Pressure put on FAI to grant testimonials to soccer legends

THE FAI was under pressure last night to grant two of Ireland's greatest soccer legends a retrospective testimonial.

Both Ray Houghton and John Aldridge were snubbed by soccer bosses who banned the testimonials almost a decade ago. But now RTE's Ryan Tubridy has thrown his support behind a bid to grant the legends a retrospective testimonial. He said: "When Ray appeared on my show last week, I was quite surprised to hear that there had never been a testimonial for Ray Houghton and John Aldridge.

"I think they've been hard done by and the FAI should consider a retrospective testimonial. "Maybe they could get involved in a charity like Goal for the proceeds. "I think a joint testimonial would be great and I think there'd be a lot of support among the Irish people for that."

Last night John Aldridge said both he and John had been very disappointed by the FAI snub and would love to be granted a retrospective testimonial now for charity. He said: "Myself and Ray were very sour at the time because I had 69 caps and Ray had 73. "I was given a letter in 1994 saying I qualified for a testimonial but they changed the goalposts then. "And then, when Ray and I went in to see them, they said they would give us a testimonial on the basis that some of it went to the ex-players, which we okayed. "But the goalposts were changed yet again - they made it 75 caps then.

"So we were very aggrieved at the time but you learn to live with it and get on with it. Advertisement We just put it to the back of our minds. "If it had have happened, it would have been a massive bonus and, of course, we'd have had charity involved." John added: "It would be a dream to put on the green shirt and play any sort of amount of time in front of the fans again.

"We treasure every moment we had playing for Ireland and it would be fantastic to play again. "But I promise if it does happen that I won't sing the national anthem before kick-off. "It's a bonus to people that I'm not singing any more." Ray said it meant a lot that Irish people still appreciate what he and his team-mates had done for Irish soccer. He said: "I love coming back to Ireland because people do remember.

"Kids wouldn't know who the players were back in the 1980s and '90s and that's perfectly understandable. "They'd be looking at the Damien Duffs and Robbie Keanes. "But certainly the older generation, my generation who have seen us play, the whole squad when they come back here, are treated with a great deal of respect. "Maybe the hair is a little greyer now and I've put on a little bit more weight than I used to carry but I think people still have a great passion and love for Irish players who have played in the past and what they've achieved." And he joked: "Imagine the players trying to get back into fitness to play a retrospective testimonial. Ten minutes each way would be as long as we could last the match."