Mick McCarthy factfile

The life and times of Mick McCarthy.

1959: Born Barnsley, February 7.

1977: Made league debut for Barnsley and played in every game of their then Division Four campaign, scoring one goal.

1979: Was again an ever-present in the league, scoring two goals as Barnsley earned promotion to Division Three.

1981: Helped Barnsley win promotion to Division Two.

1983: Moved to Manchester City for £200,000 after 272 appearances and seven league goals for the Tykes. At the time it was the biggest transfer fee Barnsley had received.

1984: Made Republic of Ireland debut in 0-0 Lansdowne Road draw with Poland in May.

1985: Helped City win promotion to Division One.

1987: City were relegated to Division Two and in May McCarthy joined Celtic after 140 league appearances and two goals for the Blues.

1987: Made Celtic debut against Hibernian on October 3 and helped the Hoops to the double, collecting Scottish League and Cup winners’ medals.

1989: Picked up second-successive Scottish Cup winners’ medal after 1-0 final win over Rangers.

1989: Joined French club Lyon.

1990: In March, returns to England and makes Millwall debut at Luton.

Completed his transfer to the London club – who finished bottom of Division One and were relegated – for £500,000 in May. Played in all Ireland’s matches in final stages of World Cup as the Republic reached the quarter-finals before bowing out to hosts Italy.

1991: Succeeded Bruce Rioch as Millwall player-manager in March and made last appearance for the club against Southend in final match of season. Played in 35 league games, scoring two goals, for the Lions.

1992: In June, won last of 57 Republic caps in 2-0 victory over Portugal in Boston.

1994: Steered Millwall to third place in Division One but missed out on promotion to the Premiership when beaten 2-0 on aggregate by Derby in play-off semi-final.

1995: Engineered FA Cup victories over Premiership sides Arsenal and Chelsea before bowing out to QPR. Also beat Nottingham Forest to reach fifth round of Coca-Cola Cup before losing to Swindon. Revival in league form during second half of season boosted Millwall’s Division One finishing position to 12th.

1996: Took Millwall to top of Division One before slump in form saw them drop into mid-table. Appointed Jack Charlton’s successor as Republic of Ireland manager on February 5.

1997: November – Guides side to brink of qualifying for World Cup finals in France 98, but Republic are beaten 3-2 by Belgium in play-off.

December 2 – Handed new contract to manage Republic until the European Championship finals in Belgium and Holland in 2000.

2000: Despite missing out on participation in Euro 2000. McCarthy’s men appear to take a big step towards World Cup qualification when they take a 2-0 lead in Amsterdam, but Holland hit back to earn a draw.

2001: Ireland qualify for World Cup with Portugal, at the expense of Holland.

2002: May – Ireland skipper Roy Keane sent home from Far East before World Cup starts, following blazing row with McCarthy after the Manchester United midfielder’s criticism of Ireland’s facilities.

June 16 – After qualifying from Group E with Germany, Ireland’s hopes of reaching the quarter-finals end in a penalty shoot-out with Spain.

June 17 – Agrees to stay on as manager of the Republic for a further two years, meaning he will remain in charge for the forthcoming Euro 2004 qualifying campaign.

October – Linked with the manager’s job at Sunderland but Howard Wilkinson ultimately fills the vacancy.

November 5 – Leaves his post as Republic of Ireland manager.

2003: March 11 – Again linked with Sunderland position after Wilkinson and assistant Steve Cotterill sacked.

March 12 – Appointed Sunderland manager.