Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
It’s always been a dream to play for Republic of Ireland admits Sykes
Kenny denies FAI poached Oxford star Mark from IFA
MARK SYKES has said it was always his ‘dream’ to play for the Republic of Ireland after swapping Northern Ireland for Stephen Kenny’s men at the weekend. The Oxford United midfielder informed Ian Baraclough of his shock decision by telephone and his ‘transfer’ is expected to be formalised inside the next six months. “It was a really difficult decision,” Sykes (left) said. “The last few weeks have given me time to think about things and I have to do what my heart says. The Republic are the team I have always dreamed of playing for and I have to try my best to achieve that.
“I am proud to have been involved with the Northern Ireland team and have always given it my all but I had to make a choice and it had to be now.”
Sykes, who joined Oxford from Glenavon 20 months ago, played 11 times for the U21s and was in Michael O’neill’s senior squad three times, although never capped.
The 23-year-old added: “I genuinely wish Northern Ireland all the best.”
STEPHEN KENNY has moved to shoot down the perception he head-hunted Mark Sykes who switched allegiance from Northern Ireland at the weekend.
The Oxford United midfielder’s decision stung Kenny’s northern counterpart Ian Baraclough who is “massively disappointed” by the manner of the player’s exit.
But while the Republic boss believes he has a “good player” on his hands, he insists no furtive tactics were deployed to lure Sykes away from the Irish FA.
Kenny also declared his “respect” for Baraclough whose first squad announcement as national boss was overshadowed by the inevitable fallout.
“I don’t want to say too much about it, only that Mark has expressed an interest in playing for us and he obviously feels an identity towards Ireland,” he said. “He is a fluent Irish speaker and he obviously had a good season with Oxford. It’s not an easy thing to make that decision. I respect that but it’s not something that we aggressively proactively tried to get him to do. Far from it, that’s far from the truth.
“I have respect for Ian Baraclough and Northern Ireland so we’ll take it slowly.”
Kenny said the paperwork to formalise Sykes, who played 11 times for Northern Ireland’s U21s, as a Republic player could take up to six months.
That means the 23-year-old, who joined Oxford from Glenavon 18 months ago, might not feature until the March international window at the earliest. “It’s still in its infancy,” said Kenny. “He’s a good young player and we’ll see where it goes but there’s been no paperwork addressed.
“It can take a long time for these things
to happen so he won’t be involved in the immediate squad or the next few games.”
Sykes’ sudden exit is a bitter pill for Baraclough who hoped to name the talented playmaker in his squad for next month’s games against Romania and Norway.
The Englishman, who succeeded Michael O’neill in June, spoke with Kenny over the weekend and one suspects it was a strained conversation.
The former Sligo Rovers boss said: “I’ve spoken with Stephen. Perhaps I would have expected the call from him but I made that call and that will remain private.
“It was disappointing to find out that Mark wants to be considered by the Republic. We’ve got to respect his wishes but we’re massively disappointed.
“The player rang me and respect to him for picking up the phone but it was disappointing to hear from him. There were many phone calls over the weekend to try and encourage him to think more about his decision but we think his mind’s made up. We have to move on. I want players who want to play for Northern Ireland and are fully committed 100 per cent.”
Sykes (right) had been named in three Northern Ireland squads under former boss O’neill but didn’t win a senior cap, leaving the door open for him to switch allegiance.
Baraclough said: “Those are the rules as it stands. We don’t particularly agree with them but, unless it changes, it’s something we have to deal with.
“We gave Mark a pathway and an opportunity to perform within our system but he has made his decision and we move on from it.”