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| Clinton Morrison takes a break during this morning's training session at Lansdowne Road (© Inpho) |
14/08/01: Stephen Reid was today "delighted" to be told he will win his first senior Irish cap when he starts tomorrow night’s friendly versus Croatia. "I was shocked to be even in the squad," he said, "but to start is really unbelievable".
Though he operates on the left-hand side of midfield for Millwall, where fans voted him Player of the Year last season, Mick McCarthy will deploy him on the right tomorrow.
That, however, won’t cause the 20 year-old any problem since he counts versatility as once of his greatest strengths, having had occassion to play on both wings for his club, as well as up front and at full-back.
"But I’m right-footed and right midfield is really my preferred position," he explained. Reid has three Irish U21 caps, and previously won four caps for England’s U-16s. He qualifies for Ireland through his grandfather, who is from Ballinsloe, and the youngster revealed his mother and several cousins will be traveling to Dublin tomorrow, "though they've no idea I'll be playing from the start, I can't wait to get back to the hotel to ring them!".
Despite the fact that Reid himself admits "I haven't even proved myself in Division 1 yet", Mccarthy has no doubts over his ability to make the step up to international level. "I'm not worried he'll find it too physical, and he's got the pace and the ability, so all he lacks at the moment is the experience and there's only one way to get that", explained the Irish manager, justifying Reid's statement that "The gaffer has shown great confidence in me, so now I have to try to repay that".
Other potential debutants, Clinton Morrison and John O’Shea, will have to wait for their first cap, though McCarthy re-iterated that Morrison, for one, will definitely figure at some point against Croatia.
Meanwhile, the starting back-four - Gary Kelly, Steve Staunton, Richard Dunne, and Ian Harte - may well be the one that begins on September 1st in the crunch match against Holland. First choice centre-backs Gary Breen and Kenny Cunningham are both carrying injuries which may rule them out of that game, and McCarthy today revealed that Tottenham’s Steve Carr is also a "big doubt", having been instructed to "rest up for a few weeks" following a shoulder injury.
Up front, the Irish manager will use the Croatia game to try out a new partnership in the form of Robbie Keane and Damien Duff. And if Niall Quinn is again sidelined by his troublesome back, that too could be the frontline which faces Holland.
Referring to Robbie Keane’s lack of goals in the World Cup campaign to date, McCarthy again refused to criticise the young striker.
"Robbie has been the star of the show for the last few years thanks to a meteoric rise from Wolves to Inter Milan and Leeds," said McCarthy. "It was inevitable that one experiencing so much so young would go through a slight dip, especially when you consider he was carrying an injury towards the end of last season. But he looks now to be back to his bubbly, sharp best"
"As for Damien, I suppose he was a surprise introduction against Portugal, but he was fantastic in that game, as he was against Estonia".
Asked why he opted not to throw Morrison on from the outset, McCarthy replied: "I chose to start with Damien and Robbie up front, because there the ones most in contention for the Dutch game".
With Matt Holland, and Mark Kinsella both out injured, some suggested McCarthy might use tomorrow’s friendly to have a long look at Stephen McPhail, but the central midfield pairing will instead be Roy Keane, who missed training today due to a death in his family, and Lee Carsley. The left-hand berth will be occupied by Mark Kennedy.
Meanwhile, the FAI today announced that tickets are still available for tomorrow night (kick-off 7:30 p.m.). Priced from £10-£30, they can be obtained from the FAI’s Merrion Square headquarters, or by phoning the credit card hotlines (01 662 78 28 / 01 662 78 26). They will also be on sale outside Lansdowne Road before the match at caravans located at Jury’s hotel and Marian College.
Team: Given, G Kelly, Dunne, Staunton, Harte, Kennedy, Reid, Carsley, Roy Keane, Duff, Robbie Keane.