Stan sends for four Black Cats

IT’S the greening of Sunderland in reverse, with Steve Staunton naming four of the Championship-winners in his Irish squad for the friendly games in the USA later this month.

Daryl Murphy, Anthony Stokes, Liam Miller and Stephen Elliot are included in a 23-man squad which, with many senior players absent, features nine uncapped players.

There is still no place for in-form striker David Connolly but Liam Miller’s inclusion may go some way to softening Roy Keane’s recent criticism of Staunton’s selections. Yet, despite the club’s substantial representation in the new squad, contact between the two managers appears to be minimal.