Kilbane is relishing the role of elder statesman

AT 30 he is not exactly approaching pensionable age but in the context of a squad with so many youngsters in it, it’s no surprise that Kevin Kilbane was yesterday referred to as the elder statesman by Steve Staunton.

The manager said that the Wigan midfielder, who is two games away from joining Packie Bonner as Ireland’s fifth most capped player of all time on 80 appearances, has a vital role to play as captain of the new-look Irish team which takes on Ecuador in the Giants Stadium tonight.

Said Staunton: “Kevin is a good talker, a good leader and he has got a good way of handling himself with the other players.

It is part of the role of becoming a senior player — you help the young lads along — and he does that naturally.”

For his part, the evergreen Kilbane — ever-present in competitive Irish games for a remarkable eight years — certainly seems to be enjoying the experience.

“It’s good,” he says. “There are a lot of opportunities for the younger players to come in and make their mark and they are showing it in training every day.

“I’m still getting used to some of the faces but we’re not too bad, we have a lot of Joes and Steves, so you just keep saying those names and won’t go far wrong.”

As one of only a couple of established names who have made the trip out here to the States, Kilbane is well-placed to assess the usefulness of the exercise.

“Stan announced the squad and you can’t turn down an opportunity to play, no way, that was all that was in my thinking,” he reflects.

“We went away in 2000 with Mick (McCarthy) and in many respects that was the making of us all and we managed to kick on from there.

“I was young then and inexperienced in that squad but I managed to maintain my place from there and I am sure the lads here are looking to do the same now.”

As to his own future, Kilbane hasn’t made any decision about what he might do at the end of the current European campaign.

“You reflect and look at things after the last game of any series but I am not looking too far ahead just now,” he says. “But if I am still playing and Stan wants to pick me, I will be available — and that’s the way I have always thought about it.

“I’m just happy to have been around the squad for such a long time. We have had some really good times over the years and I just hope we can get one or two more memories in the future.”