Happy St Patrick's Day from The Tap-Inn

👋 Welcome…

..to a special St Patrick’s Day edition of The Tap-Inn. Your first-gen Irish bartender Joe is here and I’m sending this one off early before I head to work for my busiest day of the year.

We’ve got a ful Irish on tap today:

• 🇮🇪 Irish soccer nostalgia

• 🍿 Ireland’s greatest soccer movie

• ⏳ A World Cup story nine days from it’s most important chapter

Ready? I thought so. Let’s pour.

🥃 TOP SHELF

Next round’s on me

Today of all days, I want to ask you a favour.

If you've been reading The Tap-Inn for a while, you'll know what we're about — soccer made simple. No jargon, no nonsense, just good stories told over a cold one.

For St. Patrick's Day, do your pal Joe a favour. If you've got a colleague, a family member or a friend who's been curious about soccer but doesn't know where to start, forward them this email.

“Okay Joe, but only if you buy me a beer”.

Deal. For every 10 subscribers that use your referral link to pull up a stool to The Tap-Inn, I’ll personally buy you a beer.

You read that correctly. Follow the details at the end of the email for how to refer new readers. Sláinte 🍀

The Boys in Green: nine days from glory

The Republic of Ireland haven't been to a World Cup since 2002.

That's 24 years. A full generation of us Irish fans have never seen their country on the biggest stage in soccer. But by the end of this month, that could all change. Here’s your St Patrick’s Day story of how…

Going into the qualifying tournament last autumn, Ireland were in a group with Portugal, Armenia and Hungary. The kind of draw you look at and quietly accept your fate. You go home, you pour yourself something strong, and start managing your expectations.

We made life hard for ourselves by losing our second group stage game to Armenia — the 105th ranked team in the world. All hope looked lost.

“Armenia… that’s a Pokémon, no?”

Apparently not. After the Armenia loss, Ronaldo and Portugal came to Dublin. Against all odds, Ireland went and beat them 2-0 in a rocking Aviva Stadium (check out stadium of the week below).

Troy Parrott, the 24-year-old striker who's been putting defenders on their backsides all season, scored twice. Ronaldo, not enjoying the hostile atmosphere, got himself sent off. Dublin pubs had a night to remember.

But there was still work to do. Ireland needed a win in Budapest to clinch second place in the group. We fell behind against Hungary. It was looking bleak. Then Parrott struck gold. He completed a hat-trick and scored the winner in the 96th minute. He fell to his knees on the pitch. Irish fans wept across the globe.

That result earned Ireland a spot in the UEFA play-off round.

“So when’s the play-off round?”

Next week, Ireland play Czech Republic on Thursday. Win that, and Ireland face either Denmark or North Macedonia in a winner-takes-all final back home in Dublin on March 31st.

Win that, and it's our first World Cup since 2002.

Luck of the Irish, anyone?

🗞️ THIS WEEK IN SOCCER - THE IRISH EDITION 🍀

The Irish abroad

What better way to celebrate St Patrick’s Day than to show off your Irish player knowledge to your friends. Here’s the latest news on the best of the Boys in Green playing in England’s top tier:

• 🟢Jake O'Brien (Everton) lost his battle against Arsenal on Saturday in the 2-0 defeat that saw Max Dowman make history. Tough afternoon, but no shame losing to a 16-year-old prodigy. We covered that one yesterday.

• 🟢Josh Cullen (Burnley) did his job in a 0-0 draw with Bournemouth on Saturday. Not glamorous. Not front-page stuff. But a composed, tidy performance in midfield is exactly what Hallgrímsson (the Irish manager) wants to see days before a play-off.

• 🟢Nathan Collins and Caoimhín Kelleher (Brentford) both started last night against Wolves but will be licking their wounds this morning. Brentford led 2-0 and somehow let the Premier League's bottom club claw it back to 2-2. A frustrating night — and for two Irishmen who could really have done without dropping those points. Onwards.

Squawk of the town

On the most Irish day of the year, let's talk a little more about Mr. Top Shelf himself, Troy Parrott.

• Thursday, March 12 — AZ Alkmaar 2-1 Sparta Prague (Conference League): Two goals. Man of the Match. AZ go to Prague next week with a 2-1 lead. The first of two trips he’ll make to the city this month.

• Sunday, March 15 — AZ Alkmaar 4-0 Heracles (Eredivisie): Troy followed that up with a goal after five minutes back home in The Netherlands. He added two more assists before he was then taken off with the game already won.

That's five goal involvements in 96 hours. He now sits on 32 goals for club and country this season. New national holiday pending - St Parrott’s Day.

📝 TRIVIA ON TAP

Which Irishman holds the (joint) record for most red cards in the English Premier League as a player?

• A) Robbie Keane

• B) Damien Duff

• C) Richard Dunne

• D) Roy Keane

Keep scrolling for the answer.

📽️ Joe’s Movie Club

If you can’t make it to the bar today, how about an Irish movie to get into the spirit?

Saipan is an Irish horror drama about the Irish soccer team in the build up to the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.

Ahead of the tournament, Ireland fly to a Pacific island called Saipan. Their captain is Roy Keane — the inspiration for Ted Lasso's Roy Kent — and one of the best midfielders in the world at the time.

He arrives to a chaotic training camp, the film chronicles the clashing egos between Roy and the team Manager Mick McCarthy and their intense professionalism dispute that forced Keane to return home

The film stars Cork actor Éanna Hardwicke as Keane and Oscar-nominated Steve Coogan as McCarthy. The Guardian called it"a rare football movie that deserves a replay."

Watch the trailer here. Perfect St. Patrick's Day viewing.

🔥 QUICKFIRE

Sound like a pro

Phrase:Give it a lash

Origin: Straight from the Jack Charlton playbook. Ireland's legendary manager — a straight-talking Englishman who somehow became a national hero in Ireland.

What it means: Have a go. Stop overthinking it. Stop looking for the perfect option and just go for it. Used any time a player tries their luck from distance rather than waiting for a better chance that may never come.

He built his entire soccer philosophy around direct, no-nonsense play in the late 1980s and early 90s. His instructions were simple: get it forward, get in the box, and give it a lash. It worked. Ireland reached three major tournaments under him.

Usage:"Nobody was open, so he just gave it a lash from 30 yards. A great strike, the goalkeeper had no chance."

Stadium of the week

The Aviva Stadium — known to every Irish person simply as Lansdowne Road — sits in a leafy neighbourhood of Dublin, a short walk from the city centre. Capacity: 51,700. It’s also home to the Irish Rugby team and hosts a US college football game once a year.

The site has been home to Irish sport since 1872, making it one of oldest international sporting venue in the world. The current stadium was built on the exact same plot, opened in 2010 after a $500 million redevelopment.

If Ireland get a win in Prague next week, the play-off final we mentioned earlier will be held here. If (and when) this happens, it’s guaranteed to be an even bigger celebration than St Patrick’s Day itself.

📝 TRIVIA ANSWER

If you said Roy Keane, you're not alone and you're not wrong to think it. Keane picked up 7 Premier League red cards and was genuinely a terrifying threat at midfield.

But the answer is C) Richard Dunne.

The former Manchester City and Aston Villa defender was sent off 8 times in the Premier League, putting him joint top of the all-time list alongside Frenchman Patrick Vieira and Scotsman Duncan Ferguson.

What happens when an Irishman, A Scotman and a Frenchman all walk into a bar, you say? In this case, they all got a red card.

Until next time…

Thanks for stopping by The Tap-Inn for this special edition.

If you enjoyed this, forward it to that friend who knows nothing about soccer and help spread the good word.

I’ll be behind the bar (as normal) every week, Monday and Friday, serving up soccer. Sláinte.

— Joe