Shamrock Rovers XI v Brazil
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2012) |
| Event | Friendly | ||||||
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| Date | 3 July 1973 | ||||||
| Venue | Lansdowne Road, Dublin | ||||||
The Shamrock Rovers XI v Brazil
Background and aftermath
The match was played at the height of
Kilcoyne's brother-in-law and captain of the Republic team, Johnny Giles,[1] and Derek Dougan of Northern Ireland were friendly with each other. They supported the project and persuaded many of their respective teammates to participate.
The
Derek Dougan alleged that IFA President Harry Cavan instructed Northern Ireland manager Terry Neill not to pick him in future because of his involvement in organising this match, thereby ending his international career. However, Dougan had not appeared in any of Northern Ireland's five matches prior to the game in Dublin, had failed to score in any of the last ten international games in which he had played and, at 35, he was in the twilight of his career. Indeed, he was to retire from playing full-time football less than two seasons later.
None of the five other Northern Ireland players who played in this match suffered any adverse consequences for their international career. Three of them (Jennings, Hamilton and O'Neill) were subsequently to captain Northern Ireland, and Hamilton was also appointed manager.
Despite the lack of support from the island's two FAs, following the match the FAI contacted the IFA regarding the possibility of re-unifying the two associations. The IFA unanimously agreed to talks, the first to be held about a possible merger since 1932. Nine IFA-FAI conferences were held between 1973 and 1980, with seven of those taking place between 1978 and 1980. Despite this the proposal did not come to fruition: reasons for its failure included the prospect of reduced revenue from international matches with the existence of one Irish team, ongoing violence (including a riot between Northern Irish side Linfield F.C. and the Republic's Dundalk F.C. at a European Cup tie at Dundalk's Oriel Park in 1979), and increased success for both Northern Ireland (during the early-to-mid 1980s) and the Republic of Ireland (in the late 1980s and early 1990s).[5]
Proceeds from the match went to UNICEF and the Irish Cancer Society.
The match was featured on the RTÉ Television programme, Monday Night Soccer, on 7 April 2008.[6]
Match details
Line ups:[7]
Shamrock Rovers XI   | 3–4 |  Brazil |
|---|---|---|
Martin  Conroy Dougan |
Valdomiro |
          Shamrock Rovers XI
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     Brazil
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References
- ^ a b c All-Ireland Samba Shamrock Rovers All-Ireland XI 3 – 4 Brazil Lansdowne Road, Tuesday 3 July 1973 History Ireland, Issue 4 (Jul/Aug 2008), Volume 16.
- ^ FAI abandons plans for minute silence in memory of Louis Kilcoyne due to fears of Shamrock Rovers fan protestGoal Ireland. Retrieved: 2013-11-04. Archived 8 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Gaffers: 50 Years of Irish Football Managers
By Trevor Kean pages 110 and 111,ISBN 978 1 85635 666 4
- ^ ""All-Ireland XI" v Brazil, 1973. Shamrock Rovers XI v Brazil - Friendly International 1973 – Dundalk Football Club". Archived from the original on 1 September 2011.
- irishtimes.com. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
- ^ Jimmy Magee reports on the Shamrock Rovers XI v Brazil game 35 years on Archived 2008-12-18 at the Wayback Machine RTÉ Sport: "Monday Night Soccer", 2008-04-07.
- ^ Shamrock Rovers XI v Brazil – Friendly International 1973 By Colm Murphy, February 13, 2011 on DundalkFC.com (archived, 1 Sep 2011)
External links
- Brazil bring out united front from The Irish Times, 14 February 2004
- Brazil's return to Dublin's flair city conjures up memories from Scotland on Sunday, 15 February 2004
- Match highlights on YouTube