"It was a f*****g shambles" | Duff recounts Roy Keane's Saipan outburst

Former Republic of Ireland international Damien Duff shared his recollections of Roy Keane's infamous fall-out with Mick McCarthy at the 2002 World Cup and his decision to leave before the tournament commenced. 

On the cusp of playing in his first international tournament for the Republic of Ireland, Damien Duff recalls the furore surrounding Roy Keane's early exist with mild bewilderment.

"I think the whole country [in Ireland] was blown up and divided," he explained, "but footballers are selfish creatures ... and I just wanted to play in a World Cup. If he was going home, OK, if he was staying, OK, but I was just focused in getting a starting spot in the team and playing well."

Eighteen years and with his own career behind him, Duff, although he wouldn't have executed his frustration in the same way, has no doubt that the former Ireland captain was right along.

"He had every right to be mad at the facilities of there," remarked Duff of what awaited the Irish team on the island of Saipan in the build up to the tournament. "It was a fucking shambles [and] he had every right to lose his rag."

Republic of Ireland's captain Roy Keane (right) and Damien Duff (left) congratulate Jason McAteer.

In a lengthy career retrospective on Si Ferry's Open Goal podcast, Damien Duff recounted the moments the Irish team arrived on the island and recognised that things were not quite up to scratch.

"We were 10 out from the World Cup," he explained, "and we didn't have footballs, the pitch didn't have any grass on it and we had no training kit.

"Some of us saw the funny side of it but Roy flipped and decided he had had enough. He was constantly cracking, simmering and then he just exploded."

20 May 2002; Damien Duff, Republic of Ireland, takes a break during squad training. Saipan. Picture credit; Sportsfile

Although it would prove too much for their captain to handle, Duff recounted some of the comical efforts that were made to compensate for the lacklustre facilities.

"I remember Mick asked for the pitch to be watered," explained the former Chelsea winger, "but there was no grass on it so it was just like watering a mud-bath.

"Like, this island of Saipan had been caught in a bit of a time warp since the 1940s, and not much had changed since then. So it was this old man with a fire engine from the '40s who had to water the pitch.

"He was literally stood there with a hose in the middle of the pitch for what must have been, I don't know, a couple of hours. But he hadn't any idea how to water a pitch and when we pulled up he just rolled up his hose and drove off.

"It was like something from a comedy sketch and we just ended up playing five-a-side in the middle of the mud and the lads were just sliding around.

"Roy had every right to go crazy at the facilities."

You can watch Damien Duff's interview back in full here. 

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