Jason Maloney chats to Rovers Ramblings!

The mid season break comes to an end on Thursday when we visit Shels so we caught up with Jason Maloney for a chat on all things Rovers!

Earliest Rovers Memory?? 

The first match I remember my Da bringing me to was a friendly in Dalymount between Rovers and a Man United selection made up of players made up of their 1968 European Cup Final team. I think Charlton and Law played but not sure if George Best turned up ! I noticed recently that the programme of the game is on display in the SRFC Heritage Trust’s glass cases in the club shop and noted that the date was 7^th of November 1977. I also recall being at the 1978 FAI Cup final against Sligo Rovers ( the John Carpenter final ) and will never forget the incessant rain that day, though not exactly Modena like. I started going to Milltown regularly in 1983.

Best Rovers player you have seen play? 

Straight away I have to say Pat Byrne who was simply the best ball player that I have ever seen in the Hoops. There were many great players in the 4-in-a-row but ‘Skipper’ as he was known was the one who really stood out. When Pat Byrne played well, Rovers played well. It was as simple as that. He always drove the team on and was some passer of a ball. He was a great man for scoring free kicks and I remember vital ones against Longford in 1985 and against Bohs in 1987 which saw Rovers come from behind to win. He was rarely injured and was the key man in that great Rovers’ team of the eighties. We have been crying out for a midfield general like him for years, maybe Ronan Finn will fill his shoes. If Twiggy signs an extended contract he will go down as one of the Rovers’ greats. If he signs on and stays relatively injury free he will surely beat Paddy Ambrose’s Rovers’ league goalscoring record of 109 goals. When you think of all the great strikers who have played for the club over the years it would be a great achievement for the player. And with the way football is nowadays, with players moving all the time, it’s a record that will probably never be broken.

And best player to play against Rovers in domestic competition?

I have to be careful here and not get too Bohs related. Jackie Jameson was one of the classiest players I have seen in our league and he had some football brain. Kevin Hunt is probably the best midfielder to play in the league since Pat Byrne retired. Of players currently playing I have to say that another Bohs player, Owen Heary, has been consistently the best defender in the league for some time. He was excellent against us in Tallaght this year again. But I am obviously not going to plump for one of that mob so I will have to say Liam Coyle who was a brilliant forward for Derry City who always caused us problems. He broke our hearts with his stunning winner in the 2002 cup final. He would have surely played at a much higher level only for his troublesome knee injury. Not sure what James McClean would have made of his international career choice though !

If Rovers could sign one player from another side in the league who would it be? 

This is a tough one because as of late we have been signing the best young talent in the league and I was disappointed that we missed out on Christopher Forrester. I guess I would like to see the Sligo pair of Peers and Boco in the Hoops. On a personal note, and with all the Monaghan players available on a free, I would like to see us come in for Jordan Keegan. He is a Rovers fan as is his Dad Barney who is a good friend of mine. He has been getting rave reviews this season and has attracted cross channel interest. I really think he could do a job for us and would thrive with better players around him.

Favourite away league trip? 

Traditionally I have always liked going to Galway and Sligo. They are always great trips where we usually bring great support. The fact that these journeys turn into a session ensures that there’s a great atmosphere in the ground from travelling Hoops. Though if I had to go with one individual trip it would have to be the night in Cobh in 2006 when we clinched the First Division title. We must have had over 800 fans there with most staying for the weekend and it turned into one hell of a party. There were some crazy stories from that night that still make me laugh. Hopefully if you ask me the same question in five months time I will change my answer to Sligo away on the 26^th of October 2012.

Many European trips under your belt, best and worst? 

I have done 8 Euro aways in total and all of them have brilliant in one way or the other and always full of incident so it’s hard to pick out the best. Stockholm in 2002 was my first and I thought that would never have been bettered. How wrong was I? To see us win away in Odra was brilliant but then Tel Aviv came along and that blew that out of the water. I wasn’t one of the lucky 43 who made it to Belgrade last season but that took our Euro aways up another notch because of the signifigance of the result. Then to be part of a travelling support of nearly 4000 in White Hart Lane was incredible and when we took the lead it was one of the most emotional moments in my whole life. I would have to say that Tallinn was probably the maddest but overall I would have to say that the trip to Israel was my favourite. Following Rovers in Europe can be expensive but worth it... I mean MBNA still have a warrant out for me after last years run :-).

How do you think the season has gone so far?? 

Obviously I would be lying if I said that it has been a bit disappointing and underwhelming but we have to remember that expectations in Tallaght have gone through the roof. There have been some decent performances with ultimately disappointing results at home to Derry and Cork but then there have been the horror shows in Inchicore and Sligo. The manager still has to be given time and this transfer window for sure to impress and it is still early days. But I have to say that some of his decisions have been truly baffling. We have been alright going forward but what’s going on at the back ? Hopefully Sully can help shore things up. The decision to go with a goalkeeping pool of 3 such inexperienced players is a decision that we have really paid for.

Season back under way now, what do you want to see from Rovers? 

Onwards and upwards and hopefully we can get our league challenge back on track starting with winning our game in hand against Shelbourne. I would like to see a couple more new bodies in and I still think we can win this league. Failing that winning the cup is a must and what better way by making it 25 for 25. With us not being seeded progressing in Europe will be tough.

European draw next week, any preferences? 

Well hopefully I don’t put the mockers on us by saying anyone but Belarus. Latvia is supposed to be a good spot and hopefully we would have a chance of beating them. We would bring a decent crowd there. Helsinki would be an expensive city to visit and a tough match to win but we could always revisit Tallinn and get a ferry over for the match. What was the name of that barmaid in Molly Malones again? Carmen was it?

And finally, how much do you get paid for your programme column :-) ? 

Ha Ha, I wish. No I enjoy writing for the programme and it’s nice to get some positive feedback. I always try to write from a fan’s perspective and I enjoy describing our European trips. I think I cause Martina, the editor, a few headaches as I am always sending my articles in at the last minute. But you probably already know that waiting for me to get back to with my answers. KOH


Rovers Ramblings would like to thank Jason for taking time out to answer our questions and look forward to reading his views in "The Hoops Scene" matchday programme.