Thomastown man Colm Whelan has earned his first Republic of Ireland U21 call up.
The former Thomastown United player has been named on Jim Crawford’s 26-man squad for a triple-header of friendlies against Switzerland, Australia and Denmark in Marbella, Spain.
He’s one of seven new faces with Sevilla’s Ryan Johansson included after he was declared eligible to play for Ireland following clearance from FIFA.
The games will form part of the U21s preparation for their 2023 European Championship qualifiers against Bosnia & Herzegovina and Luxembourg in September.
Republic of Ireland squad – Switzerland, Australia, Denmark
Goalkeepers: Sam Blair (Norwich City), Brian Maher (Bray Wanderers),
Dan Rose (Schalke 04)
Defenders: Ciaran Brennan (Sheffield Wednesday), Festy Ebosele (Derby County), Shane Flynn (Leicester City), Andy Lyons (Bohemians), Oisin McEntee (Newcastle United), Mark McGuinness (Arsenal), Lewis Richards (Wolves), Sean Roughan (Lincoln City).
Midfielders: John Joe Patrick Finn Benoa (Getafe), Luca Connell (Celtic), Conor Coventry (West Ham United), Dawson Devoy (Bohemians), Alex Gilbert (Brentford), Conor Grant (Rochdale), Ryan Johansson (Sevilla), Conor Noss (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Louie Watson (Derby County).
Forwards: Jonathan Afolabi (Celtic), Will Ferry (Southampton), Joshua ‘JJ’ Kayode (Rotherham United), Gavin Kilkenny (Bournemouth), Colm Whelan (UCD), Tyreik Wright (Aston Villa).
Fixtures – International Friendlies (all times are Irish times)
Switzerland v Republic of Ireland, May 30, KO 11:00, Dama de Noche Football Centre, Marbella..
Australia v Republic of Ireland, June 2, KO 12:00, Marbella Football Centre, Marbella, Spain.
Republic of Ireland v Denmark, June 5, KO 17:00, Dama de Noche Football Centre, Marbella, Spain.
What a proud day for the Whelan family. 👏👏👏 https://t.co/Uvm0Mx14uM
— Thomastown United (@ThomastownUtd) May 25, 2021
