Season ends in tears for Duff

SOCCER: A frustrating season appeared to end prematurely for Damien Duff yesterday when he suffered a second dislocation of his shoulder after a fall on his return to training with Chelsea, having missed their last three games, and Wednesday's international against Poland, with a virus.

Barring the speediest of recoveries, Duff is almost certain to miss the second leg of the club's Champions League semi-final against Monaco next week and, possibly, the Republic of Ireland's games against Romania (May 27th) and Holland (June 5th), along with as-yet-to-be-confirmed friendlies against Nigeria and Jamaica in London at the end of next month.

The winger first dislocated his shoulder in a league game against Fulham on December 20th and was out for almost a month. The club is now assessing the injury and, said a spokesman yesterday, "deciding what rehabilitation is for the best".

The news completes what has been a trying first season for the player since he signed for Chelsea in a £17 million deal from Blackburn last summer. He has missed 16 of the team's 59 games (including 12 of their Premiership games), either through injury (he has also suffered from an Achilles problem) or through Claudio Ranieri's notorious "tinkering", otherwise known as his rotation policy.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Association (NFA) confirmed yesterday that it will be taking part in a triangular tournament (the Unity Cup) with the Republic of Ireland and Jamaica at Charlton Athletic's Valley ground in London between May 29th and June 2nd. Ireland are, according to the NFA, due to play Nigeria on Saturday, May 29th, and Jamaica on Wednesday, June 2nd.

There is, as yet, no confirmation about the dates from the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), with contracts yet to be signed for the tournament, while a spokesman for the Jamaica Football Federation said yesterday that all three nations still needed "authorisation from the English FA, as well as from the police regarding security matters".

He added that a meeting on the issues is expected in the "next day or two", and he expected the three associations would receive clearance for the games.

Such has been the hype surrounding Aiden McGeady's goalscoring debut for Celtic last weekend, the Scottish press will probably expect the 18-year-old to be included by Brian Kerr in the senior Irish squad for the Unity Cup. Liam Miller, who made his full Irish debut on Wednesday, and who is leaving Celtic for Manchester United this summer, added to the plaudits yesterday by suggesting McGeady should already be a first team regular at Parkhead.

"Aiden had a great debut, but I've seen him on the training ground every day for a while. You get used to his skill and the tricks he does, but, from the fans' point of view, just seeing a player with that kind of ability is great. He's definitely one for the future, if not now. He's good enough and has everything you need to be a top player and I think it's only a matter of time. He showed on Sunday what he is made of."

McGeady is standing by his decision to declare for Ireland, despite being Glasgow-born, and his commitment is a source of some satisfaction to Packie Bonner, the man who first asked him to train with the Republic's youth squad.

"It wasn't a case of us stealing Aiden away from Scotland," said Bonner, "I just recommended him to Brian Kerr when he was about 15 and let him get on with it.

"It was then up to Brian to follow it up. Aiden's family comes from my part of the world, Donegal, and like a lot of Scots boys with roots from there he has a strong link with Ireland."

"Nobody forced him to do anything, because Aiden is a strong-willed person and knows what he wants to do with his career. I'm just glad he's our player and I'm sure he'll get a game with the under-21s soon to make it all official.

"You could tell at a really early stage that he had a chance, he's naturally gifted. He's also a clever lad and I believe he could be a real star. It's up to him."

The teenager, who turned 18 only three weeks ago and whose father, John "Speedy" McGeady's, spell at Sheffield United in the 1970s was hampered by the breaking of his kneecap on four occasions, was pursued by Arsenal, Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City as a schoolboy, and signed a boot deal with adidas when he was just 14 years of age.

After Martin O'Neill's likening of him to Ronaldinho at the weekend, he has, much to his own embarrassment, since been christened "Aideninho" by the Scottish press.

The kick-off for the Republic of Ireland's game against Holland in Amsterdam (on June 5th) has been brought forward from 8.30 to 8.0, local time (7.0 Irish time).