King names Ireland U-21 Squad
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Republic of Ireland manager Noel King has announced his U-21 squad ahead of their opening two qualifying games in the European Championships.
King’s side will play Hungary in The Showgrounds in Sligo on Thursday, September 1st at 7.30pm and will then play away to Turkey in Manisa on Tuesday, September 6th at 5.00pm Irish time.
Wigan Athletic midfielder James McCarthy who was left out of Giovanni Trapattoni’s senior squad to face Slovakia and Russia next month is named in King’s squad. McCarthy is the only member of the squad who has been capped at senior level.
King said “James will be a good addition to our squad. We are building a competitive squad now and if everybody that is eligible for this age group was fit it would be one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had just to name the squad”. “We’ve named James in the squad and he is fit to play. Hopefully all of the players will come through their club fixtures this weekend and steer clear of injuries.”
There are no uncapped players in the squad and also no players from the Airtricity league. This will come as a surprise to many, particularly with the recent form of among others, players like Dundalk’s Daniel Kearns and Shamrock Rovers’ Conor McCormack.
The squad does though contain two members of the under 19 squad who got to the European championship semi-final earlier this summer, Goalkeeper Aaron McCarey of Wolves and midfielder Jeff Hendrick of Derby County.
The Irish under 21s will also take on Italy and Liechtenstein in group 7 as they hope to make it to Israel in 2013.
The Irish boss knows a good start is important in the qualifying group “It’s always nice to get off to a good start in a qualifying group but nobody will be qualified on the first day. It’s a lengthy process to reach the finals but we’ll obviously be looking to start as well as possible”.
Republic of Ireland Under 21 Squad
Ian McLoughlin (MK Dons),
Aaron McCarey (Wolverhampton Wanderers),
Lanre Oyebanjo (York City),
Shane Duffy (Everton),
Gavin Gunning (Dundee United),
Rob Kiernan (Wigan Athletic),
Niall Canavan (Scunthorpe United),
Aidan White (Leeds United),
Richie Towell (Celtic),
Mark Connolly (Bolton Wanderers),
Adam Barton (Preston North End),
Conor Clifford (Chelsea),
James McCarthy (Wigan Athletic),
Jeff Hendrick (Derby County),
Aaron Doran (Inverness CT),
Robbie Brady (Hull City, on loan from Manchester United),
Sean Scannell (Crystal Palace),
Joe Mason (Cardiff City),
Rhys Murphy (Arsenal).
King’s side will play Hungary in The Showgrounds in Sligo on Thursday, September 1st at 7.30pm and will then play away to Turkey in Manisa on Tuesday, September 6th at 5.00pm Irish time.
Wigan Athletic midfielder James McCarthy who was left out of Giovanni Trapattoni’s senior squad to face Slovakia and Russia next month is named in King’s squad. McCarthy is the only member of the squad who has been capped at senior level.
King said “James will be a good addition to our squad. We are building a competitive squad now and if everybody that is eligible for this age group was fit it would be one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had just to name the squad”. “We’ve named James in the squad and he is fit to play. Hopefully all of the players will come through their club fixtures this weekend and steer clear of injuries.”
There are no uncapped players in the squad and also no players from the Airtricity league. This will come as a surprise to many, particularly with the recent form of among others, players like Dundalk’s Daniel Kearns and Shamrock Rovers’ Conor McCormack.
The squad does though contain two members of the under 19 squad who got to the European championship semi-final earlier this summer, Goalkeeper Aaron McCarey of Wolves and midfielder Jeff Hendrick of Derby County.
The Irish under 21s will also take on Italy and Liechtenstein in group 7 as they hope to make it to Israel in 2013.
The Irish boss knows a good start is important in the qualifying group “It’s always nice to get off to a good start in a qualifying group but nobody will be qualified on the first day. It’s a lengthy process to reach the finals but we’ll obviously be looking to start as well as possible”.
Republic of Ireland Under 21 Squad
Ian McLoughlin (MK Dons),
Aaron McCarey (Wolverhampton Wanderers),
Lanre Oyebanjo (York City),
Shane Duffy (Everton),
Gavin Gunning (Dundee United),
Rob Kiernan (Wigan Athletic),
Niall Canavan (Scunthorpe United),
Aidan White (Leeds United),
Richie Towell (Celtic),
Mark Connolly (Bolton Wanderers),
Adam Barton (Preston North End),
Conor Clifford (Chelsea),
James McCarthy (Wigan Athletic),
Jeff Hendrick (Derby County),
Aaron Doran (Inverness CT),
Robbie Brady (Hull City, on loan from Manchester United),
Sean Scannell (Crystal Palace),
Joe Mason (Cardiff City),
Rhys Murphy (Arsenal).
