Ireland Boys' Under-16s will head to Scotland next week looking to defend their Victory Shield title.
For the last two years, Head Coach Paul Osam has led the young boys in Green to title success and they’ll be looking to make it three-in-row in Cumbernauld next week.
Osam has named the same 20-player squad that produced an impressive display against Belgium last weekend. Desmond Armstrong struck a 95th-minute equaliser to make it 2-2.
Ireland’s first Victory Shield title came in Scotland back in 2016 and among that group to win the competition were senior internationals Adam Idah, Jason Knight, Nathan Collins and recent senior team call-up Mark McGuinness.
The following year, Troy Parrott and Festy Ebosele were among the group that retained the Shield in Northern Ireland.
Andrew Moran and Sinclair Armstrong, who have both earned senior caps and are in the current Under-21s squad, were also part of the 2018 squad when the tournament was hosted in Kerry.
Paul Osam has named his BU16s squad for next week’s Victory Shield in Scotland 🇮🇪
The squad remains unchanged from the group that faced Belgium last week
Tue, Oct 8 | 🏴 v 🇮🇪
Thu, Oct 10 | 🇮🇪 v 🏴
Sun, Oct 13 | NI v 🇮🇪
More here 🗞️👉 https://t.co/2P0e4GbqBB#COYBIG | #IRLU16 pic.twitter.com/JZ1DQUZ0BU— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) October 5, 2024
Ireland would win the tournament in Co. Waterford in 2022 thanks to a scintillating 4-1 win over Scotland with Mason Melia, called-up to the Under-21s team this week, on target.
Last year, Ireland won all three games, including a memorable five-goal thriller against Cymru, which saw our Under-16s come back from 2-0 down at half-time to win 3-2 thanks to a last-minute Mohammad Oladiti penalty.
Nineteen of the players in this year’s Victory Shield squad are from the EA SPORTS LOI Academy.
Speaking before the tournament next week, Head Coach Paul Osam said: “I’m looking forward to these games. The Victory Shield is a great competition and I do believe there’s no other tournament like it in Europe for players of this age. The standard is always great; there’s a ‘derby’ edge to each game and the reward is lifting the shield at the end of it.
“We’ve won it for the last couple of years but that comes with added pressure and it’s for the players to rise to the occasion. Last week was our first game together as a group and we got a good draw against Belgium; they’re very tough opponents. We want to keep the momentum going in the next few days, keep developing as a group and hopefully, by the end of next week, we have a Shield to bring home to Ireland.”
Republic of Ireland Boys’ Under-16s Squad
Goalkeepers: Darragh Brunton (St. Patrick’s Athletic), George Moloney (Southampton)
Defenders: Danny Burke (Shamrock Rovers), Leighton Dempsey (UCD), Ben Dumigan (Cork City), Aidan Gabbidon (Sligo Rovers), Jack Greene (Shamrock Rovers), Tadgh Prizeman (Shamrock Rovers), Séan Spaight (Dundalk)
Midfielders: Brody Collins (Shamrock Rovers), Richard Ferizaj (Shamrock Rovers), Tom McGrath (Cork City), Jason Spelman (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Niall Sullivan (St. Patrick’s Athletic)
Forwards: Desmond Armstrong (Shamrock Rovers), Joe Byrne (St. Patrick’s Athletic), David Dunne (Cork City), Evidence Ikechukwu (Shamrock Rovers), TJ Molloy (Dundalk), Samuel Ogungbe (St. Patrick’s Athletic)
Ireland's Victory Shield Fixtures
Tuesday, October 8 | Scotland v Ireland, Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld, Scotland, kick-off 11.30am
Thursday, October 10 | Ireland v Cymru, Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld, Scotland, kick-off 3.30pm
Sunday, October 13 | Northern Ireland vs. Ireland, Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld, Scotland, kick-off 11.30am
