SORRY IRELAND'S SCAR ISSUE

Light has gone outon Hallgrimsson's Ireland vision

- By MARK MCCADDEN

ON THE face of it, it's a jarring thing to hear from a manager.

All this talk of not seeing any light at the end of the tunnel could easily be read as the beginning of the end.

Especially when it's paired with Heimir Hallgrímsson's remarks immediately after Tuesday's defeat to Armenia when asked if he would consider his future.

"Win or lose," he said, "you're always thinking (about) it."

It's hard to know what he is thinking now that he has had a little more time to analyse the dismal performance in Yerevan.

And we won't hear from him until his squad announcement for next month's games away to Portugal and the return against Tuesday's opponents.

If he is thinking of pulling the plug, what will that actually achieve?

One thing is certain, a change at the top won't be a silver bullet. The malaise runs much deeper.

So we should keep banging the player development drum, and FAI Academy director Will Clarke should keep posting damning statistics until they finally shame our government into pumping serious money into our game.

But a more immediate issue needs addressing.