Ireland U18 squad changes for Malta trip

McCaffrey received word this week that Alan Judge (Blackburn Rovers ), Adam Rooney (Stoke City), Anthony Mason (Plymouth Argyle) and Scott Davies (Reading) are unable to travel because of injury or they are needed by their clubs.

Rooney's inability to travel is a lost opportunity for the Irish manager to see a player in action who is exciting his coaches at his club this season. He made his debut for Stoke in recent weeks.

McCaffrey has called up as replacements - John Connellan (Athlone Town), Chris Mulhall (Shelbourne), Michael Liddle (Sunderland) and Mark Byrne (Crumlin United).

McCaffrey has deliberately overlooked a number of players who are still eligible for this age group but who are well experienced at international level.

They include Anthony Stokes Arsenal), Stephen Henderson (Aston Villa), Eddie Nolan (Blackburn Rovers) and Simon Madden (Leeds United).

He will use the two matches against Malta to introduce several newcomers to international football, players who have not been exposed at this point to international competition at the several under-age categories.

They include Patrick Mullins of Geraldines in Limerick, who plays centre-back, Michael Liddle (Sunderland), who was born in England and whose mother comes from Dundalk, Mark Salmon (Wolves) and Lorcan Keeney, a left-back from Donegal who is also with Wolves.

"These matches are useful from several points of view" said McCaffrey, "they give me the chance to introduce some players to international football and it will give us the chance to run a training camp in nice weather conditions."

He added: "We are always looking for players who might have slipped through the net to this point. A trip like this will give me the chance to get to know newcomers and players who might be on the periphery - I can judge their attitude, how they cope with a new challenge, with the travel abroad and whether they can fit in as members of a team.

"It will give me an opportunity to see how ambitious they are, how hungry they are to progress their careers and what they are like in an international environment."

The group will leave Dublin on Sunday and return on Thursday. They will play Malta on Monday and again on Wednesday.

The revised squad is:

Republic of Ireland Under 18 Squad:

Andrew Jackson Lee Boyle Eugene Ferry John Quigley Kevin McArdle Patrick Mullins Scott Davies Mark Salmon Lorcan Keeney James Ryan Matthew Cassidy Luke Hickie Robert Bayly William John Kiely Darren Dennehy John Connellan Chris Mulhall Mark Byrne Michael Liddle

St Johnstone, Aston Villa, Derry City, Stoke City, Shelbourne, Geraldines, Limerick, Reading, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Liverpool, Bolton Wanderers, Barnet, Leeds Utd, Aberdeen, Everton, Athlone Town, Shelbourne, Crumlin United, Sunderland