Republic U-20s clash with Korea

THE Republic of Ireland Under-20 side take on Korea today in the Al Nahyan Stadium, as they kick off their preparations for March’s World Youth Championships in the United Arab Emirates, with manager Brian Kerr insisting that the trip has already proved to be a useful exercise (kick-off 7.15, 3.15 Irish time).

After the Korea match, Ireland face the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday before finishing the tournament against France on Friday, and Kerr has stated, even before a ball has been kicked, that choosing to travel to Abu Dhabi midway through the season was the right decision. "It's given us a chance to look at everything so we can fight our corner for March. The local culture seems to be relaxed it appears that unless to demand help they leave you to your own devices and while the hotel, food and stadiums are fantastic, maybe the emphasis is not on the training grounds. They do some things very well and others not so well.

"Now the next job is the matches and the tournament. Everybody is fine now, there is still a little bit of tiredness and the two lads who came in on Sunday morning Stephen Capper and Kevin Doyle are obviously very tired. It was a long day for them yesterday with three flights and I hope Stephen Capper recovers so he can play. Everybody else is fine so we have a full squad to pick from."

Turning his attention to Korea, Kerr said he believes it may be Ireland's toughest game and is expecting a real battle against a side which is very attack-minded. "Korea are the favourites for this tournament. They've had a huge boost to morale with the World Cup last year and seeing them on the training ground (they trained after Ireland on Sunday morning), they looked like a very big side.

"They play the same style as their World Cup team and it will be a fast, aggressive and attacking type of game so we'll have to be on our toes."

However, Kerr's tactics will also be to attack as he sees no reason in adjusting Ireland's style considering the temperature in the evening is mild.

"We'll play our natural game and try and stretch them a bit. My intention would be to have a go. Having looked at it here, it is not as warm as it is expected to be now. In two months time, it will be an awful lot hotter with temperatures in the high 20s and early 30s and it will still be hot in the evenings. The style of play at the moment will not have much bearing on March. Apart from admitting that he is considering playing Stephen Capper if he recovers from Saturday's trip, Kerr would not elaborate on his actual team which he will finalise this morning.