EC Qualifying Round
22.09.2014 at 15:00 - Athlone Stadium
HE Republic of Ireland U17 side begin their UEFA Championships qualifying campaign with a home game against Gibraltar at Athlone Town’s Lisseywoollen ground tomorrow night (7.30pm).
Tom Mohan’s side are in a four-team group with Scotland and Faroe Islands meeting in the other Group 1 fixture at Eamon Deacy Park, Galway, in the afternoon (3.00pm).
The top two from each group progress to the elite qualifying round alongside the five third-placed teams with the best record against the top pair in their groups. The tournament finals take place in Bulgaria next May with 16 sides – 53 nations are vying for 15 slots alongside the hosts.
Ireland beat Gibraltar 4-1 when the sides met at the same stage last season in what was the Mediterranean state’s first ever competitive fixture as a UEFA nation.
“We’re into our fifth day of preparation and all has gone well. The lads have trained very well,” said Mohan.
“We have our game-plan together for Gibraltar. That’s all we can focus on – tomorrow’s challenge – and lads chomping at the bit looking forward to playing.
“They’ve a few players still eligible from last season and they were decent enough last season. They were well organised and had pace in attack. We dominated for long periods last year and could have scored more than four but that’s in the past and we have to be ready for this game.
“In football any group can throw up a surprise and you don’t want to be one of those teams caught out. There’s no room for complacency. We’ll treat them with the respect they deserve. We’ve got to concentrate on our own jobs.”
REPUBLIC OF IRELAND:
Caoimhin Kelleher (Ringmahon Rangers)
Ross Treacy (St Kevin’s Boys)
Corey O’Keefe (Birmingham City)
Shane Hanney (Shamrock Rovers)
Robbie McCourt (West Bromwich Albion)
JJ Lunney (Preston North End)
Conor Masterson (Liverpool)
Jake Doyle Hayes (Aston Villa)
Brandon Payne (Celtic)
Conor Levingston (Wolves)
Darragh Leahy (St Kevin’s Boys)
Joshua Barrett (Reading)
Steven Kinsella (Everton)
Zachary Elbouzedi (West Bromwich Albion)
Gerry McDonagh (Nottingham Forest)
Avis Ganiyu (Sunderland)
Trevor Clarke (Middlesbrough)
Conor Davis (Reading)
FIXTURES
UEFA U17 Championships Qualifying Round Group 1
Monday, September 22
Republic of Ireland v Gibraltar, Athlone Town Stadium (7.30pm);
Scotland v Faroe Islands, Eamon Deacy Park, Galway (3.00pm)
Wednesday, September 24
Faroe Islands v Republic of Ireland, Eamon Deacy Park, Galway (7.30pm);
Scotland v Gibraltar, City Calling Stadium, Longford (3.00pm)
Saturday, September 27
Republic of Ireland v Scotland, City Calling Stadium, Longford (7.30pm);
Gibraltar v Faroe Islands, Athlone Town Stadium (7.30pm).
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