Seven players have been omitted from the provisional squad.

As Richard Keogh outlines every bump along his trek to the Euros, he’s well within his rights to pause and describe it as a “good story”.

Republic of Ireland international midfielder Harry Arter has insisted that missing the European Championships due to injury is “not the end of the world.”

In Uefa-speak, today is MD-1, that is to say, eve of match but also, in this case, eve of tournament.

20 sportspeople, reporters and fans look forward to Euro 2016 and reveal their own predictions for Europe's festival of soccer.

After that memorable win over Germany last October, a piece on an Irish sports website analysed James McCarthy’s performance amid suggestions it was one of the great individual displays in an Ireland jersey.

If Cyrus Christie gets told his biggest obstacle in life is dislodging the best right-back in the Premier League to further his international career, then he’d have every reason to chuckle.

Martin O’Neill has apologised for his use of the pejorative word “queer” during an onstage interview in Cork last week, admitting the remark — intended as a joke — was “crass” and “inappropriate”, and said that he accepts that people were fully entitled to criticise him for it.

It was a day of corrections, clarifications, apologies but also no little defiance from Martin O’Neill, after Ireland training had resumed at Abbotstown yesterday.

We are the Boys in Green, the best you’ve ever seen

Despite the fears of some journalists, the match went off with the minimum of problems with facilities, writes Liam Mackey.

Damien Duff wants Aiden McGeady to shrug off a disappointing season at club level and light up the European Championships.

Roy Keane opens up on some big issues...

Keiren Westwood’s body language said it all. With 70 minutes played at Turner’s Cross on Tuesday, and David Forde given the nod to replace Shay Given in goal, it looked like the Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper’s chances of booking passage to France had come and gone without him even donning the gloves.

"I wasn't playing every week for Sheffield Wednesday... I couldn't do anything about being injured."

Martin O'Neill has his fingers crossed over key men Robbie Keane and James McCarthy.

Robbie Keane has been included in Ireland’s squad of 23 for the European Championship finals despite a calf injury having ruled him out of the match against Belarus at Turner’s Cross.

Perhaps it was the absence of their beloved Zlatan and the lack of goals which combined to provoke the Malmo crowd into booing the Swedish side on Monday night but Celtic defender Mikael Lustig is certain the fans and team will unite for the Euros.

With the sun blazing down on a splendid looking Turner’s Cross for yesterday evening’s international between the Republic of Ireland and Belarus, one couldn’t help but feel not only pride in being Irish, but pride in being from Cork.

Republic of Ireland 1 Belarus 2: It might have been 2-1 to Belarus on the scoreboard at full time but, of course, the really big result of the night still hung in the balance after the final whistle had blown at Turner’s Cross, as the 11th hour approached and, with it, the revelation of the Irish squad which will represent the country at the European Championship finals in France.

True to form with the Ireland manager, there were a few surprises.

Robbie Keane has been included in Ireland’s Euro 2016 squad that will travel to France.

However players were happy to come through their final test without any additional injury concerns.

Not a great day out in Cork for Martin O'Neill's men.

Losing for the first time since the loss to Poland last October won’t have pleased Martin O’Neill.

You have to love ‘em.

Martin O’Neill has named a side featuring wholesale changes to face Belarus in Turner’s Cross.

Arter has left the Ireland camp and his chances of making Euro 2016 may be over as a result.

First there was the disconcerting sight of Robbie Keane stepping gingerly down from the team bus before entering Turner’s Cross, not to take his place on the pitch, but in the stands.

Martin O’Neill wouldn’t say whether David Meyler will start against Belarus tonight, but the Hull City midfielder will have longer to impress than the last time he effectively auditioned for a current member of the Ireland management team at Turner’s Cross.

He's focused on making Ireland’s 23-man Euro 2016 roster, after belatedly joining up with the squad.

James McClean is determined to make the most of his opportunity to go to a second major finals tournament with the Republic of Ireland.

All eyes will be on James McCarthy when, if all goes according to plan, the Everton midfielder joins the rest of the Irish squad for training at Turner’s Cross today.

It looks like it will be all-change upfront for Ireland in Turner’s Cross tomorrow night, with Shane Long — who opened the scoring against the Netherlands on Friday but also opened a pre-existing cut on his knee — set to be rested and wrapped in cotton-wool so nothing more serious befalls him between now and June 13.

Friday night marked four years almost to the day since Ireland’s last adieu to their Dublin faithful ahead of a European Championship bid and there were moments aplenty to make you wonder at how much has changed in that snapshot of time.

For the newest generation of Irish football fans, Euro ‘88 belongs to the remote past. France 2016 will be their first time, and just maybe, let’s hope, the best of times too.