Duff: a man for all season

JUST call him Duracell Duffer.

Damien Duff has appeared in no less than 52 club games this season, more than any other player in an Irish side which takes on Paraguay at the RDS tonight.

The Ballyboden man’s remarkable season may have ended in disappointment with Fulham’s defeat in the Europa League final but that Duff managed to see the bulk of the action in that game was itself no small achievement considering he was nursing a calf injury in the days leading up to kick-off.

And now, when he would be entitled to be catching up on the sleep he loves so much, the Irish winger will make a long season even longer by taking his place on the left side of midfield to earn his 82nd cap in Ballsbridge tonight.

But Giovanni Trapattoni has no qualms about the 31-year-old’s ability to keep going, just as he has no doubts about the player’s continuing importance to the Irish cause.

“Duff was one of the best players on the pitch in the final of the Europa League,” says the manager. “He was a little tired, that’s why they changed him. But I said to Marco yesterday, he didn’t seem to be underperforming or tired or showing any signs of injury in training since he joined us on Sunday.

“This year we monitored him a lot. We always pray to God that there is no injury to Duff because he is vital for us, like Robbie Keane, Kevin Doyle and three or four other players. He will start tonight but we will also probably give him a little rest. We can only hope that he stays in the condition he is in now and keeps the same mentality.”

And while there are no new caps in Trapattoni’s starting 11, Duff probably won’t be the only one making way at some point this evening, with the manager suggesting that, if the circumstances of the game permit, the likes of Keith Fahey, Paul Green, Cillian Sheridan and Greg Cunningham will all get a run-out against the World Cup qualifiers from South America.

While Duff will have mainly fond memories of the season just ending, Sean St Ledger admits to having decidedly mixed feelings about a campaign during which a loan move to Middlesbrough failed to be made permanent after he reportedly fell out with manager Gordon Strachan, following which Preston then turned down three bids to bring him to Celtic Park.

“There has been a lot of ups and downs, probably more downs than ups being honest,” says the defender who starts tonight.

“It has been a hard year, off the pitch more so I’d say. It’s been a learning curve at the same time, it’s been an experience which will hopefully make me a better player.

“My form was pretty poor by my standards. I set myself quite high standards and this season I probably didn’t match them. I’ll try and move on. Sometimes you don’t play well and you just don’t know the reasons why. Maybe there was a lot of stuff going on off the pitch and that was the reason. I’m just looking forward to coming back next season fit and I’ll kick on.”

The Preston man turns up for end of season international duty despite a pressing need for surgery.

“The manager (Darren Ferguson) wanted me to have the operation straight away but obviously playing for your country is the most important thing. It’s a major honour.

“I need two operations, on June 1 and June 2, on a hernia and on a knee injury I’ve had most of the season.”

But even it there’s a touch of the walking wounded about the centre-half, he knows that weeks like this can easily herald a changing of the guard at international level.

“I worked pretty hard to get in the position I’m in and I don’t want to give my spot away that easily,” he says.

“I want to try and play as many games and get as many caps as I can. I think friendly games like these are hugely important. People might think ‘oh they’re only friendlies’ but they’re important for me to play well in and keep my place and for the new boys to try to impress the manager and his staff.”

REPUBLIC OF IRELAND: Keiren Westwood, Stephen Kelly, Paul McShane, Sean St Ledger, John O’Shea, Liam Lawrence, Keith Andrews, Glenn Whelan, Damien Duff, Robbie Keane, Kevin Doyle.

Referee: Sascha Kever (Switzerland).