ROBBIE KEANE
They are all probably clapping hands, (Michel) Platini sitting up there on the phone to Sepp Blatter, probably texting each other, delighted with the result. France and Germany had a chance of being in the play-offs as well, two massive countries. There was no way in a million years it was going to be a fair draw -- and it wasn't.
We knew straight away. You could see by the reaction of the players, Shay especially. He was two yards away from it, and you don't get a reaction like that unless he is sure it's a handball. He almost caught it and actually ran into the net with it, so obviously, we are all devastated.
JOHN O'SHEA
I try not to use too strong words because you'll only get yourself in trouble. They had two chances to get the decision right. I think they may have thought we were asking for something against Gallas, but you could see from the reaction of the players that they are actually saying 'handball'. It was such a blatant handball.
KEVIN KILBANE
It's probably thrown up all sorts of conspiracy theories -- the way it finished. It makes it so much harder. I won't get a chance to play at a World Cup again and it's really hard to take when we go out like that.
DAMIEN DUFF
FIFA have to take a long, hard look at themselves now. The draw, and then the decision. Incredible.
If it was down the other end, maybe we wouldn't be complaining. The whole world has seen what happened, every man and his dog. I don't know what's going on behind the scenes, it's just a joke. The lads are devastated. It's reminiscent of Maradona in '86. We feel so cheated.
We were the best team all night by a mile. Even going into penalties, we would have been confident. We felt their heads were gone.
Shay Given
We were the better team but now we're going home with nothing and it's very hard to take. I'm sure in a few weeks UEFA and Platini will be up in the stands all happy as the French are going to the World Cup. They're a big nation and us, as a small nation, have been cheated out of going there first with the seedings issue and again last night.
I don't know if Henry has tarnished his reputation but he has got them to the World Cup and it's cheating.
RICHARD DUNNE
There's nothing you can do, there is no way. They probably wouldn't even answer the phone to the FAI. What chance have you go with FIFA, the people who decide.
The referee was 100pc certain that he didn't handle the ball. Henry then said he did. He said he didn't mean to. He admitted he cheated and told us we deserved to win. That makes me feel worse.
They're going to the World Cup, and we're not. It's not going to change.
It wasn't a difficult one to see. The linesman should have seen the offside and then there was the handball. Surely, one of them should have seen it. It doesn't take a TV replay, we saw it straight away.
SEAN ST LEDGER
Even more so now, we need TV replays. We need the technology, I can't believe that FIFA would not even consider that for whatever amount of years. Maybe that might have helped. It needs to happen sooner rather than later. It was a boyhood dream to go and play in the World Cup and to have it taken away from me... I mean, if it had gone to penalties, who knows, it was a 50-50 kind of thing. But to have it taken away like that...
Henry said it just hit his hand but I can't believe that for one minute. In the replay, you see his eyes looking at the ball, and you see his hand move. If it was one of our players we probably wouldn't have said anything either. If we were going to the World Cup, we wouldn't be talking about TV replays and referees.
LIAM LAWRENCE
It was scandalous. You could see Henry's face, the smirk. He knew what he had done. There is a lot of anger. We've had the better chances. We should have gone through. The first leg was a deflection, the second was a handball.
LIAM BRADY
A few years ago against Sheffield United in a FA Cup tie, Arsenal got an advantage from a throw in and scored a goal. Arsene Wenger said it was not right and we played the match again. So I would ask FIFA 'do you want to play the match again?' Ask Mr Blatter 'Do you want to play the match again?' We would go to Paris and play the match again. I don't think it would come to that, but we'd be willing to play it again in Paris, on their home ground, and have a fair winner.
Daniel McDonnell
- Daniel McDonnell
Irish Independent
FIFA - For the good of the game The Football Association of Ireland (FAI), Irish Minister for Sport, Taoiseach and Facebook social network groups are requesting a replay of the controversial FIFA World Cup play-off between Ireland and France in the interests of Fair Play. The FAI lodged an appeal with FIFA and also contacted the French Football Federation (FFF), it appears FAI hopes FFF may agree that a replay is fair play. Both captians, Thierry Henry and Robbie Keane, have called for a replay. 

The Irish supporters, who in the past have won the FIFA Fair Play Award, are angry after a blatant double handball by Thierry Henry enabled France to score the extra-time goal that cost Ireland entry to next year’s FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa. Most Irish anger has been directed at FIFA, although French captain Thierry Henry has admitted handling the ball. 

FAI has argued that there is a strong precedent; in 2005 where FIFA invalidated the result of a FIFA World Cup qualification match between Uzbekistan and Bahrain on the basis of a technical error by the match referee. However, Law 5 of the Laws of the Game state that: "The decisions of the referee regarding facts connected with play, including whether or not a goal is scored and the result of the match, are final." and a source at Fifa headquarters in Switzerland said that “there is no way the game can be replayed”. The generic concept of fair play is a fundamental part of the game of football and the Fair Play Campaign was conceived largely as an indirect result of the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, when the handball goal by Diego Maradona.

The referee Martin Hansson and (referee's assistants) Stefan Wittberg and Fredrik Nilsson were unable to see the incident but didn't ask Thierry Henry if he handled the ball. Its hoped the mistake won't cost the Swedish referee's a place in South Africa. FIFA's Fair play policy is playing by the rules, using common sense and respecting fellow players, referees, opponents and fans. The French union representing the nation’s gym teachers declared outrage at what it called “indisputable cheating.”

Minister for Sport Martin Cullen wrote to FIFA president Sepp Blatter urging him to call a rematch in the interests of fair play. Taoiseach Brian Cowen raised the issue with French president Nicolas Sarkozy on the fringes of last night’s EU summit. French Prime minister François Fillon said “neither the French government nor the Irish Government should interfere in the functioning of the international federation”.