A Supple hint from O’Neill in Scotland
SHANE SUPPLE may be on the verge of a dramatic call-up to the Republic of Ireland squad as Martin O’Neill looks to ease his goalkeeping crisis.
The Republic of Ireland manager gave game-time between the sticks to both Colin Doyle and newcomer Conor O’Malley in yesterday’s Scott Brown Testimonial with Celtic but may need cover for the friendlies next week against France and USA.
Supple, 31, is currently playing for Bohemians and lining out for Dublin GAA club St Brigid’s.
O’Neill’s assistant Roy Keane was Ipswich Town manager when the Dubliner quit the game in 2009 but he returned to part-time football five years later for the Gypsies.
Since then, Supple has excelled to the point of rejecting advances from a couple of title contenders to stay loyal and suit his desire to combine both codes.
O’Neill, without regular custodians Darren Randolph, Keiren Westwood and Rob Elliot for the end-of-season friendlies, was impressed with what he saw when attending Friday’s game between Bohemians and Dundalk.
‘I thought that Supple looks imposing as goalkeeper,’ said O’Neill after the 2-2 draw at Celtic Park.
‘He looked half-decent and it’s was also good for me to see players live.
‘We’ve got the two goalkeepers at this minute and a couple who are injured, so I’ll have a think about that situation.’
‘Would he not have difficulty getting off work? Please, don’t get carried away as I might have (Gigi) Buffon ready for it.’
Joking aside, O’Neill will want a third goalkeeper on the plane to Paris to Saturday and former Ireland U21 stopper Supple is unlikely to snub the offer.
Meanwhile, Callum Robinson has defended his decision to declare for Ireland at the age of 24. The Preston North End striker was amongst the substitutes involved for Ireland yesterday but must await clearance from FIFA ratifying his switch from England to figure in full internationals.
‘For a year or two I never opened my mouth to say it (declaring for Ireland) but it was always in my mind,’ the one-time England U20 international asserted.
‘My granny, Anne Deighan, was from Co Monaghan and even to play for Ireland in a testimonial brought a few tears, particularly for my mum, Clare.’
Meanwhile, the day didn’t go so badly for fellow Dubliner Graham Burke, either. At the start of a lowkey period for Ireland, Burke did his utmost to make it a summer to broaden his horizons.
There have been plenty of false dawns in the career of the 24-yearold but he didn’t miss yesterday’s one, hopping on a plane just nine hours after returning from club duty at Sligo Rovers.
After a frustrating spell with Aston Villa, Burke has found redemption in the League of Ireland beat, topping the scoring charts for Shamrock Rovers and becoming the first representative of the home game to feature under Martin O’Neill.
The half hour he played in the 2-2 draw in front of 50,000 fans at Celtic Park was sufficient to impress the Ireland boss.
‘Graham might well have started today only for his club match last night,’ noted O’Neill afterwards.
‘He flew over this morning and only met his teammates in the dressing-room beforehand. That shows you he’s enthusiastic about it and certainly didn’t want to waste his opportunity.’
O’Neill was back at Paradise on the eve of the 15th anniversary of the club’s last appearance in a European final. The Derryman gained legendary status at the club for wresting dominance from Rangers but his feat of guiding the Bhoys to the 2003 UEFA Cup final against Jose Mourinho’s Porto was a standout feat.
Less conspicuous was assistant Roy Keane, another to spend time at the Glasgow giants, but the appearance of Celtic legend Henrik Larsson received a rapturous receptions while James McClean was equally popular.
His hardline views are gladly embraced by the Celtic faithful and it seems inevitable that the 29-year-old will one day fulfil his ambition of playing for the club.
Celtic, having completed the double treble less than 24 hours earlier, fielded an understrength team with Brown the sole survivor from Saturday’s Scottish Cup final victory over Motherwell.
O’Neill included frontliners McClean, Seamus Coleman and Jon Walters with Preston’s Alan Browne giving Ireland the lead before Leigh Griffiths levelled. Callum O’Dowda then put the visitors back in front but Patrick Roberts found the net with a deflected shot for the draw.