AS one of Ireland’s most prolific ever goalscorers, Niall Quinn will always have a special place in the heart of Irish sports fans.
His 21 goals in an Irish shirt endeared him to fans across three decades, while his ‘gentle giant’ persona has made him a popular figure in multiple dressing rooms.
But for all his nicety, perhaps Niall Quinn is not built for broadcasting on his former sport, if today’s cut-throat social media sphere is anything to go by.
The 50-year-old was trending on Twitter last night, and it was largely due to derogatory comments being made towards his middle-of-the-road, safer than safe punditry.
A Sky Sports regular, Quinn is often vilified for his state-the-obvious style, but during Wednesday night’s clash between Liverpool and Tottenham, British viewers really lost their patience with the Dubliner.
Niall Quinn: great player, great chairman. But a dull person behind the mic
— Daniel Jenks (@DanielJenks89) October 25, 2016
@SkyFootball after watching the game last night I must admit that Niall Quinn is absolutely fucking clueless !! And he played the game!!!
— chris coles (@arth365) October 26, 2016
@SkySports Please get rid of Niall Quinn.
— EvilIrish (@EvilIrish1) October 26, 2016
I feel sorry for Niall Quinn's wife cause I've only spent 94 minutes with him and he's done my fucking head in
— Kate Coggins (@KateCoggins11) October 25, 2016
@SkySports you should look at why 'Niall Quinn' is trending and sack him #LIVTOT
— Steve Giles (@SteveGiles9) October 25, 2016
@LeeDonovan9 @gatch1975 Niall Quinn.?
— Chris Davies (@ChrisDa95285238) October 25, 2016
Niall Quinn has the voice to cure insomnia
— Ally Jefferson (@AllyJefferson1) October 25, 2016
Hope Niall Quinn becomes allergic to oxygen.
— Chapman Baxter (@SussexMark) October 25, 2016
Niall Quinn seems to have upset both sets of fans. No mean achievement!
— Dave Hardy (@RealDavidHardy) October 25, 2016
Sky sports, please make sure we never endure Niall Quinn on a Spurs game ever again #coys
— Stuart Fagg (@stuart_fagg) October 25, 2016
However, it wasn’t all one-way traffic. Well, not entirely; Quinn had a handful of supporters defending him, but they were few and far between.
a lot of hate for niall quinn on twitter this evening. the man's a saint, so shut your traps ☺
— Rick Neary (@rickneary86) October 25, 2016
Personally, I love Niall Quinn!
— Jason Atkinson (@DarthAtkinson) October 25, 2016
Spurs Blaming Niall Quinn for their loss?????
— Coutinho10!? (@ChaudharyMidey) October 25, 2016
what has niall quinn done to get twitter pants in a twist??
— Sunnyreigns ? (@sunbabe08) October 25, 2016
This all begs the question, is Niall Quinn simply too nice for TV?
