ROY KEANE'S penchant for punctuality struck again yesterday when the Sunderland manager put fellow Corkman Liam Miller on the club's transfer list, apparently after the 27-year-old had arrived late for training more than once in the previous week.

Miller is understood to have been shocked by the news and believes Keane's actions are out of proportion to the seriousness of the alleged breaches of discipline.

The situation is, nevertheless, potentially a huge setback for the Ireland international midfielder, who signed for Sunderland from Manchester United in August of 2006 after a difficult spell at Old Trafford. It is not clear if he will be considered for first-team action while on the list but the experiences of others at the club suggest he will not, and it is difficult to see him moving on any time soon.

With the transfer window closed, the only exit route open to Miller would be an emergency loan deal with a club in a lower league and his substantial wages will severely limit the number of clubs in a position to move for him.

It is the second time an Irish international has fallen foul of Keane over timekeeping; Anthony Stokes was hauled over the coals for a similar transgression.

The difference, though, is that while Stokes has been struggling to establish himself as a central figure in Keane's first-team set up, Miller has been an important player for the club, taking a key role in their promotion-winning campaign and hitting form agin over the past three months or so.

In recent weeks he has been sidelined by the calf strain picked up during Ireland's friendly against Brazil - it is reported it was his lateness for an appointment to receive treatment for the injury on Saturday morning that prompted Keane's action - but he is now close to fitness again and was named in the team for last night's reserve-team game against Bolton Wanderers.

It remains to be seen whether Keane, after making his point, relents and avails of a player he could do with as Sunderland look to build on their recent improvement and put more distance between themselves and the Premier League drop zone.

It has been confirmed, meanwhile, that Ireland's proposed friendly against Colombia will go ahead at Craven Cottage on Thursday, May 29th.

Alex Ferguson has suggested Giovanni Trapattoni will find it difficult to spark a dramatic improvement in Ireland's fortunes despite his management pedigree.

"His experience and CV is outstanding," said the Manchester United manager yesterday, "but that's no guarantee because you've got to have a nucleus of quality players for any manager to work with.

"Not so long ago the quality of the Irish players put the manager in a really good position but the present squad seem too young and to develop that group of players is going to be a patient job."