HE HAS TAKEN A SHANE TO THIS
Duffy’s meteoric rise means he’s first on the team-sheet now 7
WHEN the Republic of Ireland were last in Copenhagen on World Cup duty, Alan Kernaghan helped repel the Viking boarders to keep the World Cup show afloat
For the silver anniversary reunion tomorrow, it is Shane Duffy who will be the central defensive pivot.
At 25, Duffy is the same age as Kernaghan was in 1992, but that is not the only connection.
Like Kernaghan before him, Duffy represented Northern Ireland at underage level before making the switch.
Kernaghan grew up in Bangor but because his parents weren’t born in Northern Ireland, he was a non-runner under IFA rules at the time and felt he had no option to jump ship. He was eligible for the Republic of Ireland via his grandmother’s side, though.
In contrast, Derry-born Duffy seemed destined to play for the North having risen through the underage ranks and was even picked in a senior squad aged just 17 in 2009.
But with encouragement from Liam Brady, then assistant to Giovanni Trapattoni, he made the contentious call in 2010 to change international allegiance.
What was a massive loss for Northern Ireland has undoubtedly been a gain for the Republic. The same thought struck Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane as they watched Duffy training this week in Dublin.
The big raw rookie they inherited four years ago has morphed into a mobile, muscular, unit who wouldn’t look out of place as a NFL line-backer. He has played the full 90 minutes in the eight qualifiers has was available for and even though he has just 15 caps will be one of the first names on the Irish team-sheet here tomorrow. Keane recalled one of his early scouting missions was to check out Duffy, then at Yeovil in League One. Since then, the soft-spoken giant has come a long way. ‘I know you have to start somewhere but Shane has done well considering where he was four years ago. Martin and I were just saying that to each other the other day ,’ said Keane. ‘Out on loan at Yeovil from Everton, getting his move to Blackburn, another move to Brighton and you’re thinking “they’ve got promoted, will they step up to the plate?” He’s doing really well at Brighton.’ ‘Shane deserves credit and the fact he is playing most weeks in the Premier League would be a huge help to him. He will improve,’ promised Keane. Officially six foot and four inches — he looks taller — Duffy should stand head and shoulders above everyone in the Irish squad. Only he doesn’t. Kevin Long is every bit the Californian Redwood, while John O’Shea and David Meyler are other seriously lofty lads. With the likes of Daryl Murphy, Ciaran Clark and Stephen Ward, this Irish squad has plenty of height, and that’s before you count the goalkeepers. Of them all, Duffy stood tallest in Cardiff last month when Wales launched a serious aerial bombardment in the final 20 minutes. As shots and crossed rained in, it was Duffy who got something on the ball to relieve the danger. It’s something the Irish team will take with them into battle tomorrow, the knowledge that in-form Duffy is in harness as the defensive lynchpin.
He has started 11 games for Brighton in the Premier League, finished ten of them, and helped keep four clean sheets.
For Ireland, he has improved since his gawky, if gutsy, contribution in the finals of Euro 2016, with a goal against Georgia in September, and helping keep two shut-outs against Moldova and Wales.
His presence doesn’t go unnoticed by his teammates.
‘It gives us confidence when defending set pieces, we have so much confidence in the lads and know they will throw themselves into anything,’ said midfielder Harry Arter.
‘I think that if a bus was coming at Shane Duffy he’d try to get his head on it!
‘It’s a mindset of the group and highlights the fact that everyone has different qualities in the back four when it comes to defending.
‘So, it’s nice to have that feeling. If the opposition does score from a set piece, it’s going to be an unbelievable header that our lads have just missed.
‘It won’t be through a lack of not going for it and a will to win. So, it gives you a lot of confidence when you are playing.’
Arter takes a step back in the opposition box for frees and corners, leaving the way for the bigger men, like Duffy, Clark, Murphy and Co to engage in the aerial duels.
He wouldn’t look out of place as a line-backer