Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DUFF LOVE FOR HOOPS FANATIC
DAMIEN DUFF didn’t get the chance to fulfil his ambition of playing for Celtic like his former Ireland team-mates Roy and Robbie Keane.
But the former winger insists trying to make the dreams come true of aspiring Hoops youngsters is the next best thing after landing a Parkhead coaching role.
Duff admitted yesterday he wouldn’t have uprooted his family and left Dublin for any other club than his boyhood heroes following his appointment as reserve team boss.
And a sign of how desperate he was to work for the champions is the fact he put himself through what he labelled as a nerve-wracking interview process.
Duff must have said the right things after seeing off some stiff competition and he is now living the dream almost a decade after trying to engineer a move to Parkhead a player.
He was leaving Newcastle United just as Tony Mowbray was taking over in the east end of Glasgow but the former winger ended up being reunited with his former Blackburn Rovers boss Roy Hodgson at Fulham.
At his official unveiling, Duff (inset) said: “I tried to get a move to Celtic when I left Newcastle but moves only happen when they’re meant to be so it obviously wasn’t meant to be.
“I’m not one for agents so I sent out the vibes but I’m not one to dwell on the past. I’m here now and there’s no place I’d rather be on earth than here coaching the reserves.
“I’ve always adored the club like most people back home in my country and the next best thing is coaching and to come here as a coach is an amazing thing.
“I went through a very difficult interview process and it was nervewracking stuff but thankfully they offered me the job and it’s the only place I’d have left Ireland for. If it was any other club I’d still be at home in Dublin.”