Switching allegiance not right, claims Kerr

FORMER Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr sympathises with Northern Ireland’s continued loss of young talent to his old side and admits players switching allegiance “doesn’t sit right” with him.

Kerr might seem an unlikely ally for the IFA, not only as a long-time FAI employee but also as current boss of tonight’s Euro 2012 qualifying opponents the Faroe Islands.

But, as someone who spent several years coaching the Republic’s youth sides and who now manages a national side with even thinner resources than Northern Ireland, he is uneasy with incidents like James McClean’s recent switch.

New Sunderland signing McClean played youth football and U21s for Northern Ireland only to win a first senior call-up for tonight’s match and promptly reject it.

McClean, like half a dozen others before him, has taken advantage of a FIFA edict that allows players born in Northern Ireland to play for the Republic — a ruling with its origins in the Good Friday peace agreement.

“It’s not a good situation. It’s a unique situation and a strange one,” he said.

“I hope it will change, because it’s not good for a lot of reasons. It doesn’t seem right and it doesn’t sit right with me.

“I sympathise with the IFA because when you invest so much time, energy, money and coaching in players, to see them leave at 21 and 22 must be quite disheartening.

“My sympathy comes from a values (standpoint). Northern Ireland have a limited number of players to pick from and they are losing some to a country who, I think, has plenty of players to pick from.

“We (the Faroes) have 47,000 people to pick from scattered around 18 islands and I understand how hard it is to get together a group of players with the quality required to compete against the best teams.”

Kerr’s feelings do not only go out to the IFA, though. He is also concerned young players who decide to commit to the Republic could be signing up for a limited or even non-existent international career.

The likes of Dan Devine, Paul George, Daniel Kearns and Adam Barton are among those who have made the switch and may struggle to break into Giovanni Trapattoni’s senior squad.

“It’s okay picking players at 17, 19, 21 but it’s harder to get into the senior team unless you have special ability,” he said.

“How many of these players are going to play regularly for the Republic? It will be an interesting statistic down the line.

“It will be interesting to look back and ask how many actually played regularly.

“I don’t see too many of them in the squad to play Croatia tomorrow.”

Meanwhile Northern Ireland boss Nigel Worthington accepts his side need to beat the Faroe Islands to stay in the hunt for a place at Euro 2012 but has warned fans not to expect a walkover.

Worthington knows how important victory could be — it would leave his side two points behind second-placed Slovenia with a game in hand — but does not expect an easy game.

“We need to win and to keep on the heels of the opposition. We still have a game in hand, that’s what we are looking at and that will come through in the team,” he said.

“But the Faroes will be well organised and (will get) behind the ball. It won’t be easy.

“Patience, discipline and shape are important. You’ve got 90, 95 minutes to win the game but it has to be a controlled, disciplined performance. I think the term ‘whipping boys’ is disrespectful.

“Until the final whistle goes and you have the win in the bag then nothing is guaranteed.’’

Meanwhile FA chairman David Bernstein admits not being able to guarantee the safety of players after three days of rioting in London was a factor in England’s friendly against Holland at Wembley tonight being called off.

The decision was taken after consultations between the FA, the Metropolitan Police, the Government and Brent Council following the violence in the capital during the past three days.

Concerns about having insufficient police resources because of the unrest to ensure the security of players, officials and supporters played a part in the decision to postpone the clash.

Bernstein said: “Due to the sporadic and widespread nature of the unrest, there are significant concerns in relation to the available emergency service resources to safely police this fixture.

“The authorities have advised us that, under the terms of our Safety Certificate, we are unable to host the fixture or guarantee the safety of visiting supporters or the teams.’’