First-look trailer for Saipan movie starring Steve Coogan released
The film is about the infamous confrontation between iconic Republic of Ireland football captain Roy Keane (Éanna Hardwicke) and his national team manager Mick McCarthy (Steve Coogan) during the team's preparations for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
It takes a comedic spin on the events leading up to Ireland's incendiary 2002 World Cup campaign and delves into how the intense rivalry between these two personalities transcended the game, gripping an entire nation and the sporting world.
"On the surface, the feud was all about standards, but deep down it was a hugely emotive story of two men whose rivalry and contempt came to surpass the sport they loved. This is the definitive account of one of the most fractious fallings-out in the history of sport,' the promo says.
Directed by award-winning filmmakers Lisa Barros D'Sa and Glenn Leyburn (Good Vibrations, Ordinary Love) and based on an original script by Paul Fraser (Heartlands, A Room for Romeo Brass), SAIPAN stars BAFTA nominated Éanna Hardwicke (Lakelands, The Sixth Commandment) as Roy Keane, with two-time Academy Award® nominee Steve Coogan (Philomena, The Reckoning) as Mick McCarthy. Supporting cast include Alice Lowe (Sightseers), Jamie Beamish (Derry Girls), Alex Murphy (The Young Offenders), Harriet Cains (Bridgerton) and Peter McDonald (The Batman).
The film is produced by Macdara Kelleher and John Keville for Wild Atlantic Pictures (Evil Dead Rise, Cocaine Bear, Black 47) along with Trevor Birney and Oliver Butler for Fine Point Films (Kneecap, No Stone Unturned) with Patrick O'Neill and Rachael O'Kane serving as Executive Producers.
The Saipan movie will be released later this year.
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The Irish Sun
16 minutes ago
- The Irish Sun
Saipan film trailer splits opinion as Irish football fans voice concern about Roy Keane portrayal
A 76-second teaser trailer for the upcoming Saipan film has been released - and met with a mixed reaction from Irish football fans. Éanna Hardwicke 5 Keane walked out/was kicked out of the Ireland squad before the 2002 World Cup Credit: @WildCardDistrib 5 The Man United icon flipped out over the state of the training pitches on the tiny island Advertisement 5 Two-time Oscar nominee Steve Coogan is playing manager Mick McCarthy Credit: @WildCardDistrib 5 Ironically, Saipan was an R&R pit stop with facilities on their main training base turning out to be excellent Credit: @WildCardDistrib The trailer showcases the remote island in the Pacific Ocean that We hear both actors in character and naturally enough, their voices are raised in virtually every snippet. Advertisement There's also atmospheric news bulletins read out in order to hammer home how this was a story that dominated front pages as well as back across the entire Irish media landscape. 76 seconds is never going to be enough to make a worthwhille judgement from any film but the prevailing point of debate touched upon Hardwicke's appearance. Read More On Irish Football Several fans voiced their concern that no matter how adept of an actor he is, he simply doesn't bear enough of a resemblance to Keane to fully inhabit the role. Paul commented: "As expected, Coogan nails McCarthy but they could have at least attempted to cast an actor with some kind of resemblance to Keane." Advertisement Similarly, Michael added: "That bloke looks nothing like Roy Keane, he looks more like Vinny Jones. I mean Roy Keane is alive should have just got the man himself." Additionally, Steven expressed his anger by Most read in Football Gossip He quipped: "It doesn't look like they can do their job i.e. Be believable as Roy Keane and Mick McCarthy!!" However, not everyone was immediately casting a pessimistic eye based off what they saw from the cast and the wider film-making style on show. Bradley Barcola shows off his football skills at PSG training IFB Media posted: "Excited to see this! The Saipan incident is/was one of the most divisive stories in modern memory and it's not even close. Advertisement "What could've been with Roy will never be known but it's sad when you consider we haven't returned to the World Cup since the 2002 tournament. 2026?" Philip also sounded keen on it as he drew a parallel between the World Cup flashpoint and an equally significant historic event. He tweeted: "Can't wait for this - the trailer is giving Cuba Missile Crisis vibes." 5 Hardwicke, 28, is best known for his work BBC series The Sixth Commandment Credit: Getty The production behind the project - Wild Atlantic Pictures - was involved with the likes of Advertisement It has yet to be given a precise release date but will be in cinemas some time this summer.
RTÉ News
36 minutes ago
- RTÉ News
Timing is everything for resurgent Wexford star Ellen Molloy
There's a flip side to life in full-time professional football that's probably not spoken about enough. Time. Too much of it. Your day is often done by lunchtime; then it's a case of putting the feet up, recovering, and waiting for the next session. To many, that's the dream, but there's context to these things and Ellen Molloy is a good example of a fine young player who looked destined to kick on in England only to be scuppered by time. Or, rather, timing. Molloy was linked with a move from Wexford to Sheffield United last September. Around that time, her grandmother Breda Roche was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. They were extremely close. Then aged 21 (she turned 22 earlier this month), an emotionally torn Molloy took the plunge and went to England, travelling home as regularly as possible to see her gran. In October, Breda passed away. In an interview with the Irish Times in May, Molloy opened about the grief that blanketed her in the weeks following her gran's death. After just four months in Sheffield, she rejoined Wexford. It was the right call at the right time, with the gifted playmaker subsequently rediscovering her form and love of the game. Included in Carla Ward's Republic of Ireland squad for this week's friendly double-header against the USA, Molloy is now desperate to show she's still got the potential to carve out a strong career in green. "I suppose this is like a condensed version of professional football, these next two weeks." "I don't regret going over and as I've said previously, I can't fault Sheffield at all," she reflected. "It was a great club, the support they gave me was unbelievable. It was just more so the timing of everything, it just didn't feel right for me. It was probably a bold move to come home and maybe an unpopular move to some people, but looking back, I think it was the right move at the time. "I suppose I kind of put the enjoyment side of football first the last few months and to be honest I wasn't expecting this call-up, I was just focusing on club. But I was absolutely delighted when I got the call from Carla. I'm really looking forward to the next two weeks. It's a really good opportunity." Molloy, born and raised in Kilkenny, is no stranger to adversity. Three years ago, she was the brightest young talent in the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division and looked nailed on to force her way into Vera Pauw's long-term plans. A nightmare ACL injury scuppered those dreams, sidelining Molloy for a year. She missed the World Cup, rehabbing at Roche Injury Clinic around the same time as fellow Thomastown native Colm Whelan, now at Bohs, then at UCD where he sustained an ACL injury just before he looked set to move to Lincoln City. She's had to bide her time to try and rebuild momentum on the international front. The games in Denver (Friday, 2am) and Cincinnati (Sunday, 8pm) are an opportunity for this creative force to remind people just how good she is. "I got a taster of what professional football is like and there's a lot more to it than just playing football every day," Molloy added. "Like, it's the time that you're not playing football that you have to fill. And I kind of got a taste of that and have a better idea I suppose. "But that wasn't the sole reason for me coming home. I had a fair idea about how to fill my time and stuff, but I had family reasons as well for coming home. "I'd be educated and would know what to expect if an opportunity (to move abroad) did come up again. I'm just looking forward to this camp and getting to work under Carla. "I suppose this is like a condensed version of professional football, these next two weeks, so I'm just looking forward to getting back into that and seeing how I feel in that environment again." Molloy is one year into a four-year teaching degree at UL, specialising in PE and geography. She likes to be busy, managing her time rather than trying to fill it. Time. It's something Molloy references frequently, but she also speaks about the joy and freedom of playing in the here and now. There's no point in looking too far ahead when things are going so smoothly. "I need to be playing at a higher standard," she admits, "but right now I'm not really focusing on that too much. I do think the league is a bit away and there is quite a huge step up from the League of Ireland to international football.
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Watch: Trailer for Saipan movie starring Steve Coogan released as infamous Mick McCarthy and Roy Keane row gets big screen treatment
The film is about the infamous confrontation between iconic Republic of Ireland football captain Roy Keane (Éanna Hardwicke) and his national team manager Mick McCarthy (Steve Coogan) during the team's preparations for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. It takes a comedic spin on the events leading up to Ireland's incendiary 2002 World Cup campaign and delves into how the intense rivalry between these two personalities transcended the game, gripping an entire nation and the sporting world. "On the surface, the feud was all about standards, but deep down it was a hugely emotive story of two men whose rivalry and contempt came to surpass the sport they loved. This is the definitive account of one of the most fractious fallings-out in the history of sport,' the promo says. Directed by award-winning filmmakers Lisa Barros D'Sa and Glenn Leyburn (Good Vibrations, Ordinary Love) and based on an original script by Paul Fraser (Heartlands, A Room for Romeo Brass), SAIPAN stars BAFTA nominated Éanna Hardwicke (Lakelands, The Sixth Commandment) as Roy Keane, with two-time Academy Award® nominee Steve Coogan (Philomena, The Reckoning) as Mick McCarthy. Supporting cast include Alice Lowe (Sightseers), Jamie Beamish (Derry Girls), Alex Murphy (The Young Offenders), Harriet Cains (Bridgerton) and Peter McDonald (The Batman). The film is produced by Macdara Kelleher and John Keville for Wild Atlantic Pictures (Evil Dead Rise, Cocaine Bear, Black 47) along with Trevor Birney and Oliver Butler for Fine Point Films (Kneecap, No Stone Unturned) with Patrick O'Neill and Rachael O'Kane serving as Executive Producers. The Saipan movie will be released later this year.
