Colin O’Brien keeping Cork City contingent grounded for home Under-17 Euro qualifiers

O’Brien has named his 20-man Ireland squad ahead of those important fixtures with Celtic’s Rocco Vata, Villarreal’s Caden McLoughlin, and Inter Milan’s Kevin Zefi the only three players selected that are currently not plying their trade with Irish clubs

Republic of Ireland U17 manager Colin O'Brien during a squad announcement at Turner's Cross. Photo by Eóin Noonan/Sportsfile

Ireland begin what they hope will be a successful Uefa Under-17s European Championship qualification campaign next week with three key games taking place in Cork.

The young boys in green take on Andorra next Thursday evening followed by a clash with North Macedonia on Sunday night before meeting Poland on Wednesday afternoon with all their games in this first round of qualification taking place at Turner’s Cross.