A chance to stake a claim

FOR a moment there yesterday, it seemed that not only had Richard Dunne made a miraculous recovery from injury but the big defender had been reborn as a tricky winger.

“Dunne? Did I say Dunne? I meant Duff,” said Giovanni Trapattoni, after he’d got his soundalike Irish surnames mixed up when revealing his starting line-up for tonight’s friendly game against Norway.

As it is, the team is almost wildly experimental at least by the Italian’s conservative standards, injuries forcing him into a novel shuffle of personnel although — wouldn’t you just know it? — he has still managed to resist the temptation to hand out any brand-new caps at kick-off.

That means the likes of Everton’s Seamus Coleman and the Stoke City duo of Jon Walters and Marc Wilson will probably have to wait until the second half before making their debut appearances for Ireland.

But even though the names of those starting are familiar enough, the line-up this evening will still differ significantly from those we’ve grown accustomed to seeing in competitive games.

Fulham’s Stephen Kelly takes up John O’Shea’s usual position at right-back, with the Manchester United man moving into the centre where his experience will be invaluable alongside Ipswich Town’s Darren O’Dea.

And with Kevin Kilbane for once not ever-present, there’s another chance for Greg Cunningham to impress at left-back as the 19-year-old Galwegian earns his third cap for his country.

Liam Lawrence and the returning Damien Duff should provide assurance and quality in equal measures on the flanks but in the middle there’s a first opportunity at international level for Keith Fahey to impress in a central role beside the dependable Glenn Whelan, although it will be interesting to see if the Birmingham City man’s natural play-making and goal-getting instincts are inhibited by Trapattoni’s traditional preference for a holding duo in the centre of the park.

And with Robbie Keane out injured, the erstwhile boys from Cork City via county Reading — Kevin Doyle and Shane Long — are reunited up front.

Much of the focus this evening will inevitably be on the new and newer boys who are expected to make their entrance at some point, with the likes of Coleman, Waters and Keith Treacy in particular sure to fully appreciate the point of Trapattoni’s rallying cry when he says: “An opportunity like this might only come once or twice in life and this is the moment to take it.”

The manager’s reluctance to exploit his extensive injury list by throwing in a handful of neophytes from the off is in keeping with his long-held belief about the value of judiciously mixing youth and experience.

“I cannot put three or four young players in together, I need to mix them with the senior players,” he says. “But Seamus Coleman plays good football and is not frightened of the ball. Some players when they have the ball are afraid, but he is not. He has a lot of character. The same with Greg (Cunningham). He is an intelligent player.’’

But tonight is also important for one old boy in particular. Shay Given will set an Irish record of 109 caps when he leads the team out as captain this evening, edging ahead of his old comrade Kevin Kilbane.

But, given the goalkeeper’s ongoing woes at Manchester City, he freely admits that the chance simply to play a game of football probably means more to him than the honour of setting a new appearance record.

“I haven’t come for this game just to get another cap,’’ Given said. “For me, it’s about playing football — and I haven’t played too many games this season. So when called upon I was delighted to, hopefully, get another game under my belt.’’

The Donegal man can’t hide his frustration at being consigned to the sidelines for so long at club level, a state of limbo which he admits has dulled his match sharpness.

“I think I’ve already said how I’m coping — not very well to be honest,” he says. “But I can’t change the situation at the minute. I’ve just got to keep my head down and see what happens over the next couple of months.

“It’s very difficult. You work hard in training but obviously it’s difficult to try and reenact a match situation. I wish I was playing more because I would feel sharper but this is the situation I’m in and I can’t really change that. I played with Man City in Europe a couple of weeks ago and now I have this game tonight, so I’m getting the odd game. But it’s not ideal, you want to play every week. So to sit here and say I feel as sharp as I did when I was playing all the time — I would be lying. I don’t feel as sharp as I possibly could be but if I get back in the team or get a run of games, I’m sure I’ll be back up to speed.”

It might be hard for the wider world to get too worked up about a friendly against Norway in mid-November but, for those with no caps as well as for one who has more than 100, tonight at the Aviva Stadium will not be without significance.