Following the leader

THE Republic of Ireland squad convene in Dublin tomorrow ahead of Wednesday’s game against Poland.

If truth be told, end of year friendlies rarely set the world of fire but there’s a feeling abroad that Giovanni Trapattoni’s first press conference since the announcement of his squad could be a lively enough affair.

Certainly, there’s been something of a mini-media storm brewing in recent days over the manager’s selection policy, with Andy Reid’s omission inevitably hogging the increasingly shrill headlines and, for varying reasons, the absence from the squad of Joey O’Brien, Lee Carsley, and James McCarthy not too far behind.