Soccer shorts

Today's other stories in brief

McCarthy says Doyle sure to go if Wolves don't stay up

WOLVES BOSS Mick McCarthy has suggested the club is all but certain to lose Republic of Ireland striker Kevin Doyle if relegated from the Premier league this year.

“If we go down, we have no chance of holding on to him,” he said. “If we stay up, we might still have a problem because there will be a few interested. We have seen all the teams now and I’ve not noticed many better players than him.

“I’m not doing a selling job saying that because I’m not telling other managers anything they don’t know. He would not be out of place in the company of Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea.”

Doyle has scored just six goals in 24 league appearances for McCarthy’s side this season but has been widely hailed for the quality of his performances, most notably in the games against Liverpool and Manchester United at Old Trafford

– Emmet Malone

Staunton looks on bright side

FORMER IRELAND manager Steve Staunton was anxious to look on the bright side after seeing his Darlington side pick up their first league point in a month on Tuesday night when they drew 1-1 with Bury at Gigg Lane.

“We know we’ve been knocking on the door with our performances at home, we’ve played some good football and we’ve had plenty of shots and crosses in games and we’ve not taken our chances and conceded poor goals,” said the Louthman, whose side lie at the foot of League Two, 11 points behind Grimsby.

FORMER Cork City striker Denis Behan could be out for the rest of the season after picking up an ankle ligament injury for the second time this season, in a reserve team game for Hartlepool United on Tuesday.

Striker Murphy gives thanks to Keane

STRIKER DARYL Murphy has expressed gratitude to Ipswich manager Roy Keane for allowing him to re-establish himself as a striker at Portman Road, with the Waterfordman scoring five times in eight games, including two against Cardiff on Tuesday night, since arriving on loan from Sunderland.

Murphy has thanked Keane for playing him up front: “He saw I was a striker and not a left midfielder,” said the 26-year-old, who was regularly asked to play out wide by Steve Bruce back at the Stadium of Light, “and I just want to repay him by scoring as many as I can.”

Keane, meanwhile, expressed his satisfaction with the player’s form since arriving late in the January transfer window.

“We’ve given him a new lease of life. . . . Now, he’s come in and had a run of games and his biggest strength is definitely playing through the middle. They were poacher’s goals (on Tuesday). We haven’t scored nearly enough like that.”

King names his squad for qualifier

IRELAND MANAGER Noel King has named his squad for the women’s World Cup qualifier against Israel on March 21st, his team’s last away game before a run of home matches that will wrap up the Republic’s qualification campaign.

Fiona O’Sullivan returns having missed the game in Kazakhstan last October but King has largely stuck with the group that has performed well in recent outings. “They are a group who are definitely moving in the right direction,” he said.

Squad: E Byrne (Arsenal), N Fahey (Arsenal), M T McDonnell (Chicago Red Stars), C Grant (Arsenal), C McCormack (Kolbotn FC), Y Tracy (Arsenal), J Connor (Birmingham), F O’Sullivan (San Francisco Storm), A O’Gorman (Stella Maris), M de Búrca (Salthill Devon), S McDonnell (Chicago), S Hughes (Tolka Rovers), M O’Brien (Chicago), L Bradley (Raheny United), JA Russell (Salthill Devon), S Roche (Raheny United).

Ribery to wait before deciding future

FRANCK RIBERY will make a decision over his future within the next month – but claims he is “very happy” at Bayern Munich.

The German side booked their place in the last eight at the expense of Fiorentina, their 3-2 defeat at the Stadio Artemio Franchi seeing them through on away goals after the tie ended 4-4.

Ribery is under contract until 2011 and Bayern run the risk of losing him for nothing at end of next season, but qualification for the quarter-finals should go some way towards convincing him to remain at the Allianz Arena.

“At the end of March or the start of April I should be able to decide,” he said.