Balls: You're involved in the Movember campaign this year, how did you get involved in that?
Ray Houghton: Yeah, yeah. This is actually my first attempt at it. It's a great cause and is something which I have been wanting to get involved with for a few years now. I lost my sister-in-law to cancer very recently so it's something which is very close to the bone with me. My former teammates Alan McLoughin and Kevin Sheedy have both suffered from it as well so I felt I should definitely do something about it this year and here I am. When you get to our age, it is very important to know your body and be conscious of any changes. It's imperative to always be fully aware.
Balls: Are you growing a Mo for the cause?
Ray: Yes, of course. I'm underway now. I'm actually growing the beard as well as the moustache at the moment. It's very grey though and I can tell you, that's not a good look for me! It's becoming very itchy as well so I'm gonna shave it off soon and just go with the moustache. I'm not on Twitter or Facebook so someone in the office took a photo yesterday and sent it around from her account. So I'm sure it's floating about there somewhere.
Balls: You enjoyed a very successful five years at Liverpool. What was the highlight during your time at Anfield?
Ray: The day I signed for Liverpool was undoubtedly the proudest moment of my club career. I started out with West Ham and from there everything just happened so fast. You just never know where your career is going to go and it was outstanding for me to sign with one of the best clubs in the world. We obviously enjoyed great success during my time there. We won the league during my first season and I think we went something like 29 games unbeaten. It was all a dream come true for me.
Balls: What do you make of Liverpool's 'transitional period' that they're going through at the moment?
Ray: Well this transitional period as you call it has been going on for far too long hasn't it? Money has made a huge difference in the game. There are only a certain few clubs that have the big money to go out and buy the top players. It's not a level playing field at all. The reality of the situation is that Liverpool don't have the cash resources that the likes of Man City or Chelsea have. Scoring goals has been the obvious main issue for Liverpool this season. I feel for Brendan (Rodgers), he's got a difficult task on his hands and although he is bringing some good young players through, there are only so many youngsters that can be introduced in a given period of time.
Balls: Given that goals have been hard to come by, do you think Rodgers was right in letting Andy Carroll go out on loan without giving him a proper chance?
Ray: The problem there was that Brendan has his own fluid style of play which he is trying to implement. He wants guys that are going to be constantly moving around and making defenders work. I don't think Andy fits that style. He has different qualities. He is doing fantastically well with West Ham and I know that Sam Allardyce is a massive fan. It's not nice being rejected, especially having come in for so much money. There's a lot of pressure. It's up to Andy now to show Brendan what he's missing and who knows maybe he can force himself back into the Liverpool reckoning.
Balls: I think it's fair to say that Liverpool are in desperate need of a new striker in January. Walcott and Huntelaar are just two of the names that are repeatedly linked with moves to Anfield. Is there anyone in particular that you feel they should be looking at?
Ray: Well Falcao or Cavani would be ideal wouldn't they? *laughs*. These are the calibre of players that a club like Liverpool should be going for but the club is not what it once was. The club is very historic but nowadays they cannot compete for the world class players. Looking at Walcott, will he win you the league? I'm not so sure. He's struggling to get into the Arsenal side at the moment. Is he really the type of player you want to be relying on? I don't think so. Don't get me wrong, Theo is a good player but Liverpool need to be looking at the top top players.
Balls: Luis Suarez has come in for heavy criticism as of late. When you see him score a goal like that yesterday (against Newcastle), how frustrating is it that he doesn't let his football do the talking more often?
Ray: I think he does let his football do the talking. He's a world class player. He has come in from a different cultural and football background and it's taken him a bit longer than most to realise what English football is all about. If you watch South American football, its completely natural for them to fall over easily. But Luis needs to temper this down a bit. We saw in yesterday's game when Coloccini fouled him inside the penalty area and he wasn't awarded the spot kick. His reputation is working against him and it's a problem. But hopefully he can learn to control his temperament because at the moment he's just not getting the rub of the green which he perhaps deserves. But that aside, he is a superb player and is Liverpool's only go to man at the moment. His goal yesterday was breathtaking. The first touch, the control and the finish showed what he's all about. With all Liverpool's attempts to play this eye catching brand of football it was in fact a route one long ball that set up the goal yesterday. I watched Newcastle last week against West Brom and I thought defensively they were poor. It was an area I felt Liverpool could definitely get at them. I was surprised that they didn't cause them more problems. They have to be more constructive when in possession of the ball.
Balls: From a fan's perspective, I had my first taste of a major European football tournament during the Summer. The sheer passion and support that the Irish fans gave was incredible. How do you think this compared to your playing days, Euro '88 for example?
Ray: It was very similar actually. I was delighted we were based in Poland. It made it much easier for fans to get there which was similar to when it was in Germany in '88. We were drawn in one of the toughest groups in the tournament. You only have to look at the final, both spain and Italy were in our group. Plenty of people fancied Croatia as well so in all there wasn't one weak team there. I never expected us to get out of that group. But I didn't for a second think we'd perform as poorly as we did. It was great to see the fans having such a great time though. The interaction between them and the players was fantastic and you could see that they players were bitterly disappointed having left them down. The Polish people really welcomed us as well which was fantastic. Everyone came together as one.
Balls: What changes have you seen in the Irish set up since that disastrous Euro '12 campaign?
Ray: Well the older lads like Shay (Given) and Damien (Duff) have called it a day with Ireland. I see Robbie (Keane) isn't travelling for the Greece friendly which means someone else will be given a chance. There is a younger element to our side now while the older players are gone. Its a natural progression really. The same happened in my day with Jack (Charlton). It wasn't until Mick McCarthy came in that the younger guys were given a go. It's the way international cycles work. It is up to the younger players to now step up and show us what they're made of. I look at guys like Seamus Coleman, James McCarthy and Kieran Westwood, they are the future of Irish football. They are the ones that are going to lead this new generation.
Balls: You mentioned the upcoming friendly with Greece, what are you hoping to see from that game?
Ray: Ah, to be honest I'm not a great lover of these friendlies. Managers make far too many changes, we see it all the time. It's difficult because in many instances it's just a way of giving guys international caps. They're not competitive games so it can be hard for guys to be fully up for it if you know what I mean? It's a big money spinner for the FAI. Every FA needs these friendlies because of the money it generates. Hopefully some of the younger guys can show the manager what they can do but as I said, it can sometimes be difficult.
Balls: We have six points from a possible nine in the World Cup qualifying campaign and our fate is in our own hands. The decision to keep Trap in his job was debated up and down the country. Do you think the FAI made the correct decision in the end?
Ray: This always make me laugh. So many people think problems will magically disappear with the changing of a manager, but it's not as easy as that - it never is. If it was managers would be in and out of jobs every week. We have a young team coming through and we are lacking any real stand out talents. It's as simple as that. We don't have any players playing with the top sides in England or Europe. It's a good chance for these younger guys to put themselves in the shop window and who knows, maybe one or two might force moves to bigger club sides. Ireland have always been a hard-working, committed and an honest team. We don't have any real x-factor type player I suppose you'd call it. This generation is no different to the past sides. The problem we have here in Ireland is that it's such a diverse nation. Rugby, hurling and Gaelic football are all massive sports so we don't have the pick of the crop as such. Soccer is plenty of nation's number one sport, but Ireland has a couple of major ones. In terms of Trap and the decision to keep him, I was fully behind that. As you said, our fate is in our own hands. The players must believe we can still qualify. They must not listen to the media as more often than not, that can have a negative effect. The games against Austria and Sweden are going to be key but if we get positive results there, I certainly think second place is within our grasp.
Balls: Fingers crossed. Before I let you go Ray, I have you about THAT goal. I know you've been asked a million times about it but talk me through the moment you put the ball in the English net? What was going through your head?
Ray: Well that was obviously a very special moment for me and for our proud nation. The ball was played down the left and was hooked across goal. There was a bit of a scramble in the box and John Aldridge knocked to me. I just looked up and saw that Shilton had left a big space at the far post. It dropped nicely for me and I just headed it into the corner and the rest is history. It was as simple as that really.
Balls: That goal has gone down in Irish sporting history as one of the greatest ever moments. Did you have any idea at the time how big it was and what it would mean to Irish people?
Ray: I didn't think about it when I scored the goal but obviously after the game I had a good idea of what it meant. It was the first major tournament that Ireland had ever qualified for and it was also my first goal for my country. That alone made it a very special moment for me but of course it's always nice to put one over on the old enemy! The first Irish goal at a major tournament was always going to be remembered no matter who scored it. I was just fortunate that it was me who managed to get it. Twenty four years on and it's still remembered. I am glad to be a part of the Irish history and of course it's something I'll never ever forget.
