New talent can take us par to fertile pastures

At the end of a year in which he failed agonisingly, to lead his team his team to World Cup qualification, consolation doesn't come easily to Mick McCarthy.

The FAI's decision to confirm the renewal of his contract for a further two years, is indicative of their faith in the man to prove himself a worthy successor to Jack Charlton. It also amounts to vindication of the new man's determination to accelerate the return to fertile pastures, through the development of some of his younger players.

Prime among these is Damien Duff, the 18-year-old Dubliner whose exceptional talent has been heralded from a long way back. Malaysia in the summer, provided the reassuring proof that his ability had not been overstated and that he was capable of developing into the biggest single influence on the national team since Liam Brady.

Roy Keane notwithstanding, Brady's creative skills have never been adequately replaced by Ireland. Now the parallels between Duff and the young Brady, who so captivated the staff of Arsenal in the early 1970s, are striking. Like his illustrious predecessor, the Blackburn youngster is a left-sided midfield player whose genius is in taking on and beating, opponents.

Apart from the occasional stint in central midfield with Ireland, Brady never strayed far from his favoured post. To judge by his performance when taking over the front line role vacated by Chris Sutton for Blackburn's game against West Ham last Saturday, that restriction is not shared by the younger man. That was an expansive performance by a player still in his first full season in the Premiership after making his debut in the closing weeks of the old campaign.

Even after witnessing Duff's imposing performances on a world stage in Malaysia, McCarthy, it seemed, was determined to summon him later rather than sooner, to his senior squad. Now in the light of his impressive rate of improvement at Blackburn, his apprenticeship may be shortened significantly.

The other young Dubliner currently making waves in English football is Robbie Keane of Wolves, who arrived at Molyneaux only after some of the bigger Premiership clubs had been less than enthusiastic about the exciting reports of the player which had been dispatched by scouts in Dublin.

It is a measure of the impact he has made with Wolves, that already, several Premiership managers, anxious to correct that initial error of judgment, have been to see him play, although manager Mark McGhee is insistent that the youngster, still only 18, is not for sale.

Regarding Keane, McCarthy is insistent that the player will not be rushed, contending that there is ample opportunity for him to develop his game in under-age international competition. Yet, depending on how Duff makes out on his inevitable promotion to the senior squad, it may well be that the management team will have an early change of heart about the Wolves player.

Alan Maybury, another young Dubliner who has featured in Leeds United's senior team on a couple of occasions this season, also fits the description of an accomplished international player in the making but in this case, his progress may be hindered more than helped by the intense competition for first team places at Elland Road.

This is put in perspective by the fact that Ian Harte couldn't get into George Graham's team at a time when he was an established World Cup player with Ireland in the autumn. Given the fact that Harte was playing in the Premiership shortly after his 18th birthday, he will now be disappointed at this blip in his career but Graham insists that it is all part of his football development.

Maybury, who plays on the opposite side of the defence to Harte, will, hopefully not encounter as many problems on his way to regular first team status and behind him, there is another exciting young Irish player emerging in the 17-year-old midfielder, Stephen McPhail.

Dave Worrell, a clubmate of Duff's at Blackburn, is another for whom big things are forecast and going strictly on form in Malaysia, Robbie Ryan of Huddersfield Town deserves to rate highly on any list of the better young Irish defenders.

These are the teenage prodigies around whom McCarthy can hope with some justification, to build his new empire. There is, however, another generation of players, overlooked in the closing phase of Jack Charlton's reign, who may well have a significant contribution to make to the next European championship qualifying programme.

Among this category, the claims of Mark Kinsella, a 25-year-old Dubliner who started out with Home Farm before joining Colchester United, have long been trumpeted. Kinsella's perception and finishing skills, have produced an unusually high quota of goals for a midfield player with Charlton Athletic this season. And it has not gone unnoticed by McCarthy.

Coincidentally, Graham Kavanagh of Stoke City plays in precisely the same position as Kinsella and in some respects, his scoring record this season, is even more spectacular. Many believe that Kavanagh's first senior appearance after several appearances in the under-21 team, ought not be delayed much longer.

It is these relatively untested players, as much as the proven skills of established performers like David Connolly, Keith O'Neill and Mark Kennedy, who give hope of accelerating the journey back into the top flight of European football.