Sport

McCarthy to watch Robbie Keane

Mick McCarthy confirmed yesterday that he is to watch Wolves in action against Charlton Athletic today, in an all-Division One…

By PETER BYRNE
Sat Jan 24 1998 - 00:00

Mick McCarthy confirmed yesterday that he is to watch Wolves in action against Charlton Athletic today, in an all-Division One clash in the fourth round of the FA Cup. The significance of McCarthy's mission is that it will give him a chance of assessing the form of Robbie Keane, whose impressive performances has been one of the features of Wolves' season.

The squad for the B international against Northern Ireland at Tolka Park on February 12th is scheduled to be named next Tuesday and the speculation is that the young Dubliner will be in it.

At 18, Keane is still eligible for the youth international team and McCarthy has gone on record as saying that he doesn't want to rush the youngster whose form has been sufficiently exciting to prompt reports of a £5m transfer bid by Sheffield Wednesday.

The response was nothing more than a curt dismissal by Wolves' manager, Mark McGhee, but a big showing by Keane in today's game could accelerate his promotion for the B fixture with the possibility of selection for one of three senior friendly internationals, later in the season.

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The Ireland manager will also be keenly interested in the performance of the Charlton midfielder, Mark Kinsella, in today's game. For some time, Kinsella's claims have been noted on this side of the Irish Sea but apart from several appearances in the under-21 team, his creative skills have gone unrewarded.

Now at last, there are signs that the 25-year-old Dubliner, who joined Colchester United from Home Farm seven years ago, may be on the way to higher honours.

FAI officials said yesterday that they were still negotiating with an agent for a match between Ireland and Jamaica in London on March 22nd. The game was first proposed last Tuesday but, since then, discussions have not been advanced significantly.

It has been confirmed that the European championship warm-up fixture against the Czech Republic on March 25th, will take place at Oromouc, a town some 170 miles outside Prague. The under-21 meeting of the countries the previous night, will take place at Drnovice.