FROM BHOYS TO MOYES

Mcstay: We just couldn’t find a place at Celtic for Seamus but I told David he would be a fine signing for his Everton project

SEAMUS COLEMAN has been hailed as an inspiration for young footballers by the man who sent him on his way to Everton 15 years ago.

The Ireland star last weekend became the Toffees’ record Premier League appearance maker when he chalked up his 355th top-flight display in Sunday’s scoreless draw with Aston Villa.

But things could have been different for the Killybegs native if Willie Mcstay had his way during the 2008/09 season.

A former Sligo Rovers manager, Mcstay was back at Celtic, where he had spent six years as a player in the 1980s.

He brought the young Bit O’ Red full-back over to Glasgow for a trial – and Coleman impressed the Bhoys staff so much that they seriously considered a bid for the then 20-year-old.

However, with a number of rightbacks on their books, including firstteam regular Mark Wilson, they opted against a swoop.

Not long after, Mcstay received a phone call from his old Celtic team-mate

David Moyes, who was in charge of the Toffees.

“Moyesy knew he was in at

Celtic and he did well,” Mcstay told Mirror Sport. “At that time the right full-back position, we had Mark Wilson and we had a couple of young boys in as well.

“Moyesy phoned me up and asked me how ‘the boy from Ireland’ did. “I said, ‘He did really well’.

“At that stage he’d gone back to

Sligo Rovers and Moyesy said, ‘What do you think?’.

“I said, ‘Well, if we were able to sign him, we would have’.

“So he asked if I’d recommend him and I said, ‘Aye, definitely, if you are looking for a player in that position to develop, then yeah, go for it’.”

Mcstay (inset) gave a rundown of Coleman’s characteristics, telling Moyes he had ”character, speed, he was lethal one-v-one and he ticked a lot of boxes.”

He added: “That was it, he was sold on it. He phoned me back a couple of months later and said, ‘Thanks for that; he’s gone from £60,000 to £6million!’.”

Coleman’s true value was never tested, as he never left Goodison

Park and Mcstay, who is currently Celtic’s head of academy recruitment, isn’t surprised by the 35-year-old’s staying power.

“Seamus gets on with the job, he’s hard-working. As an athlete he was always excellent, going from box-to-box in his position.

“He was very competitive and he was very good on his one-v-one situations defensively.

“He also had resilience. If he made a mistake, that was gone, he was back playing well and doing the right things. He also showed his resilience when he picked up some serious injuries.

“He has become a leader as well and he is a great example and inspiration for any young player.

“It’s not all about skill all the time, it’s the package that you bring to the table.”