Robbie Brady and Jeff Hendrick came into Euro 2016 as employees of Norwich City and Derby County – that may not be the case for long.
The childhood friends were the stars of the Republic of Ireland’s run to the second round of the tournament, forming a formidable midfield three alongside James McCarthy in the final two matches against Italy and France.
In Versailles on Monday morning, as he reflected on his side’s exit from the European Championships, O’Neill said that the former St Kevin’s players could give hope to everyone involved in Irish football that the talent is there and it can be identified.
Asked by SportsJOE if he would take a more active role in youth structures now that he has extended his contract into a second term, O’Neill reiterated that the senior team remains his main priority but, he will keep a keen eye on identifying young talent – such as Calum O’Dowda – who he believes can contribute to his squad.
Here's @dionfanning on Robbie Brady, Jeff Hendrick and the future https://t.co/w4SNml6Xes
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) June 26, 2016
“The senior manager is responsible for the results of the senior team. I think now that the tournament is over I can look at it now,” he said.
“Young O’Dowda came down and joined us for training, and did not look out of place, so that augured well. Then the next step down is the next stage,” added O’Neill, who also name-checked Harry Arter, who was absent through injury.
“I think that those players you have mentioned, Hendrick and Brady, coming through, I think that will give a lift to everyone who wants to see the young players progress through and become really decent players.”
O’Dowda and Arter are products of English football, but the performances of the St Kevin’s pair, Shane Long, Darren Randolph and Seamus Coleman were also heartening for observers of the domestic game.
The team’s performances against Italy and France were very encouraging, but the failure to beat Sweden and the capitulation against Belgium saw Ireland handed the toughest second round game possible.
Could a second round exit be considered a success?
This was not a time for ‘what ifs’ however, as far as O’Neill was concerned, highlighting the difficulty of the groups that Ireland had to progress through to reach the last 16.
While he did not directly, he implied he was satisfied with how his team performed and the stage they reached.
“I think the players performed fantastically well. We had a difficult qualification group, I’m talking about early qualification – I see Poland and Germany are still there.
“I see Belgium are still there in the competition, I see Italy are still there. I see France, who we certainly scared for long periods of game, are still there. So I will let you decide that.”
