game was his first of the season

Huddersfield 1-3 Southampton

Michael Obafemi scored his first goal for Southampton, in the process becoming their youngest goalscorer in the Premier League, and the 105th Irish player to score in the PL.
This was the eleventh goal scored by an Irish player in the 2018/19 season - matching the total scored in 2017/18.

West Ham United 0-2 Watford

Congratulations to Declan Rice on his 50th appearance for West Ham United

Congratulations, @_DeclanRice! 👏 pic.twitter.com/NRnyd6aOuN

— West Ham United (@WestHamUtd) December 22, 2018

Championship

Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 Preston North End

Keiren Westwood's start was his first appearance in more than a year, his last time lining out for the Owls was on Saturday, 9th December 2017

League 1

Blackpool 0-1 Barnsley

John O'Sullivan was named in the Blackpool starting XI for the first time in a month

Bradford City 2-0 Scunthorpe

Eoin Doyle scored his fifth goal for Bradford, and was also booked for the first time this season

Bristol Rovers 2-1 Fleetwood

Paddy Madden was booked for the fifth time this season, three months after his last yellow card, and also made his fifth assist of the season

Peterborough 1-1 Walsall

Conor O'Malley was booked for the first time this season in his first league appearance of the season

Plymouth 0-3 Accrington Stanley

Seamus Conneely was shown his first yellow card since August

League 2

Crawley 2-3 Carlisle United

Jamie Devitt made his first assist since September

Forest Green 1-0 Crewe Alexandra

Paul Green came off the bench for his first appearance for Crewe since August

Lincoln City 3-2 Newport Co.

The first goal of Padraig Amond's brace was his 70th goal in League Two

Stevenage 1-3 Mansfield Town

Ryan Sweeney scored his first goal for Mansfield, his was the fifth goal of the defender's career, his first goal in League Two, and his first goal of the season

Yeovil 1-1 Northampton

Sam Foley was booked for the first time in two months

Scottish Premier League

Aberdeen 2-0 Hearts

Stephen Gleeson's came off the bench for his first appearance since Saturday, 6th October
Colin Doyle made his first appearance for Hearts, also his first appearance in the SPL

Hamilton Academical 1-1 Kilmarnock

Gary Dicker made his 400th appearance since leaving the League of Ireland

Scottish Championship

Greenock Morton 1-2 Inverness CT

Aaron Doran's scored his fifth goal in the Scottish Championship

Sunday, 23rd December 2018

Championship

Aston Villa 2-3 Leeds United

Conor Hourihane scored his first goal since Saturday, 10th November

Scottish Premier League

St Johnstone 1-2 Rangers

Joe Shaughnessy made his 150th appearance for St Johnstone

Australian A-League

Central Coast Mariners 1-2 Newcastle Jets

After completing his record suspension, Roy O'Donovan returned to the Newcastle Jets starting XI for his first appearance since May

Round Up - Weekend of 17th December 2016

Saturday, 17 December 2016

Championship

Greg Cunningham and Liam Kelly made the WhoScored Championship Team of the Week for their performances this weekend

Championship Team of the Week - Gameweek 22 https://t.co/7094SxKrhN pic.twitter.com/Cq4UNH110d

— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) December 19, 2016

Bristol City 1-2 Preston North End
Aiden McGeady was booked for the first time this season

Cardiff 3-4 Barnsley
Anthony Pilkington scored his fifth goal of the season, this was also the winger's 15th goal for Cardiff

Fulham 2-2 Derby County
Alex Pearce scored his second goal of the season, the first time the defender has scored more than once in a season since 2013/14

Leeds United 1-0 Brentford
John Egan was booked for the fifth time this season and is suspended for the next game

Nottingham Forest 0-2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Congratulations to Connor Ronan on making his first senior appearance for Wolves

Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 Rotherham
Keiren Westwood made his 100th appearance for Sheffield Wednesday

Wigan 2-3 Ipswich
David McGoldrick scored his 15th goal for Ipswich

League 1

AFC Wimbledon 4-0 Port Vale
Sam Kelly was booked for the first time this season

Oldham 0-2 Southend United
Stephen McLaughlin made his 25th appearance of the season

Scunthorpe 3-0 Millwall
Stephen Dawson made his 50th appearance for Scunthorpe
Paddy Madden scored his third brace of the season, and was booked for the first time this season

League 2

Carlisle United 2-1 Yeovil
Kevin Dawson made his 25th appearance of the season

Scottish Premier League

Ross County 2-1 Aberdeen
Jonathan Hayes was booked for the fifth time this season and is suspended for the next game

Sunday, 18 December 2016

Premier League

Tottenham 2-1 Burnley
Stephen Ward made his 50th start for Burnley

Australian A-League

Central Coast Mariners 1-2 Brisbane Roar
Roy O'Donovan scored his fifth goal of the season

Irish Abroad player statistics for 2015/16 season

With the Champions League final behind us, and less than a week until the Republic of Ireland open their Euro 2016 campaign against Sweden, we've compiled the appearance statistics for Irish players in England, Scotland, the MLS* and the Eredivisie across the 2015/16 season: http://irish-abroad.appspot.com/MonthlyStats?month=14

Wins
Aberdeen's loan goalkeeper Danny Rogers won 24 games on loan at Falkirk, just ahead of Richard Keogh who started 22 wins for Derby

Draws
In the Championship, Preston North End's Player of the Season Greg Cunningham started 16 games that finished all square, just ahead of fellow Championship players Keogh and goalkeeper Kieren Westwood

Losses
Norwich City's Robbie Brady started 20 losses for the Canaries in their relegation season, his second year in a row dropping out of the top flight after being relegated with Hull City last season

Starts/Completed Games
Keogh again started more games than any other player across the season (having also done so in 2014/15) - the Derby captain started 49 games and completed 90 minutes in 48 of them.

Substitutions/Introductions
Midfielders Wes Hoolahan and Anthony Pilkington were both substituted on 20 separate occasions across the season, Pilkington was withdrawn as many times as at home as way - ten each, while Hoolahan was taken off more often at home than away - 12 times as opposed to 8 when Norwich were on the road. Striker David McGoldrick came off the bench more than any other player, Mick McCarthy called upon the striker 15 times in 2015/16

Stayed On Bench
As always, a goalkeeper was left on the bench more than any outfield player, Brentford's Jack Bonham will hope to improve on his record of only making one appearance and being left on the bench 47 times next season. Of the outfield players, defender Alex Pearce failed to play a minute in 28 games where he was named in the matchday squad, behind only Bonham and Darren Randolph

Goals
Robbie Keane scored more goals than any other Irish player since 1st July 2015, the LA Galaxy striker found the back of the net 23 times. Aberdeen striker Adam Rooney was the only Irishman to score more penalties than Keane, the Dons player found the back of the net seven times from 12 yards. Midfielder Alan Judge scored almost as many (14) as the next two top scoring midfielders combined - Pilkington(9) and Harriman(8) in less appearances than either player. The top scoring defender Shane Duffy scored more goals in 2015/16 (four) than in his career up until the beginning of the season!

Discipline
Mk Dons midfielder Samir Carruthers was shown 14 yellow cards this season, one of only three player to get into double figures along with Shane Duffy(10) and Darragh Lenihan (11). All of Lenihan's bookings came in 2016!

*The MLS stats are calculated from July 2015 to May 2016, not as their season runs from March to November, to accurately compare players

Irish Abroad Round Up - 26th December 2015

26 December 2015 
Premier League
Southampton 4-0 Arsenal
Shane Long scored his second brace of the season, and his first in the league since May 2014. The former Cork City player also picked up his first booking of the season

Championship
Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 Birmingham City
This was the first league game Kieren Westwood missed for the Owls since September (he is rested for their cup games) and the first league game this season that Stephen Gleeson did not appear for Birmingham.

League 1
Doncaster Rovers 0-1 Scunthorpe
Stephen Dawson returned to the Scunthorpe starting XI for his first appearance since August 19th, and marked his return with his first booking of the season. Likewise, Niall Canavan picked up his first yellow card of 2015/16

Millwall 0-1 Walsall
Liam Kinsella came off the bench for Walsall to make his first appearance since October 10th

Shrewsbury 1-1 Fleetwood
Liam McAlinden's first start since October 6th was also his twenty-fifth career start

Swindon Town 1-3 Gillingham
John Egan's start away to the Robins was his one hundredth career appearance

League  2
Dagenham & Redbridge 0-3 Cambridge United
Barry Corr's goal this afternoon was the 90th of his career! Congratulations Barry, the ton is in sight!

Further Reading
Rob Elliot is not just for Christmas, he's for life at Newcastle
Andy Reid set for groin operation in America
Picture Perfect - Jon Walters is the Times' Player of the Year (subscription required)

Talking points

Darren Randolph's return to the Birmingham City starting XI resulted in them conceding eight goals against AFC Bournemouth. Should Colin Doyle be given a chance in nets for the West Midlands side?
David Forde and Kieren Westwood both performed heroically for their respective club sides at the weekend. With Forde the current number 1, what do Westwood, Randolph, Given, etc have to do to unseat him?
O'Neill reportedly watched Sean Kavanagh and Stephen Henderson on Friday night, with Kavanagh's Fulham side emerging 2-0 winners. Is it still too early for the left sided player after only four senior appearances, or does the fact that there are no specialist left full backs available to O'Neill negate that? Is Henderson ready to follow in the footsteps of his uncle Wayne into goals for the senior international side?
Although Shane Long is still to record his first goal for Southampton, most Saints fans are unconcerned with his form, but how long will this last for the £12m striker?
Robbie Brady's performance against Liverpool in an unfamiliar position was praised by Steve Bruce, will he retain his spot at left wing-back for the Tigers? Is he an option there, or at full back, for Martin O'Neill's team?
James McClean came off the bench to score twice for Wigan, and has impressed in recent games for the senior international side, is he now the starting left winger for O'Neill?
James McArthur and Steven Fletcher are reportedly unavailable for Gordon Strachan's squad for the qualifier in three weeks, how important are they to his side? Who do you expect to replace them?With Germany expected to claim three points at home to Gibraltar, what is the most favourable result in the night's other Group D fixture - Poland away to Georgia?
Following Dundalk's victory in the Airtricity League, Richie Towell is being linked with a move to Cardiff, how will the former Celtic and Hibernian player fare in his second term across the water?
Stephen Hunt referred to David McGoldrick as being one of a three man Irish strikeforce at Ipswich, the others being Conor Sammon and Daryl Murphy, should he be called up?