Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
MAXIE SWAIN
IT might have been immaterial in the end, but with his last-gasp penalty save Paul Wells came to embody the fighting spirit which carried the junior internationals to glory in Glasgow.
Harry Mcconkey’s men are the new, reigning Umbro Quadrangular Tournament champions after an unbeaten campaign across the water which yielded wins over the Isle of Man and the Republic and a 2-2 draw with host nation Scotland.
Wells’ intervention came in the second game when, cruising 4-0 against the Manxmen, Mcconkey seized upon his chance to get his second choice goalkeeper game-time and with it a much-coveted cap.
But the Limavady United goalkeeper’s cameo proved to be far from a token appearance as he was called into action late on, pulling off a wonderful double-stop from a penalty to protect his country’s clean sheet – potentially decisive had goal difference came into play.
A veteran of numerous Umbro and Regions Cup campaigns during his 12 years at the helm, Mcconkey reckons he has managed many accomplished junior international teams down the years
But he believes the camaraderie, the will to win, and the sheer quality of each and every member of this particular group is what sets them apart.
And that strength in depth was never more to the fore than in the attitude and professionalism of Wells.
Even so, all managers would agree that to win any serious cup competition, luck must be on your side.
That’s not to say teams can fluke their way to triumph, but rather that it takes a combination of ability, determination, hunger, resilience and good fortune to produce that kind of alchemy needed to finish top of the pile.
And for Mcconkey, his team had that in spades.
“I think to win any tournament, all the ducks have to line up, a lot of things have to happen, especially with injuries and the depth of your squad,” he said.
“And one thing about this squad is we definitely had four quality strikers and they all scored.
“Strong substitutions makes a big difference, especially when you are playing back-to-back games, it’s essential because you are going to pick up injuries.
“We were unfortunate to lose Dale Montgomery in the very early stages of the first game but looking around, we saw players who were fresh, hungry, busting to go and ready to make an impact.
“And I think that was the secret. Whenever we made substitutions there was genuinely a benefit from them, and with the depth of our squad when you replaced someone you weren’t weakening the team and therefore you could continue the flow of the game.
“And then there was Paul Wells. He came on and produced an incredible double save from a penalty in the last minutes of the Isle of Man game and we knew that goal could be vital and that gave him a wonderful lift and gave him something to go home with.
“And it was good because it was a difficult conversation I had with him on the morning of the match, saying, ‘Look I’m not going to put you in,’ and that’s what I mean about ducks lining up.”
For Mcconkey one of the sweetest aspects of the win is its “purity”, namely that in an era of obscene wages and grotesque profiteering at elite level, at least at junior level players can still get motivated by nothing more than love of the game and pride in the shirt.
“Essentially, it is done on an amateur basis, there are a lot of hours put in but there is no pay or coaching fees so it is a case of that genuine hunger and desire of wanting to represent your country,” he said. “The boys who on that trip know the togetherness that was in the squad, they backed each other up for every tackle and every ball.
“Players sacrifice wages and their holidays to go on these trips, this should be applauded and recognised.
“I love the purity of this job, nobody plays for money, only for the honour of the shirt.”
After more than a decade in the post, Mcconkey said he was filled with a fusion of pride and relief to finally have some silverware to show for his work.
“When the match is over, the first thing is relief, at last we got over the line,” he said. “I’ve been in the job 12 years and there have been times when we have been close so to actually have something tangible, and for it (the