McCarthy in U21 squad to face Cyprus

Republic of Ireland U21 head coach Noel King has this evening announced a 19-man squad for the upcoming U21 International friendly against Cyprus which will take place on Wednesday, February 9 at the GSZ Stadium in Larnaca (kick-off: 2.30pm, local time).

Included in the squad is Wigan Athletic midfielder James McCarthy who has just returned to action from an injury, while Derby County’s Conor Doyle is handed his first Republic of Ireland call-up after impressing in ‘The Rams’ Championship season to date.

Also included in the squad are Cypriot based duo, Mikey Collins and Robbie Gibbons who play with local sides Apep FC and Alki Larnaca FC respectively.

“This friendly against Cyprus is a great opportunity to finally get the squad together and I am looking forward to seeing them play as a team after watching them individually over the last number of months,” he said.

“While the draw for the upcoming UEFA Championship takes place on February 3, there is a possibility that we could be playing two qualifiers in March and that is why this friendly in Cyprus could be so important,”

Republic of Ireland squad:

Ritchie Branagan - Bury FC

Ian McLoughlin - Ipswich Town FC

Gavin Gunning - Blackburn Rovers FC

Shane Duffy - Everton FC

Rob Kiernan - Watford FC

Mark Connolly - Bolton Wanderers FC

Richie Towell - Hibernian FC (on loan from Celtic FC)

Johnny Dunleavy - Barnet FC (on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers FC)

Shane O’Connor - Ipswich Town FC

James McCarthy - Wigan Athletic FC

Conor Clifford - Chelsea FC

Conor Hourihane - Ipswich Town FC

Aaron Doran - Inverness CT FC (on loan from Blackburn Rovers FC)

Jamie Devitt - Hull City FC

Conor Doyle - Derby County FC

Robbie Brady - Manchester United FC

James Collins - Shrewsbury Town FC (on loan from Aston Villa FC)

Mikey Collins - APEP FC

Robbie Gibbons - Alki Larnaca FC

Stand-by List:

Lanre Oyebanjo - Histon FC

Damien McCrory - Dagenham & Redbridge FC

Enda Stevens - Shamrock Rovers FC

Daniel Kearns - Dundalk FC

Gearoid Morrissey - Cork City FC

Jeff Hendrick - Derby County FC

Ronan Murray - Ipswich Town FC

Sean Scannell - Crystal Palace FC

Joe Mason - Plymouth Argyle FC

Ronan Murray - Ipswich Town FC

Paddy Madden - Bohemian FC