Robbie ready to play part for Ireland after injury frustration

ROBBIE KEANE is back on the goal trail but, even as he continues his recovery from injury, he admits that he will be short of 100% match fitness when Ireland play Macedonia in the European Championship qualifier in Dublin on Saturday week.

Having played 25 minutes as a sub for West Ham at Stoke City on Sunday, Keane was back in action again on Tuesday night, scoring for West Ham reserves in a 4-2 win against Newcastle United. The Irish captain crowned an hour-long appearance with a goal in the 47th minute, lashing home from close-range have made himself a yard of space in a crowded box. Keane is ineligible for the London derby against his parent club Spurs on Sunday, following which he will be in line for selection in the internationals games against Macedonia on March 26 and Uruguay on the 29.

However, at his squad announcement earlier this week, Giovanni Trapattoni made clear that the extent of the captain’s involvement in either or both of those games will be contingent on an evaluation of his fitness when he joins up with the Irish squad for their first training session in Malahide on Tuesday. Keane had missed four games for his new club since succumbing to a thigh injury and is pleased to be back in the thick of things.

“It has obviously been frustrating. You come to a new club and you want to play as soon as possible and then you get injured. It is nice to be back and to be able to get another 60 minutes. I am looking forward now to pushing on.

“It is always nice to score too, whether it’s a reserve game or first team game. It’s always important as a striker to score goals. That said, the most important thing for me wasn’t about scoring goals, it was about playing getting as minutes as I could.

“My next games will be for Ireland. The more games I have now before I come back to play in the Manchester United match in a few weeks’ time, the better it will be for everyone and certainly for me. But I will miss out on Saturday so I need to get my match fitness up. Hopefully I will be involved for Ireland and whatever minutes I play will help me to come back to 100% fitness.”

Meanwhile, Motherwell goalkeeper Darren Randolph has expressed delight at his call-up to the Irish squad.

“It’s a big honour to me to be back in the set-up and it’s recognition for all the hard work I’ve done over the last while,” said the Wicklow-born ‘keeper who has broken the club record for clean sheets at Motherwell this season.

“I played for the B team in 2006 and I was away in San Marino for that qualifier under Steve Staunton. There wasn’t any involvement after that so this call-up is a long time coming.”