Shay Given's Tehran test
Shay Given's superb contribution to Ireland's World Cup success cannot be underestimated and his display in the second-leg play-off in Iran was instrumental in the side's progress to next summer's finals. Yet as the squad escaped unscathed from the bearpit of Tehran's 120,000-capacity Azadi Stadium, goalkeeper Given was thankful to have kept the very hands that could well shape a nation's football destiny.
'As I warmed up behind the goal with my fellow keepers Dean Kiely and Alan Kelly, what I thought were smoke bombs were going off all around us,' he explains. 'The force of the explosions pulled at my face and it wasn't until we got back in the dressing room that we discovered that the devices were, in fact, live grenades. When the smoke cleared, you could see craters left in the ground, so we were very lucky not to be hurt, especially as some were falling just yards from us.'
By his own admission, it was an experience far more unnerving than a trip to Sunderland's Stadium of Light in his Newcastle colours, yet his accomplished subsequent performance speaks volumes for Given's disposition. Apparently cool, calm and assured, he admits to a facade on this occasion as the fires had been stoked by the raucous reception.
'We were warned before boarding at Dublin that it would be a tough environment, but it was far worse than I'd anticipated,' he recalls. 'When we got off the plane, the fans seemed more intent on getting autographs, but they all changed on match-day. They hurled abuse at us, plenty of rotten fruit and plastic bottles, so it took a strong character to get through it. Even as we made our way back to the airport, the road was littered with broken glass to stop us getting to the airport. But our treatment only made us more determined to send those fans home empty-handed. We used it to our favour.'
His double saves against Ali Karimi and Karim Bagheri are now part of Irish folklore and Given's celebrations at the final whistle were unrivalled as many team-mates had already made for the safe haven of the dressing room. A culmination of relief and joy was all-encompassing as he forgot his surroundings for a few moments. 'I didn't care where I was, it was a tremendous feeling to qualify,' he adds. 'Not many people gave us a chance at the start of qualifying but to have knocked out Holland and remained unbeaten in the group was a fantastic achievement.
'Roy Keane apart, there are no superstars but Mick McCarthy has built up a squad and spirit over the past five years which is very, very close. Technically, we might not be the best, but few can match us for hard work and I'm sure plenty of sides will be wary of us next summer.'
As the side embarked on a 'colourful' journey home, County Donegal's favourite son was left to receive the adulation of a nation, and not for the first time, to count his blessings. Certainly Given's career to date has been littered with the peaks and troughs so frequently reserved for the goalkeeping union. Having served an apprenticeship at Celtic, he made his League bow, via loans spells at Swindon and Sunderland, of all places, at Blackburn as cover for Tim Flowers.
But Flowers- then an England squad regular - was unassailable at Rovers. It prompted a determined Given to seek a fresh challenge. 'If I'd been a regular for Blackburn, I'd never have left,' he recalls. 'But Tim was in fantastic form and I was at the age where I needed first-team football.'
Fundamental to his desire was Kenny Dalglish, the manager who brought him south from Glasgow. Dalglish had moved on to St James' Park and it wasn't long before Given followed his mentor to Tyneside.
'When a club like Newcastle come calling, you don't think twice,' he recalls. 'Kenny obviously had a bearing on my decision.'
An FA Cup final appearance in 1998 indicated Given's progress, yet if he had warmed to his surroundings, the Dalglish era was on the wane. A sterile brand of football did not sit well with the Geordie masses and it was finally swept away - just a few games into the 1998-99 season - by Ruud Gullit's 'sexy football'.
But if this signalled fresh optimism among the fans, it would bring antipathy to Given. 'Ruud decided I was not his cup of tea and dropped me, saying my kicking wasn't good enough. That was hard to take - so was the way he did it.'
He was hurt to be left out of another losing FA Cup final - against Manchester United - but within months Gullit, too, was gone as the side nosedived. The arrival of Bobby Robson provided much-needed stability and security. With a new-found togetherness, the club staved off relegation and began laying the foundations for their current healthy position.
'Bobby has brought the players back together,' he says. 'The staff and players are all pulling in the same direction, which maybe wasn't the case before he arrived. He's responsible for the way things have turned around, and he has the utmost respect and backing of us all.'
Given, who saved a penalty against Derby yesterday, has also forgotten a spat with Robson - prompted by a short spell out of the side - when he asked for a transfer. 'I've got my goals this season,' he says. 'I want to be playing European football next season with Newcastle and winning some silverware come May. I also want to walk out for Ireland in the World Cup. But I've learnt not to take anything for granted until it actually happens.'
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