Cometh the boy

THEY’VE been mad about the boy for a long time now and, in Scotland, some have even been mad at the boy, but at Arsenal’s cold and wet training ground, James McCarthy is attracting nothing but warm welcomes as he finally moves amongst us as a senior member of the Republic of Ireland squad.

It seems to have been a long time coming but then McCarthy was scoring for Hamilton when he’d barely turned 16 so, at just 19, he personifies the paradox of a rookie with something of the veteran about him.

A boy amongst men, perhaps, but already the Wigan tyro is well-used to the sometimes harsh realities of the pro game, as evidenced by Liam Ridgewell’s tackle on him on Saturday, a wild lunge which, by way of collateral and frankly comical damage, also took out the linesman.

“It was a bit reckless,” McCarthy nods. “I was hardly even on the park and he came flying through me. These things happen in football, you just get on with it. And the linesman? The corner flag came off and cut him in the head.”

McCarthy chuckles but he’s hoping the incident won’t cost him a shot at his senior debut against Brazil tomorrow night. He’d gone into the game against Birmingham already nursing an ankle strain and Ridgewell managed to kick him “on the same spot”.

Consequently, he sat out Irish training at London Colney yesterday but is hoping for a more productive day today.

The tug of war between Ireland and Scotland for McCarthy’s allegiance was, he insists, settled a long time ago in his own head but that didn’t stop a final fling by the Scots generating more column inches this season.

“It’s all paper talk,” he says. “I don’t know where the story came from. Scotland said I wasn’t good enough at first and Ireland came in for me and have been absolutely brilliant. It’s a bit frustrating when it keeps coming back. I don’t know where it’s coming from and I don’t know who’s saying it. I just have to block it out and just get on with my own game. To get this call-up is an unbelievable achievement for my family and myself.”

He qualifies for Ireland through his maternal grandfather from Donegal and first wore the green at U17 level, so a senior appointment was always on the cards as long as he continued to work hard and progress. But then, for the very same reasons, so too was the prospect of the Scots trying to claim him back. Around the SPL grounds he had to put up with a lot of abuse for his decision and, since moving to Wigan, has had new Scotland boss Craig Levein and ex-Celtic man Gary Caldwell trying to employ the carrot rather than the stick in a bid to win him around.

But McCarthy is not for turning.

Which is potentially great news for Ireland, as the gifted midfielder has gradually emerged as one of the hottest young prospects in the Premier League since joining Wigan last summer.

“It was a big move for me to move away from the family,” he concedes. “It was a bit hard at first, because it’s a move to the English Premier League, one of the best leagues in the world. At first it was a bit hard, I got injured, I wasn’t playing and my fitness was going. But I’ve got a wee run in the team now and I’m absolutely delighted.”

Giovanni Trapattoni has already likened McCarthy to Stephen Ireland and hinted that his qualities might even permit the manager to play him in the hole behind the striker. McCarthy himself says he favours central midfield but is quick to remind you that he has also played in the ‘number 10’ role with Ireland’s U19s and U21s.

But it’s when he’s asked about his own football heroes and role models growing up, that you get an even sharper sense of what he might yet bring to the Irish scene. “Roy Keane, a terrific pro, Steven Gerrard is another one,” he says. “I’m a midfielder who likes to get from box to box.”

Fingers crossed, we get a chance to see what all the fuss is about in the Emirates tomorrow night.