Places' battle for Irish players

MICK McCARTHY was making no commitments to his players after the successful launch of the Republic of Ireland's World Cup qualifying programme in Liechtenstein on Saturday.

And that includes Roy Keane, who is expected to have recovered from a knee operation in time for the next game against Macedonia at Lansdowne Road on October 9th.

Even an unhurried 5-0 win is no guarantee of survival for the new generation of players who fashioned Ireland's biggest ever victory away from home. "It will be a different game, perhaps a different match plan and who knows how we'll be fixed for players in the second week of Octo"her," McCarthy said.

"Roy should be back playing "again by the time we meet Macedonia, but at this point it is futile to speculate who will and will not be in the team. All I know for sure is that we gave a very professional performance in Liechtenstein - it could scarcely have been much better."

Keane's return is complicated by the success of the restructured midfield formation which established the bridgehead to victory and dulled the pain of the last expedition to Liechtenstein 15 months ago.

Alan McLoughlin did well in his first full competitive international and, in McCarthy's estimation, the returning Ray Houghton ran Ian Harte close for the Man of the Match award.

Harte, who celebrated his 19th birthday by scoring the fourth goal, is one of those most likely to keep his place. Andy Townsend, Keith O'Neill and Niall Quinn had put the Irish three in front after only 11 minutes.

But the immediate future of Harte's uncle, Gary Kelly, an absentee through injury from Saturday's game, is much more uncertain after the successful deployment of Gary Breen alongside Denis Irwin and Stephen Staunton in a three man defence.

Some 800 miles away in Bucharest, Romania were opening their programme with a comprehensive 3-0 success over Lithuania.

Before the first leg of the Romanian tie in Bucharest on April 30th. Ireland will have played Iceland (home) and Macedonia (home and away). McCarthy is hoping to bank a lot of points along the way.