McCarthy comes out fighting

SOCCER/Euro 2004 Qualifying: Even  if Republic of Ireland manager Mick McCarthy had arrived in Dublin with the intention of publicly resigning and issuing one of those "come and get me" pleas to Sunderland's chairman Bob Murray, you got the feeling that an hour in a room with his old friends from the media would have changed his mind.

Not long after sitting down to discuss the squad of 22 he has named for next Wednesday's European qualifier against Switzerland, the conversation switched to what he felt were "personal" criticisms of him in yesterday's papers.

His reaction in such instances tends to be a mixture of hostility and defiance, and yesterday he restated his determination to stay on despite what he feels is unfair treatment from the various strands of the press.

The absence of any surprises in relation to his squad - John O'Shea and Jeff Kenna are included for the injured Steve Finnan and Jason McAteer - provided ample opportunity to once again discuss McCarthy's future intentions.

But on that score, the 43-year-old was adamant that, even if an offer were to be received, the sacking of Peter Reid from his job at Sunderland would have no impact on his current priorities.

"I'm sorry to see him go," said McCarthy. "He's always been supportive of me, there were never any grouches from Reidy about letting players come over.

"But I still want to do this job, I wouldn't have taken this contract during the summer otherwise. People said to me then that maybe I should move on but I said I wanted to lead the team to Portugal in 2004 and I think you have to ask yourself what's changed just because we've lost one game - my attitude to the job or some other people's attitude towards me."

McCarthy went on to restate his view that last month's defeat by Russia was an aberration and that despite so many players having performed so poorly he would keep faith with many of the same faces for next Wednesday's match at Lansdowne Road.

"We can all look back on it and think that we didn't perform as well as we might have individually. I'd still take the positives from it - the fact that at 2-0 down we took the game to them. I'd sooner have lost 4-2 and had a go at it rather than 2-0 and not had a go."

It was clearly implied that only forced changes will be made for the game against Switzerland. That will mean disappointment for Manchester United's O'Shea who, having been elevated to the senior squad from the under-21s, clearly felt yesterday that he was in with a chance of making his competitive debut at this level.

O'Shea's character references are good. His club manager Alex Ferguson has described the 21-year-old as "fantastic" and has allowed Rio Ferdinand to have surgery on his right knee in large part, he said, because O'Shea has come on so much. And yesterday the player himself said: "I am looking forward to it (next Wednesday's game). This time I feel I might get a chance."

McCarthy, though, maintains that making the senior squad is progress in itself for the young defender and that the day when he replaces Kenny Cunningham or Gary Breen, both of whom he says have been "brilliant for me", may still be a little way off.

Surprisingly, though, McCarthy then suggested that he had not seen O'Shea play for United this year other than on television, despite the fact the player has made nine starts for the club in 14 competitive games.

On the other hand, he has seen Jeff Kenna in the flesh and he expressed delight that the Birmingham defender, who has not played for Ireland in almost three years, has done enough in his time at St Andrews to prompt his recall to the international squad.

"I'm delighted for him," he said. "Jeff's been doing well and as you know he is experienced on that right side." Options on the right flank are now limited in the absence of Finnan, Steven Reid and McAteer.

"Early in my career he was one of the mainstays but I'm sure there have been times over the last couple of years when he felt his chance might never come again. It's good to see him back in the frame."

McCarthy added that there was a possibility that Damien Duff might be switched to the right flank but then pointed out more than once that Lee Carsley is currently playing there at Everton. "It is not," he added, "compulsory to play somebody out wide."

Before he makes his decision on who to play in the role, the weekend will provide the Ireland manager with a chance to assess Switzerland in action. He travels on Saturday to see them play Albania in Tirana.

After that, he says, "we need to beat them in order to get this campaign off the ground. We need to be on the front foot when we play Switzerland and at the moment I think there's been a real downer being put on me and the team."

McCarthy does not, of course, need to be told that this is nothing compared to the downer he will be subjected to if Ireland fail to beat the Swiss and, when asked again later on camera whether he would rule himself out of the running for the Sunderland job he failed to do so.

In fact, Cathal Dervan, his friend and the author of his forthcoming World Cup diary, suggested yesterday in an article for London's Evening Standard that McCarthy's patience may already have run out. The journalist observed that McCarthy "has had enough of the sniping and criticism that has followed him ever since his infamous bust-up with Roy Keane".

If that is true and the team fails to perform again, then, in the unlikely event that Mr Murray still has a vacancy over at the Stadium of Light next Thursday, we may yet see McCarthy's line on defying the critics softening a little.