Ireland U16s look to emulate Troy Parrott and Adam Idah with Victory Shield success

Troy Parrott, Nathan Collins, Adam Idah and Jason Knight have all won the competition with Ireland

Republic of Ireland's Troy Parrott celebrates his penalty in the 2017 Victory Shield clash with Northern Ireland. Picture: INPHO/Presseye/William Cherry

The Republic of Ireland's U16 players will look to emulate the likes of Troy Parrott, Nathan Collins, Adam Idah and Jason Knight when head to Belfast to take part in the Victory Shield starting on Sunday.

Head coach Paul Osam will head North with fond memories of the last time the prestigious tournament was held there.

Osam won his second of two Shields in the city in 2017 – a successful defence of the title he claimed a year previously in Scotland.

The 2017 side included Parrott who put the Boys in Green on their way to glory with the solitary goal in a 1-0 win over Wales while Collins, Idah and Knight were all part of the class of 2016 that won the tournament on Ireland’s first appearance.

Osam has today announced a 20 player-squad for the latest edition of the competition as he looks to claim a third title for the Boys in Green.

They take on joint holders Scotland (who shared the title with Wales in 2019) on Sunday, before facing Wales on Tuesday. They end their series of games with a derby against Northern Ireland on Friday week.

Speaking about the competition, Osam said it is the perfect tournament to ready U16 players for competitive football at U17 level:

“When you come up against Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland you can’t call this a friendly tournament, they’re competitive games with an added edge of playing against your neighbours.

“We’ve had two wins in four appearances of this competition, which is a good return and with this group of players we’ll be pushing for another.

“It’s the perfect competition to ready these players for UEFA tournament football next season. You look at the likes of Troy, Nathan, Adam and Jason who have won it and gone on to senior football and this tournament would have contributed to their development. It’s a similar format to the qualifying stages at UEFA competitons where it’s three games in quick succession. It’s one of the highlights of the season for me and a real addition to players’ education.”

Republic of Ireland Men’s U16 squad

Goalkeepers: Jason Healy (Waterford), Ryan Maher (Bohemians).

Defenders: Sean Hayden (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Sean Mackey (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Corey O’Sullivan (Shamrock Rovers), Adam Queally (Waterford FC) Eoin Sheeran (Athlone Town), Patryk Sweicka (Cork City).

Midfielders: Anthony Dodd (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Leo Healy (Klub Kildare), Luke Kehir (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Taylor Mooney (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Adam O’Halloran (Galway United), Naz Raji (Shamrock Rovers), Freddie Turley (Shamrock Rovers).

Forwards: Aidan Cannon (Celtic), Trent Kone Doherty (Derry City), Brian Moore (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Cian Mulvilhill (Cork City), Nickson Okosun (Bohemians).

Fixtures:

Sunday: vs Scotland U16, H&W Welders FC, 3pm.

Tuesday, October 19: vs Wales U16, Seaview, 3pm.

Friday, October 22: vs Northern Ireland U16, H&W Welders, 1.30pm.