Mick McCarthy may have been called many things by his Irish detractors down the years.
But even they must surely never be able to doubt his courage.
The Wolves manager made a quick hop across the Irish Sea on Tuesday night to take in England under-21s game with the Republic. And it wasn’t to check on the progress of his own winger Michael Kightly (who wasn’t even on the bench, probably to McCarthy’s satisfaction!).
There was probably an element of scouting somewhere along the way, maybe even checking out Villa's young Irish defender Stephen O’Halloran.
Anyway I digress...
The point of the story is that McCarthy, along with a certain Roy Keane, was also introduced to the crowd before the game. And where was this game? Cork.
Oh yes. The same Cork that is Roy Keane’s birthplace.
Of course Keane got a wonderful reception. McCarthy? Not quite. The Wolves boss even got a fair bit of stick in Dublin in the summer during the pre-season game with Bohemians from a nation still pretty much stuck down the middle when it comes to the McCarthy/Keane affair.
But in Cork. Well they’d probably like to stick something through McCarthy’s middle in Cork.
Still, he received an initially mixed reception, followed then by the inevitable chants of ‘Keano’. To which McCarthy simply smiled, and bowed.
And when the next stand did exactly the same, so too McCarthy. Another smile, another bow.
Whether he succeeds or not in his mission to get Wolves back into the Premiership, McCarthy is certainly a breath of fresh air when it comes to humility, good humour and tackling issues head-on.
And even the good people of Cork may just find a smidgeon of respect for him for that.
Comments (5)
I've had some great nights out in Cork.
Posted by Stripey O'Flaherty | October 18, 2007 11:40 AM
Posted on October 18, 2007 11:40
Well have you now?
Posted by Mrs O'Flaherty | October 18, 2007 3:04 PM
Posted on October 18, 2007 15:04
Dad, if you've keeping secrets from Mum I'll never forgive you.
Posted by Jemima O'Flaherty | October 18, 2007 3:11 PM
Posted on October 18, 2007 15:11
Oh pack it in Jemima, you're always whinging.
Posted by Seamus O'Flaherty | October 18, 2007 6:10 PM
Posted on October 18, 2007 18:10
I always thought McCarthy was a bit of a cork...
Posted by Niall Beejaysus | October 19, 2007 2:39 PM
Posted on October 19, 2007 14:39