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Red Mist : Roy Keane and the Football Civil War - A Fan's Notes
2002 was the year of Roy Keane, if not exactly Roy Keane's year. Banished from Ireland's World Cup squad and then suspended by the English FA after comments in his best-selling autobiography, the Manchester United and Ireland captain was seldom out of the news. Red Mist - a passionate exploration of celebrity, temperament, one-all victories, Saipan, the World Cup and national aspiration - is Conor O'Callaghan's personal memoir of an Irish hero arraigned in the court of public opinion. It records the arguments In bars and across shop counters, the media debates, and the torrent of rumours that swirled around Mick McCarthy's team. It also sees the story from quirky the drawings of the writer's football-mad seven-year-old son and the mysterious disappearance of his rag doll, Mr Roy Keane, during the weeks following his banishment from Saipan, plus letters in newspapers, eavesdropped conversations, tirades on website comment pages and even the washing powder commercials featuring Mrs Niall Quinn. Funny, polemical and unexpectedly moving, Red Mist is a portrait of a nation divided, and the summer when football and the love of football made players of us all.
- GenresFootball
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 29, 2014
This review is taken from my website The Sports Book Review.
As dramatic precursors to World Cups go, you’d have to go a long way to beat 2002 when Irish captain and star man Roy Keane walked out of the squad’s pre-tournament training camp and out of the World Cup. If that mere fact wasn’t dramatic enough, as the details began to emerge it became clear that quite a spectacular row with Keane giving it both barrels, brought on by various issues, had led to his exit.
Things had come to a head over the FAI’s (the Football Association of Ireland) rather lax attitude to preparation and planning. Arriving on the Japanese island of Saipan, the Ireland team found training pitches in disrepair, no kit, and no footballs. Add in a long running complaint over such professionalism from Roy Keane, and a long standing tension between captain and coach (Mick McCarthy) and you had the ingredients for disaster.
The trigger point came with an interview Roy Keane gave to an Irish newspaper airing his various grievances, which McCarthy then brought up in a team meeting resulting in Keane’s frankly spectacular outburst. Even then there were chances for the situation to be rescued which clearly didn’t work out.
O’Callaghan tells it all as it unfolded from his own point of view and that of his young son Tommy, watching events unfold on television and in the news. He brings in details from various autobiographies and interviews to piece together the details of Saipan and what happened there, but puts it all in its context too. Rather than focusing merely on that one incident he looks over other key events in the years preceding and following, and not just regarding Roy Keane.
Other key protagonists such as Niall Quinn and more specifically Steve Staunton are focused on at times too; Staunton not only in view of his standing as a senior player but also in the fact that he grew up in the same town as O’Callaghan and their paths crossed once or twice as kids.
The idea of fandom and its effect is something that comes through quite well with the tactic of using young Tommy and his thoughts a clever one to bring home the impact of the events. Other local interactions bring insights of the man in the street if you like, which add depth to the book in a rather endearing way.
It makes for a fun and intriguing read, although I would suggest that the family life is overdone slightly on occasion. When it has a purpose it is great, but not all of the family mentions had such a purpose. That is a minor criticism however in what is quite an absorbing read about a deeply complex, clearly troubled, and utterly fascinating character who has never been far from controversy and conflict.
Looking back now, I can remember the disbelief at what had occurred and the image of Keane walking his huge dogs back home in Cheshire while his former colleagues gave their all in the World Cup is one that is etched on the mind. As always there was far more to it than appeared at first and it is fascinating to get so much detail and background even though some things could only really be answered by those involved of course.
It’s a shame the book hasn’t had an update since it ends with Keane being most decidedly an ex-international player. And yet we know now that he did come back to play for Ireland again in the qualifiers for the following World Cup. Perhaps an additional chapter is required, but even so as an insight to one of the World Cups (or should that be pre-World Cup) most dramatic tales it is well worth a look.
As dramatic precursors to World Cups go, you’d have to go a long way to beat 2002 when Irish captain and star man Roy Keane walked out of the squad’s pre-tournament training camp and out of the World Cup. If that mere fact wasn’t dramatic enough, as the details began to emerge it became clear that quite a spectacular row with Keane giving it both barrels, brought on by various issues, had led to his exit.
Things had come to a head over the FAI’s (the Football Association of Ireland) rather lax attitude to preparation and planning. Arriving on the Japanese island of Saipan, the Ireland team found training pitches in disrepair, no kit, and no footballs. Add in a long running complaint over such professionalism from Roy Keane, and a long standing tension between captain and coach (Mick McCarthy) and you had the ingredients for disaster.
The trigger point came with an interview Roy Keane gave to an Irish newspaper airing his various grievances, which McCarthy then brought up in a team meeting resulting in Keane’s frankly spectacular outburst. Even then there were chances for the situation to be rescued which clearly didn’t work out.
O’Callaghan tells it all as it unfolded from his own point of view and that of his young son Tommy, watching events unfold on television and in the news. He brings in details from various autobiographies and interviews to piece together the details of Saipan and what happened there, but puts it all in its context too. Rather than focusing merely on that one incident he looks over other key events in the years preceding and following, and not just regarding Roy Keane.
Other key protagonists such as Niall Quinn and more specifically Steve Staunton are focused on at times too; Staunton not only in view of his standing as a senior player but also in the fact that he grew up in the same town as O’Callaghan and their paths crossed once or twice as kids.
The idea of fandom and its effect is something that comes through quite well with the tactic of using young Tommy and his thoughts a clever one to bring home the impact of the events. Other local interactions bring insights of the man in the street if you like, which add depth to the book in a rather endearing way.
It makes for a fun and intriguing read, although I would suggest that the family life is overdone slightly on occasion. When it has a purpose it is great, but not all of the family mentions had such a purpose. That is a minor criticism however in what is quite an absorbing read about a deeply complex, clearly troubled, and utterly fascinating character who has never been far from controversy and conflict.
Looking back now, I can remember the disbelief at what had occurred and the image of Keane walking his huge dogs back home in Cheshire while his former colleagues gave their all in the World Cup is one that is etched on the mind. As always there was far more to it than appeared at first and it is fascinating to get so much detail and background even though some things could only really be answered by those involved of course.
It’s a shame the book hasn’t had an update since it ends with Keane being most decidedly an ex-international player. And yet we know now that he did come back to play for Ireland again in the qualifiers for the following World Cup. Perhaps an additional chapter is required, but even so as an insight to one of the World Cups (or should that be pre-World Cup) most dramatic tales it is well worth a look.
May 3, 2022
I decided to purchase this book as we're approaching the 20th anniversary of the Saipan controversy. Unfortunately, this is a very poor read and I struggled to stick with it to the end. The author has limited knowledge of football (watching games from the comfort of his living room) and is unashamedly biased in his support for Keane. Some of the stories he tells are cringe-worthy. There are much better books that explore the relationship between Keane and McCarthy. It strikes me that this book was opportunistically written at a time when every Tom, Dick and Harry wanted to provide their opinion on Saipan.
June 26, 2010
For those of you who are not Irish, or not football fans (soccer) the Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy saga might be unheard of. If you are a football fan then you should know, and if you're Irish then the events in Saipan must have been discussed with various people.
Of course we don't really know what happened in Asia in 2001, but that doesn't really matter, we still took sides and either defended McCarthy or blamed him.
Of course we don't really know what happened in Asia in 2001, but that doesn't really matter, we still took sides and either defended McCarthy or blamed him.
Personally I was on Roy's side.
I've never been a Man U fan, but I'm not an ABU either. I'd watch their matches without much interest, only bothered by how Roy and Denis were playing (back when Irwin was the greatest defender). I always admired Keane as a player, and thought he was bar the greatest Irish player, apart from Paul McGrath of course. I couldn't really understand those who gave out. I knew he was great, he knew he was great, the team knew he was great. And maybe that is where the problem started.
I never liked Mick McCarthy as a manager, I tried to give him time. I admired the way he introduced new players and changed the style of the Irish team. Now we actually tried to play football instead of 'puttin'em under pressure.' And yet there was something I didn't like, he didn't seem like a manager. And so when the rumours of the arguments between Roy and Mick started I came down with Roy, look at all he had achieved with Man U after all. I felt bad for Mick McCarthy, I remembered him as Capt. Fantastic, not a manager who seemed unable to see that the choices he was making were wrong. Sticking with players out of loyalty can be a good tactic, if they play well and reward your loyalty. A lot of those Mick stuck with didn't.
And then there was the booing of Roy by a section of the Irish fans. And the constant carping whenever he missed a friendly, not to mention the huge deal made out of him missing Nial Quinn's testimonial. No not a huge quinny fan either, the big ladle :)
Everyone knew what Roy was like; hot-tempered, aggressive. But those were part of what made him such a great player. He dominates the pitch when he plays, he believes that Ireland can win matches. And that seems to have been his crime. He felt that 1-1 draws just weren't good enough. He was right, he still is. Football is about winning.
Did I celebrate when we drew those matches in the World Cup, sure I did, but I did feel that if Roy was there we could have one. Even without him we should have. I mean Saudi Arabia?? no offence like but we should be capable of beating them.
That oft-quoted line of Roy's used to mock him "fail to prepare, prepare to fail." (or something like that) well it's true isn't it? I mean every kid gets told that before their Jnr. Cert and their Leaving Cert. If you don't put some effort in there is very little chance of you getting any reward.
Why should Roy, or any of the professional players have expected a rock-hard pitch, no balls and drinking sessions?
Hmm, non of this is talking about the book is it?
Well it a pro-Roy pov, and from a Liverpool fan! So maybe that is why I enjoyed it. Written by O'Callaghan who is maybe better known for poetry than sport it isn't really about the ins and outs of what happened in Saipan, rather it is about what happened at home in Ireland. About the arguments between friends, and even between strangers. He describes an incident with a butcher for example. Even after the event in December while purchasing a football shirt for his son he tells of an incident in a sports shop. Asking for Keane and the number six for the shirt the assistant laughs but doesn't speak. When O'Callaghan presses him he gets told
"I can't talk about it. Company policy."
"It's company policy that staff don't engage in conversation with customers about Roy and Mick and Saipan?"
"Got it in one."
<
"Thats mad."
"Too many rows, mate, far too many rows in the shop"
After an accident along the Longford-Westmeath border a garda comes to investigate
"You were at the rally in Baileborough." (Garda)
"That's right." (driver)
"You had words with the brother."
"That's right."
"And you stormed off."
"That's right."
"Touch of the Roy Keanes."
The way he says it pisses me (O'Callaghan) off. He has given it a rhetorical smirk, and pitched his voice to be audible to the rest of us. We have waited a full half-hour and this is the best he can do.
"I think that's beside the point, Garda."
"I beg your pardon."
He is not used to contradiction.
"I don't think this is the time or place to make cheap cracks about Roy Keane."
We are up and running all over again. Predictably, the officer of the law is against questioning authority in any shape or form. Keane strikes him as an especially insidious instance."
Of course now that Roy has announced he is available for selection once more the row has started up again. I've been buying more papers, wondering what every ones else's reaction are. Personally I'm delighted that Roy is back.
Wonderful read.
August 1, 2023
Surprisingly better then what I thought it was going to be. I enjoyed the accounts of the interactions between the author and his football mad son. As a United fan, I appreciated their vast admiration of Roy, even though they are Liverpool supporters. I recommend this book for football fans who may not have great deal of knowledge of 'The Saipan Incident'. For those that do, it is a still a fun perspective to read through, just don't expect to learn much of anything new.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 3, 2023
Ok. A bit repetitive.
March 2, 2025
Not for me, didn’t really understand what the point was.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews