Crawford names local lads in U21 squad

IRELAND Under-21s Head Coach Jim Crawford from Tallaght has named a 26-man squad for three friendlies against Gabon, Ukraine and Kuwait in Austria next week.

There are nine players who receive their first Under-21s call-ups including former St Francis player Conor Carty who now plays with St Patrick’s Athletic.

Carty’s teammate Sam Curtis is also named in the squad as is Shamrock Rovers striker Johnny Kenny.

Former St Patrick’s Athletic midfielder Darragh Burns makes the cut and he is currently on the books at MK Dons.

Looking ahead to the friendlies, Head Coach Jim Crawford said: “These three games will be important for the development of our squad.

“We’re playing three teams from three different continents and that brings an exciting challenge that not all Irish teams get exposure to.

“Two of the teams (Gabon and Ukraine) are about to compete in continental competitions with Kuwait playing at the Under-23s Asia Cup only last year – there’s a lot of quality in our opponents.

“I’m looking forward to it, it’s a chance for players to establish their place in the squad for the qualifiers in September and beyond.

“We won our first game as a group against Iceland and we want to use that as a platform for these upcoming games.”

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