Don\u2019t make the mistake of thinking Saipan is a film about the brutal second world war battle on this small Pacific island. It is, in fact, the tale of a ridiculous and heartbreaking football bust-up that almost tore a country apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On one side was Irishman Roy Keane, one of the greatest footballers of his generation. Captain of the Ireland team, he was a man with a volcanic temper and an insatiable will to win. On the other was mild-mannered manager Mick McCarthy, a Yorkshireman of Irish descent who had made his name as a brave, no-nonsense defender during his time as captain of Ireland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The row that exploded on Saipan before the 2002 World Cup had even started was a slow-motion tragicomedy, lurching from one excruciating episode to the next. It began with a spat between Keane and McCarthy over training facilities. It escalated to a national crisis thanks to an ill-timed media interview \u2013 then developed into a full-blown international furore after one of the most brutal personal attacks ever seen in sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now the story is being told in a new film starring Steve Coogan as McCarthy and rising star \u00c9anna Hardwicke as Keane. <\/p>\n\n\n\n