IRELAND LEFT A SOUR TASTE

JAMES McClean has opened up for the first time over the disappointment he felt about the way he was treated towards the end of his Ireland career.

The Wrexham winger was dropped for the first time in 12 years, for the October games against Greece and Gibraltar, after making the move to the League Two side.

McClean took issue with the way then-manager Stephen Kenny, who gave him his break in senior football at Derry City, reacted to the move.

He added that his final involvement left a “sour taste” — as he bowed out in the November friendly against New Zealand.

“It’s obviously a successful one. It’s a sense of justification,” was how McClean yesterday described Wrexham’s promotion last weekend.

He said he had offers to stay in the Championship, but wanted to do something that was “exciting” and that was “going to be a challenge.”

As for Kenny’s reaction to the move, McClean said: “I remember a phone call that I had with the manager of Ireland at the time and I told him about the move to Wrexham, he couldn’t wait to get off the phone.

“Ultimately I would say that contributed a major factor in my decision to step away from Ireland.

Plank

“In a way sometimes you make the decision, but you are made to walk the plank in a way. For me, it was like, if I don’t walk away now I may never get the opportunity to say goodbye on my terms.

“That was a contributing factor, definitely, moving to Wrexham.

“But it turned out to be a successful one and it’s a move that no one forced me to take. I took it myself, and I’m glad I did.”

Even if it sped up his departure from the international stage?

“First time in 12 years that I was ever left out of the squad,” he said of the October games, when Kenny explained his decision to omit McClean by referencing his drop “down the divisions.”

McClean continued: “I thought it was very disrespectful. Sometimes all you need to know is when you have a phone call and you can’t get a man off the phone, and then when you have another phone call and all of a sudden they can’t get off the phone (quick enough).

“That speaks to what he thought about the move.

“At the time he was obviously the Ireland manager and he made his decision. I don’t think he was on-board with the decision (to move to Wrexham).”

The pair did agree on McClean making one final appearance — in the New Zealand friendly.

First up there was the dead rubber Euro 2024 qualifier against the Netherlands in Amsterdam.

According to the original plan, McClean was going to stay with his club for that one, before joining the squad when they returned to Dublin.

Dutch

“It was agreed… well, I wasn’t supposed to be in for the Dutch game. I got called for the Dutch game,” he said.

“It was arranged that I was due to meet up on the Sunday, we had an important game at Accrington on the Saturday and I was called up for the Dutch game only to be sat on the bench and not get on.

“So I ended up missing the Accrington game as well because of that.

“Look, I’ll be honest, it leaves a sour taste in my mouth, how my Ireland career ended, because the occasion itself, I got to say goodbye on my terms to the Aviva crowd, which is obviously special.

“But for an end of season friendly game, to not even be given the opportunity to lead the team out and then to be taken off after 66 minutes, not even as a single substitution but as a double substitution, I just thought that was poor and it’s a moment you never get back.”

Would he consider a return to the international fold if asked by the new manager?

“I said at the time in November, I’m retiring, I’m stepping away,” he replied.

“But look if the call ever comes, it’s not something I’ll be campaigning for, in my mind I’m retired, but if the call ever comes to play for your country, it’s a hard one to turn down.

“But look, the new manager might go in a different direction and fair play. As it stands in my mind, I’m retired. Football is a funny game, never say never.”

McClean also expressed some strong views on how the player production line in Ireland could be improved.

Academy

He echoed the often-repeated call of his former teammate Damien Duff, now Shelbourne manager, for large-scale investment into an academy structure.

“I remember in other interviews I gave about League of Ireland funding. You need a good domestic league,” said McClean.

“You need a good academy set-up in each team. We need good funding. We are miles behind. There is no getting away from that. We are miles behind England, even Wales, miles behind other countries in Europe.

“I saw Duffer (Damien Duff) speak about the future of Irish football being through the domestic league and he’s spot on. He’s not saying, ‘Call up the players from the League’, but there has to be a platform from a young age for players to have the best access available to go on and flourish.

“You have a strong domestic league, the more chances you are to send players across the water, which is going to help the international team.

“My son (Junior, eight years of age), on Saturday he signs a first academy contract at Crewe. I look at the set-up Crewe have, a League Two team, to the League of Ireland and it’s phenomenal. It’s miles ahead. Night and day. Why can’t we have that here?”