Robbie Keane may be about to have a stand named after him in Tallaght Stadium, the home of Shamrock Rovers, despite never having played for the club.
Despite uncertainty surrounding his club career, Keane continues to do the business at international level and received plenty of deserved plaudits after achieving a significant milestone earlier this month.
The 30-year old Irish captain became the first player in British and Irish football to score over 50 international goals after a brace in the recent qualifier against Macedonia took him to 51 goals for Ireland, a remarkable achievement given the fact that it amounts to a goal nearly every two games and beats the previous Irish record holder, Niall Quinn, by 30 goals.
At a meeting of the Tallaght Area Committee of South Dublin County Council earlier today, Labour Councillor Mick Duff called on the County Manager “to acknowledge Robbie Keane’s unique record of being the first Irish or British player to score over 50 goals in International football,” and proposed that the stand at Tallaght Stadium should be named after the Tottenham Hotspur striker.
A statement from the committee read: “In recognition of this extraordinary achievement by a citizen of the County and considering his position as a positive role model to all young people in Tallaght and beyond, this Committee suggests that consideration should be given to naming a stand in Tallaght Stadium the “Robbie Keane Stand” to acknowledge his remarkable talents and achievements.
The motion to consider renaming a stand will now be heard by South Dublin County Council, possibly as early as the next meeting which is scheduled to take place on 11 July.
The prospect of immortalising Keane by naming a stand after him, however, has understandably met with some opposition from Rovers fans, who are pushing for greater input on the matter considering that Tallaght Stadium has been their home since March 2009.
Councillor Dermot Looney, who was present at the meeting and aired his views on the matter, said that he has already been contacted by dissatisfied Hoops fans and completely understands the reasons for their concern at developments.
“I don’t have a particular problem with a motion to consider renaming a stand,” Looney said.
“Robbie Keane is a Tallaght legend and a hero of Irish football, but you can’t really discuss the idea without input from Shamrock Rovers and their fans.”
“Tallaght Stadium is a municipal stadium, but Shamrock Rovers are the long-term tenants. If I was a fan of a football club in this situation, I would hope that our home ground would remain reflective of our club.
“Shamrock Rovers are the heart and soul of that ground and already, a number of their fans have contacted me to say that they are unhappy with the discussions.”
An alternative to naming a stand after Keane was also discussed at the meeting, namely that pitch fees continue to be waived for financially-disadvantaged soccer teams in Fettercairn, Killinarden and Jobstown, an idea that may be more appealing to the man himself and certainly wouldn’t put as many noses out of joint.
If they really wanted to honour the Irish captain, they could just find him a new club, seeing as there seems to be precious few suitors weighing up a bid for his services at present.
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