Born 48 days and a few miles apart in 1992, Jeff Hendrick and Robbie Brady have been near inseparable since meeting six years later.
However, after coming up through St Kevin’s underage levels and Irish grade teams together, all the way to senior, the good friends have finally seen a barrier put between them in Versailles.
The salubrious lodgings at the Trianon Palace here in Versailles afford the Irish players a room each, which means Hendrick and Brady have finally been separated after years of rooming together.
Even on the pitch it can be difficult to separate the pair as they combined down the left flank to devastating effect against Sweden – both unlucky not to light up Euro 2016 with long range goals. The Norwich full-back Brady skimmed the roof of the net in the first half before Derby County’s Hendrick rattled the crossbar with a 30-yard belter.
The Brady Bop https://t.co/n4Wfnvv94q
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) June 14, 2016
After training on Wednesday the pair reflected on their long journey to a major finals, Brady remarking that it has been an “incredibly long road” from playing together as seven-year-olds to lining out at the Stade de France and that they are “lucky to do it together”.
While they may not be roomies at the Trianon Palace they are still spending their down time together – watching box sets, movies and the football together. Brady says he is also struggling to keep his pal from raiding his toilet bag.