Andrews not taking anything for granted

With just sixteen days to go until Giovanni Trapattoni’s Boys in Green begin their Euro 2012 adventure, midfielder Keith Andrews admits that he and his team mates aren’t going to Poland/Ukraine to be beaten and as he explained to Extratime.ie, the Boys in Green are hoping to defy their underdog tags.

"We are not going there for the craic. We will leave that to the fans. They are there to enjoy themselves - we will enjoy ourselves by doing things right. We have done part of the job by qualifying. If we were going there just to make up the numbers, we might as well have just left it at the play-off in Estonia."

We are going there full of confidence. We have qualified from a tough group, come through a tough qualifier and we are certainly going there to come out of that group." he told reporters.

The 31 year old featured in seven of Ireland’s ten qualifying games but admits he is taking nothing for granted as he prepares for his first major tournament in a green jersey.

“You can’t rest on your laurels, the manager has shown he’s quite prepared to bring people in with James McClean being the prime example and if he feels something needs to be changed then he will.”

Andrews has established himself as Trapattoni’s first choice central midfield partner for Glenn Whelan and scored his third international goal in Tallinn in that vital play-off first leg against Estonia in November.

Ireland face Croatia, Spain and Italy in June and the former Blackburn man believes that he and his team mates won’t prepare any differently for the games than for any other match. 

“Each match we go into whether it be a friendly or a big qualifier, we prepare fully and everything is very meticulous. We’re well versed on the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition and it will be no different in Poland/Ukraine. I can’t envisage any new formations or systems, we’re a group who have been together a good few years and we’re all fully aware of our jobs and we tend to stick to our strengths and avoid the weaknesses and in the main it’s brought us a lot of success,” he added.

Trap’s men have been handed the underdogs tag heading into the tournament and Andrews knows that it is under such that Ireland have historically done well.

“Traditionally we have been the underdogs and done better under that tag. In this tournament we certainly will be tagged as that so we’re hoping in June we can defy the odds again.”

As he spoke to the assembled media in Malahide, Andrews remembered the 1988 European Championships, the last time the Boys in Green qualified for the tournament and how much of a boost it gave the whole country.

“The euphoria it gives the whole country whether it be a kid out kicking a ball on the street or one of the dad’s down the pub having a bit of craic, the whole country comes to a standstill and it’s time like this that you’re very proud to be Irish.

We all know what the Irish fans are like; we’re a very proud nation and have always been well supported. The away games, the support we bring is fantastic and other countries will comment on our support.”