Ireland take on Poland in their opening game of the UEFA European U17 Championships in Hungary this afternoon. All of Ireland’s games are being shown live on the RTÉ News Channel and RTÉ Player.
Head Coach Colin O’Brien confirmed his squad last week with 18 of the 20-man squad from the EA SPORTS League of Ireland Academy.
It is the fourth time O’Brien has led an Irish team to the European Championships and it’s Ireland’s first appearance since 2019 when they hosted the tournament.
Today’s opening game in Group A will be followed by Wales on Saturday, May 20 and against hosts Hungary next Tuesday, May 23.
Ireland will be based in Budapest for the tournament and come into the competition in good form.
This season they have defeated the Netherlands in a friendly via a penalty shootout and came through Round One of qualifiers with a win over Armenia and draws against Belarus and Norway.
In the Elite Phase they drew with Italy before beating Ukraine.
It set up a must-win clash with hosts Cyprus with Ireland securing a 3-2 win thanks to Nickson Oksoun’s 96th-minute winner – a goal that sent them to the finals.
The 2023 edition of the U17 EUROs has an added incentive with five spots for the U17 World Cup available. These will go to the four semi-finalists as well as the winner of a play-off between two of the beaten quarter-finalists who hold the best group stage record.
Mason Melia and Romeo Akachukwu joined up with the squad over the weekend having featured for their clubs last Friday night. Melia came on a substitute for St. Patrick’s Athletic in the 3-0 win over Drogheda United, becoming the youngest player to make a league appearance for the club.
“The Irish fans will definitely see a group of players who are proud to play for their country,” said Head Coach Colin O’Brien.
“They’ll bring that passion, you can say it is in our DNA as Irish people, but it’s so important that’s instilled in our players and believe me it is across all our international teams. There’s a real togetherness within the squad and I believe, and my staff believe, we have a quality throughout the team but it will be a huge group effort once you go into a tournament and I’ve no doubt the nation will get behind them.”
“All the boys are really excited not everyone gets to play in a finals competition, especially for your country,” added Bohemians’ Nickson Oksoun.
“We’re all really excited and can’t wait to get out onto the pitch.None of us are taking this for granted we all wanted to give this a shot. For me and my family it’s a proud moment.”
Republic of Ireland Under-17 Squad
Goalkeepers: Joe Collins (Bohemians), Jason Healy (Waterford)
Defenders: Stanley Ashbee (Hull City), Daniel Babb (UCD), Jake Grante (Crystal Palace), Kaylem Harnett (Wexford FC), Cory O’Sullivan (Shamrock Rovers), Ade Solanke (Shamrock Rovers)
Midfielders: Romeo Akachukwu (Waterford), Rhys Bartley (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Luke Kehir (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Matthew Moore (Cork City), Danny McGrath (Bohemians), Taylor Mooney (Bohemians), Freddie Turley (Shamrock Rovers)
Forwards: Mason Melia (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Matthew Murray (Cork City), Ike Orazi (Shamrock Rovers), Nickson Oksoun (Bohemians), Naj Razi (Shamrock Rovers)
