Given the politically sensitive nature of the situation Northern Ireland find themselves in, there is no practical solution. At club football, if a player doesn’t want to represent that shirt, he’s better off out of it.
Unfortunately for Worthington and the IFA, they don’t have a wealth of talent waiting to don the Green and White shirt. With a population of under 2m, he has a small catchment to start with.
And he’s already cast that net out wide – luring in Derby-born Lee Camp, Burnley-born Oliver Norwood, Sheffield-born Jonny Gorman and Harlow-born (whoop whoop) Adam Thompson.
Worthington is happy to reel in anyone he can that is good enough, and eligible, to play for NI. But this is different to what has happened to NI.
These lads have decided they’re not going to make it with their country of birth – England – and more importantly, England don’t want them. One they might have wanted to keep, Lee Camp, hadn’t been on their radar since his U21 days until his intentions to play with NI were public.
The case of Ferguson is of particular interest as he would be regarded as a future starlet after his debut season in the Premier League with Newcastle and Worthington doesn’t have two many top flight players at his disposal. In this current squad, he has only three – Steve Davis, Nial McGinn and Gareth McAuley who has just moved to WBA.
The issues here are money and development. As long as Northern Irish nationals (and other UK nationals) can access an Irish passport and have Irish nationality, the switching of allegiance will happen.
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Should the FAI contribute to development in NI? No.
Why? Because it sounds like a partnership and gives the FAI license to ‘purchase’ whoever they want.
What we need is individual tribunals from FIFA for EVERY single case with an individual settlement for EVERY player.
The other solution?
Convince the players, families and communities that they can, and should be, part of Northern Ireland. Get rid of the national anthem, lose the Union flags and build a strong identity that includes all.
That may be hard but it may be the only solution while FIFA drags it's heels.
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