Galway United’s Alex Murphy has been named in the Republic of Ireland U-18 squad for their friendlies in Budapest this Tuesday and Thursday (17th & 19th August) against Hungary.
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New Republic of Ireland Under-18s Head Coach Colin O’Brien will head to Hungary with a squad of 20 for his first games in charge of the U18s next week.
O’Brien was appointed to the role in June and will oversee the U18s with the age group competing in competitive international football from the 2022/2023 season.
Ten players from the League of Ireland have been selected with Ireland playing Hungary on Tuesday, August 17 and Thursday, August 19.
It is the first time O’Brien has taken charge of an international game since Ireland U17’s 1-1 draw with Switzerland in a friendly in Spain on February 14th, 2020.
Tuesday's game against Hungary will end an almost two year wait for an Irish U18 side to play international football. That came back in September 2019 when Andy Reid’s side were edged out 1-0 away defeat against Norway.
Speaking ahead of the games, Colin O’Brien said: “There’s been a lot of work going on in the last number of months since the return to play and we’ve had a lot of activity with home-based players. We’ve had assessment days and training camps and now we’re ready to go with a 20-player squad to represent the Republic of Ireland Under-18s.
“We’re so grateful that everything got signed off with the match agreements and the travel to play in Hungary. A lot of hard work went on behind the scenes and we have a lot of strict protocols we’ve to adhere to but now, most importantly for us, it’s about looking forward to the games and working with the players - that’s what this event is all about.
“These games are an opportunity to see where a lot of the players are at individually as they’ve been out of the international scene for nearly a year and for some players it’s a year and a half. It’s important we assess where they’re at and there’s no better way to do that playing against good quality opposition in an international event.”
Republic of Ireland Under-18 Squad
Goalkeepers: Josh Clarke (Bournemouth), Owen Mason (Mansfield Town), Conor Walsh (Sligo Rovers).
Defenders: Tommy Fogarty (Birmingham City), Sean Grehan (Bohemians), Cathal Heffernan (Cork City), Alex Murphy (Galway United), Darragh Reilly (Sligo Rovers), David Toure (Shelbourne).
Midfielders: Billy Brooks (Lincoln City), Cian Coleman (Leeds United), Justin Ferizaj (Shamrock Rovers), Cian Kelly-Caprani (Derby County), Joe O’Brien-Whitmarsh (Cork City).
Forwards: Edwin Agbaje (Ipswich Town), Jad Hakiki (Shelbourne), Rio McEvoy (Bolton Wanderers), Ed McJannet (Luton Town), Dara McGuinness (Shamrock Rovers), Luke Pearce (Southampton).
Fixtures - International Friendlies (all times are Irish times)
- Tuesday, August 17 | Hungary v Republic of Ireland, BVSC Stadion, Budapest, Hungary, KO 17:00
- Thursday, August 19 | Hungary v Republic of Ireland, BVSC Stadion, Budapest, Hungary, KO 10:00
