Futsal Squad

**GreenStar** · 05/12/2007, 7:14 AM

The team will play two friendly matches against the U20 Futsal teams of Lisbon giants Benfica and Sporting Lisbon.

The FAI Development squad has been formed primarily from players who participated in the successful first ever Under21 FAI Futsal league earlier this year which was won by Shamrock Rovers.

Shamrock Rovers are represented with four players in the squad while Bohemians are strongly represented with three.

There are two current Leinster Senior League players selected, with Bluebell United and Mount Merrion represented also.

Derek O’Neill said “This will be a great opportunity for the players to expand their knowledge and experience of Futsal and will be of great benefit to them and their clubs when they return to play in the Eircom Futsal League in February next.”

The squad represents a first step in forming an under 21 National Futsal team to represent Ireland in the newly formed UEFA U21 Futsal Championship which begins next April 2008.

“This is just the beginning of the process of forming our first National Futsal team. It’s a great opportunity for these players to stake a claim for a place. However, there were some difficult decisions to make in leaving out some promising players from this squad. Six players have been placed on a stand by list in case of injuries in the coming weeks. Those players along with those from the new 16 club National Futsal league which begins in February will ensure that competition for places in the squad will be intense in the coming months,” added O’ Neill.

The matches to be played are as follows:

Tuesday 4th December 2007 at7.30m
FAI Futsal U21 Development Squad V Sport Lisboa Benfica Futsal U20s (Benfica Sports centre).
Wednesday 5th December 2007 at 7.30pm
FAI Futsal U21 Development Squad V Sporting Clube de Portugal Futsal (Hall Paz Amizade-Loures).

FAI Futsal U21 Development Squad
1. John Perkins (Shamrock Rovers)
2. Dane Massey (Shamrock Rovers)
3. Kieran Kilduff (Shamrock Rovers)
4. Mark Langtry (Shamrock Rovers)
5. Alan Lynch (Bohemians)
6. David O'Sullivan (Bray Wanderers)
7. Ian Byrne (Bohemians)
8. Gary McCabe (Bray Wanderers)
9. Keith Gallagher (Bluebell United)
10. Philip McDonagh (Bohemians)
11. Gareth Whelan (Drogheda United)
12. Brendan Dawson (Mount Merrion / YMCA)

**pineapple stu** · 05/12/2007, 4:36 PM

Interesting there's no UCD players, seeing as we finished runners-up to Rovers in the competition at the start of the year. Wonder what the story with that is?

**west awake** · 05/12/2007, 4:37 PM

i never knew there was even a futsal league in ireland,a team from galway went to prague and won a futsal tournament a few years back,they won the daily star national 5 a sides and there prize was a trip to prague to play in the karls cup(a futsal tournament)not one of the squad had ever played futsal before and they beat a host of semi pro teams from different countries!
the squad included eircom league player barry moran galway united and ollie keogh ex galway and sligo rovers player and a host of top junior players from west united and galway hibs!i'd like to see that team play the development squad!

**johnmayo** · 05/12/2007, 8:54 PM

Photos from the first game I think of Shamrock Rovers Futsal tournoment in Vienna in August if anyone interested.

BTW lads thanks for coming to support us in our match considering we made the effort to travel 40 miles back into Vienna to support you. Would youse have turned up if we were playing Celtic Womens instead of Hibs???

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mayowomenssoccer/page4/

I will be taking them down after a while so feel free to take them.

**Dodge** · 05/12/2007, 9:16 PM

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

Interesting there's no UCD players, seeing as we finished runners-up to Rovers in the competition at the start of the year. Wonder what the story with that is?

RRS

**GreenStar** · 05/12/2007, 9:30 PM

Photos from the first game I think of Shamrock Rovers Futsal tournoment in Vienna in August if anyone interested.

BTW lads thanks for coming to support us in our match considering we made the effort to travel 40 miles back into Vienna to support you. Would youse have turned up if we were playing Celtic Womens instead of Hibs???

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mayowomenssoccer/page4/

I will be taking them down after a while so feel free to take them.

Good pictures. Thanks. What makes you think the lads would have watched you against Celtic and not Hibs. They obviously had their reasons for not going to your game. Did they even acknowledge you?

How did you do over there anyway?

**Stuttgart88** · 19/12/2007, 1:35 PM

Here's an interesting article on Futsal on bbc.co.uk

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...ls/7143587.stm

England has only won one of 46 matches and was beaten twice by Andorra.

How did our U20 team do in Portugal recently?

How widespread is the game in Ireland?

**ifk101** · 19/12/2007, 1:48 PM

Originally Posted by Stuttgart88

How widespread is the game in Ireland?

Can't answer your question but apparently Platini recently launched the FAI's Futsal Development Plan.

Press release here:

http://www.fai.ie/index.php?option=c...=2713&Itemid=9

**Dodge** · 19/12/2007, 1:52 PM

There was the initial LOI futsal last year that was made up of 6 Dublin club, bray and Monaghan (in for Drogheda) and restricted to u21 players.

Good to see it continuing