Niall Quinn has backed Mick McCarthy’s reappointment as Ireland manager, 17 years after his first reign came to an inglorious end. Under McCarthy, Quinn was involved in three qualification campaigns, the last of which led to the round of 16 at the 2002 World Cup before he left the post following two straight defeats in the Euro 2004 qualification campaign. Ireland have been drawn in a qualification group alongside Switzerland, Georgia, Gibraltar and Denmark, the team who ended their hopes of reaching last year’s World Cup. Quinn said McCarthy’s team stand a good chance of making the finals. “One of Mick’s strengths was getting young players to believe in themselves and go to the next level,” Quinn said.

Source: The Times January 09, 2019 00:05 UTC