https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSS61Deu8t8
Footage of McGeady here in an Ireland jersey as a kid and says he wanted to play for Ireland as a kid too. His father speaks very well from about 3 mins on too about it.
Mick McCarthy not mentioned ? :O
Forget about the performance or entertainment. It's only the result that matters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSS61Deu8t8
Footage of McGeady here in an Ireland jersey as a kid and says he wanted to play for Ireland as a kid too. His father speaks very well from about 3 mins on too about it.
https://www.the42.ie/chiedozie-ogben...34042-May2018/
By stating his intentions from the outset, Ogbene hopes that declaring his preferred allegiance will be met with understanding. With a genuine attachment to two nations, he insists it would be an honour to represent either of them. However, when he left in late 2005, Ogbene carried his dreams of playing football for Nigeria with him.
He explains: “My family comes from Nigeria, it’s in our blood and it’s where I spent the early part of my life. A lot of people tell me that I grew up in Ireland and that’s important, which it really is. I know that too and I’m not burning any bridges.
“I have to be honest too, because I may never be good enough to play with Nigeria or Ireland anyway — I still have to prove myself. We’ll see what happens if any opportunity comes, but I’m just being up front now in saying that playing for Nigeria is what I’d prefer. I love Ireland and my nationality is Irish, but playing for Nigeria is my dream.”
It’s one of those where I think if you asked him now, he’d say he’d prefer to play for Ireland. The connection that he’s created with the fans is so special and the journey has been so special that it’s gone better than he could have imagined. I think that’s often the way.
Same with Michael Obafemi. Would have been the same with Declan Rice if we’d kept him. The love you receive if you become a regular in a squad means there’s rarely regrets. Like I doubt James McCarthy or McGeady would have any regrets at this stage…
The only dudes who I think get regrets are the people who change and then don’t make the grade, like maybe a Aaron McEneff or Michael Duffy
And on McEneff or Duffy, maybe an NI cap wouldn't mean anything to them so maybe (probably I reckon) they have no regrets. I was in Derry recently for the first time and people I was really struck by the Irishness of it all. I found it very different to Belfast in that the city there can feel and look like a British one and has various pockets of different identities. I thought the city side of Derry was very clearly Irish and something like Derry City playing in the LOI made sense to me when I was there from a cultural and identity perspective. I could see how the like of Kone Doherty and Harkin immediately lean into our underage teams because it is natural in so many ways, including geographically in that Donegal is so nearby (which is different for Belfast too).
I haven't time to trawl the internet but first google search unearthed this. He's not exactly saying there was no question of him playing for anyone other than Ireland. Packie Bonner asked his Da and he played U14 and liked the setup so stayed with us.
The McGeadys have a stronger Irish connection than most foreign-born Irish players but I imagine he could've easily played for Scotland if their rules were different.
https://fb.watch/fGGeTh2gL-/
Last edited by Fixer82; 21/09/2022 at 8:52 PM.
I think this line is pretty self-explanatory.
"Scotland had those rules that you couldn't play for your school team, but Ireland didn't.”
Scotland’s rules wouldn’t allow them pick him but Ireland didn’t have those rules. Mind made up. That doesn’t scream ‘I was never ever going to play for anyone but Ireland’ to me. Not saying he wasn’t incredibly proud to play for us but I think he’d have been just as proud to play for the Scots.
Tommy Coyne should have been brought earlier as for Bernie Slaven
Kevin Sheedy
Good old Tony Galvin the marauding winger
Not sure any of them were never going to play for anyone other than Ireland. Bernie Slaven has called himself Scottish in the past. Sheedy phoned up Wales FA when picked for FAI U21s to inform them. They brushed him off so that made his mind up once and for all.
Galvin I'm not sure. maybe Tony Grealish would've only chosen Ireland, not sure
Folding my way into the big money!!!
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