Givens announces squads for Republic of Ireland Under-21 double bill

Republic of Ireland Under-21 manager Don Givens today announced his squads for the forthcoming matches against Sweden and England.

Sun, 30 Sep, 2007 - 16:30

Republic of Ireland Under-21 manager Don Givens today announced his squads for the forthcoming matches against Sweden and England.

The Republic of Ireland Under-21 side travel to Sweden for a friendly match on October 12 before taking on England in a European Championship qualifier at Turner’s Cross on October 16.

Six players new to the Under-21 set-up – Shane Supple, Keith Keane, Michael Spillane, Alan Power, Alan Sheehan and Keith Treacy - have been called-up to the squad to face Sweden. The match will also see Manchester United’s Darron Gibson and Sunderland’s Anthony Stokes return to Under-21 action.

There will then be a number of changes to the squad who will take on England in Turner’s Cross on October 16 for the crucial European Championship qualifier.

Tickets for the match against England are available through Ticketmaster and are on-sale now.

Don Givens said: “Given that it’s a friendly, and also due to the fact that the eircom League of Ireland and the lower divisions in England will be playing that weekend, we have brought in a few new faces for the Sweden game. It will be a good opportunity for the new lads to come in and show what they can do.”

As well as seeing new players, Givens said that the Sweden match would be an ideal time to welcome Anthony Stokes back into the squad: “Anthony was left out of the squad for our match against Portugal and the reasons behind that were well documented. However, that is all in the past now and I am happy to welcome Anthony back into the squad. He is a very talented footballer and we all want to see him make headlines for the right reasons. Hopefully that can begin against Sweden.”

Givens said that the match against Sweden would be good preparation for what will be a tough match against England at Turner’s Cross: “It’s going to be a big test. The English Under-21 squad is made-up of players who play regular Premiership football. Players who play regular Premiership football – the likes of Theo Walcott, Gabriel Agbonlahor and Tom Huddlestone – are used to playing at this level. But we have quality in our squad too and we’re capable of putting it up to them. We’re really looking forward to the game and hopefully it will be a full house in Turner’s Cross for what should be a great match.”

Republic of Ireland Under-21 squad v Sweden (Uppsala, October 12th)

Darren Randolph (Charlton Athletic)

Shane Supple (Ipswich Town)

Keith Keane (Luton Town)

Darren Dennehy (Everton)

Darren O’Dea (Celtic)

Eddie Nolan (Blackburn Rovers)

Michael Spillane (Norwich City)

Stephen O’Halloran (Aston Villa)

Stephen Quinn (Sheffield United)

Patrick Cregg (Falkirk)

Owen Garvan (Ipswich Town)