Ireland blow as Hendrick ruled out of opening Euro qualifier

With the start of the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign less than a week away, the weekend’s championship action brought some unwelcome news for Republic of Ireland manager Martin O’Neill as Jeff Hendrick suffered a dislocated shoulder in Derby’s 1-1 draw with Mick McCarthy’s Ipswich.

The injury has obviously ruled Hendrick out of the friendly against Oman on Wednesday and Sunday’s qualifier against Georgia and also represents a significant early-season blow to Derby’s promotion prospects.

There was an extensive delay after Hendrick suffered his injury and while Derby boss Steve McClaren felt that was a factor in a stop-start display from his side, he had already detected signs of complacency before the incident.