It wasn’t delight, it was relief. For two days after the game I felt sick. All the lads did. It was an awful night, but we got the win and with it the chance to put things right against Wales and Slovakia.”

Lee Carsley is recalling the moment in Serraville when Stephen Ireland saved the country from its worst humiliation since Foster & Allen appeared on Top Of The Pops.
“No one took San Marino anything other than seriously beforehand. The game plan was to keep switching the ball and get crosses in, which we did, but nothing fell to us. Having got our noses in front they scored a comedy equaliser, and we squandered six or seven really good chances before Stephen spared our blushes. The one good thing being we’ve a major point to prove at Croke Park.”
It’s the sort of honest appraisal you expect from Carsley, a no-nonsense midfielder whose lack of flash often means he doesn’t get the credit his skill and Duracell bunny workrate deserve.
“It’s always been the same to be honest, and I’m not bothered,” he insists. “I’m quite happy being in the background, though Everton having fans all over the world you’ll be in the oddest of places and get recognised.”
So no resentment towards the fancy boots ‘n’ blonde streak brigade who dominate the back-pages?
“Only that they have hair to put the streaks in,” he laughs. “I’ve got pretty fancy boots though and played well enough to get the respect of Evertonians, which is the one form of recognition that does matter to me.”
Having flown under the radar for much of his 29-cap Ireland career, Cars was hailed as a returning hero against the Czech Republic when he added much needed bite to a midfield that in Nicosia had been all gums.
“If I had to pick my best game for Ireland, it’d be the Czech Republic,” says the 33-year-old who, lest we forget, had signaled his willingness to come out of international retirement for the Cyprus game but wasn’t selected.
“Some of the papers said it was because I’d had a massive falling out with Stan, but that never happened,” Carsley declares. “The crossed wires actually came from a five-minute conversation I had with the manager in which I said I didn’t want to be dragged all over Europe if I wasn’t involved. Nobody’s got the right to pick the team but what, for example, is the point of me going to Estonia to not even be on the bench when you can take a young lad who’d benefit from the experience? None of which alters the fact that I find it an immense honour even to be in the Republic of Ireland squad.”
Another misconception is that Carsley’s decision to hang up his Ireland boots in 2004 was down to him not getting on with the then newly appointed Brian Kerr.
“I enjoyed working for him,” he states for the record. “Brian never underestimated a team or failed to do his homework before games.”
Ah, the famous dossiers.
“He’s very precise, yeah, which you need at international level because everything’s accelerated. You come in and have four days to prepare for a game against players who are often in different leagues and therefore unknown quantities.”
While quite a bit of familiarising will have to be done before the Slovakia game, everybody knows that Wales’ main threat will come from Ryan Giggs and Craig Bellamy.
“He didn’t have the best of times when we were together at Coventry, but now that he’s surrounded by players of similar ability Craig’s top class,” Carsley reflects a tad grimly. “People say, ‘How do you contain him?’ but I’m not sure you can totally. The same goes for Ryan Giggs who, despite being another member of the over-30s club, hasn’t lost any of his pace. Another very good Wales player is Simon Davies who found the going tough at Everton, but has been excellent for Fulham.”
So the 5-1 tonking Wales received at the Millennium Stadium from Slovakia will be put to the back of Irish minds?
“Definitely.”
How would he sum Steve Staunton up as a manager?
“He’s very calm and encouraging, which rubs off on the players. At half-time against San Marino, there was no ranting or raving just positive advice, which is the sign of a good manager.”
It won’t endear him to the Goodison Park faithful, but Lee reckons that one of Ireland’s key men over the next week will be Steve Finnan.
“He’s been absolutely fantastic for Liverpool. I was a bit shocked the other day when we were at the FAI Awards and Steve wasn’t even nominated for ‘Best Player’. A Champions League winner like him has to at least be in the top 3.”
Away from Everton and Ireland, Carsley is co-manager with wife Louisa of a six, eight and 10-year-old.
“It’s constantly, ‘Where’s dad and when’s he coming back?’ which is another reason I decided to take a break from international football,” he proffers. “I wasn’t coming over with any enthusiasm, and no one should do that when they’re playing for their country.”
Lee and Louisa’s eight-year-old, Connor, was born with Down’s Syndrome, which has lead to them helping out other families in their position.
“Any sort of fundraising we do goes down a storm with the Everton fans, so I can only thank them for that,” he enthuses. “The players not just here but throughout the game have been fantastic too.”
As for Croke Park, Paul McShane and Kevin Doyle aren’t the only members of the Ireland squad with GAA previous.
“I was shown how to play Gaelic growing up by my cousins in Dunmanaway, County Cork,” Carsley explains. “They reckoned I was quite good, but to be honest it was a bit too rough for me!”b