McCarthy embraces chance to help Irish U21s make history

Caragh's Cathal McCarthy is hoping to be part of a Republic of Ireland Under-21 squad that makes history this month.

Ireland have never qualified for a European Championship at Under-21 level, but they have reached the qualification play-offs for only the second time. The draw paired them with Finland in a two-legged tie to determine who qualifies for next summer's finals in Serbia and Albania.

Finland host the first leg on Friday before the return leg takes place at Turner's Cross in Cork on Tuesday, November 17.

That venue has become something of a lucky charm for McCarthy and his Ireland team-mates. During the last international window, they faced an away trip to Slovakia before home games against Kazakhstan and England, knowing that only three wins would give them a chance of reaching the play-offs, and even then qualification for the play-offs was not guaranteed.

In the end, it proved to be an almost perfect window for Jim Crawford's side, who recorded three superb victories.

"We thought going into it that there was still a chance we could qualify, but we knew it would probably take three wins, including beating England, which was a task in itself," said McCarthy.

The run began with a 2-0 victory away to Slovakia, Ireland's main rivals for second place in the group.

"The first win really set us up nicely. A 2-0 win away from home and a clean sheet gives you that extra bit of confidence because they were our main competitors. That set us up nicely for the two home games," he said.

On paper, the game against bottom-of-the-group Kazakhstan looked the easiest of the three, but it turned out to be the most difficult. Ireland had to recover after conceding inside 15 seconds before eventually securing a dramatic 4-3 victory thanks to a late Tommy Lonergan penalty.

"It kind of goes to show that there are no easy, or even half-easy, games at this level. Every single match is so tough and obviously Kazakhstan are very proud to play for their country. It ended up being a great game and a great one for the neutral as well," said McCarthy.

That left Ireland facing already-qualified England in their final group game, knowing they had to equal or better Slovakia's result away to Andorra. Slovakia scored a late winner, meaning only victory would be enough for Ireland. Thankfully, they produced a historic 3-1 win over a star-studded English side.

"I think it is really nice beating England, even if that had game meant nothing but it was the perfect end to the camp and hopefully it will give us a boost for these two games now. The calibre of player they have is really top-notch and even some of the names they brought off the bench were ridiculous, so it was a great win for us," said McCarthy.

The 20-year-old showed his versatility in that game, lining out at right wing-back after featuring earlier in the campaign at centre-half and in defensive midfield.

"I played right-back maybe two or three times for UCD at the start of last season, but I'd never played wing-back. Obviously it's similar, but you're a bit higher up the pitch and getting forward a bit more. I'm not too used to that, but I didn't mind it at all. I actually quite enjoyed it. I'm fit enough and can get up and down the line, so I really enjoyed it there.

"Against England, it was maybe a bit more defensive and you're coming up against Amario Cozier-Duberry in the first half and then Tyrique George in the second half, so I had to have my wits about me in one-on-one defending. I played in midfield at the start of the qualification campaign and that's how I got myself into the squad. It's nice to be able to play in a few different positions," he said.

As with the senior squad, the last international window was an extended one and McCarthy said the group benefited from spending 16 days together ahead of the crucial Finland tie.

"Instead of one week together, we were there for just over two. This is our fifth or sixth camp together now. As a squad, those were our ninth and 10th games together, so we all know each other well at this stage. There's a good buzz there, especially as we're coming in on a high after the last games," said McCarthy.

He warmed up for the play-off with an impressive display in one of football's most iconic venues. Kilmarnock pushed Celtic all the way at Parkhead before eventually losing 1-0. Many of McCarthy's family, including mother Olivia and father Gearoid, travelled over for the game before returning to Ireland with him ahead of the squad's assembly on Sunday evening.

It was fixtures such as that clash with Celtic, and an earlier encounter with Rangers at Ibrox, that persuaded him to leave Hull City and join Kilmarnock on a season-long loan.

"Playing at Celtic Park was special. Against Celtic and Rangers, you're playing in front of crowds of 50,000 or 60,000 and up against players who are playing in Europe."

McCarthy also enjoyed a personal milestone recently when he headed home his first senior goal against St Johnstone. That came a week after he was credited with an own goal following an unfortunate deflection against Falkirk.

"It was really nice to get that first senior goal. The result was a bit of a shame, 2-2. I thought we were going to win, but it was really nice to score that first goal. Hopefully I'll grab a few more this season and hopefully no more own goals," he laughed.

Regular first-team football in the Scottish Premiership is helping McCarthy's development, and he hopes that experience will stand to him against Finland.

"It really stands to you, playing men's football every week. Getting 90 minutes nearly every week does really stand to you as a young player. It's all a new experience. You're developing all the time and then you can bring that into the Ireland camp and show what you can do. It helps get you fit.

"I wasn't playing regularly at the start of the qualification campaign, which is maybe why I didn't get into a couple of the teams early on, but I think playing every week now is really helping me."

Having established himself in the Kilmarnock first team and tasted life on some of football's biggest stages, McCarthy now stands just 180 minutes away from helping Ireland make history and secure a place at next summer's European Championship finals.