Three of Ireland's outstanding performers at last summer's World Cup, Shay Given, Robbie Keane and Damien Duff, have been short-listed for the senior accolade at this year's FAI/eircom International Soccer Awards.
The prize will be given out on Sunday evening, April 27th, three nights before Ireland's friendly against Norway in Lansdowne Road.
All three made a huge contribution to the national team in 2002, with Given further enhancing his reputation on the international stage, while Keane scored six goals in 11 appearances for the Republic (three in four at the World Cup finals), and Duff was one of the most exciting attacking players at the tournament.
Perhaps Given's finest moments since the awards were last held at Citywest 16 months ago came late in Ireland's first play-off game against Iran when only two outstanding stops by the Donegalman prevented the visiting side from grabbing an away goal and making the return leg in Tehran a much more formidable challenge.
Keane's goal in that first Iran game ended a run of seven international outings for the striker without a goal and, after Ian Harte's penalty, it put the Irish in a strong position to progress. It was also the beginning of an outstanding run of form for the 22-year-old Dubliner whose injury-time strike against Germany enabled the Republic to progress to the second round of the World Cup.
Duff sparkled in Japan and Asia when given the chance to play out wide and run at opponents. He did find the net for the second time in his international career against Saudi Arabia, but it was in the Spain match, where he steadily emerged as the dominant influence, that he appeared to come of age at the highest level of the game.
Despite narrowly failing to make it to the World Cup, Colin Healy makes the short-list for the young player award, with Clinton Morrison and Steven Reid also in the running.
Rising Sunderland star Thomas Butler is nominated alongside West Brom goalkeeper Joe Murphy and Shelbourne's Wes Hoolahan for the under-21 award, a category in which Nottingham Forest's Andy Reid misses out despite the four goals in eight internationals that earned him a share of the goalscoring record at under-21 level.
Two of the nominees for the Eircom League award, last year's winner Glen Crowe and Bohemians team-mate Kevin Hunt, were on the short-list last time around and are joined this time around by Shelbourne midfielder Stuart Byrne.
NOMINATIONS
Senior: D Duff (Blackburn), S Given (Newcastle Utd), R Keane (T Hotspur). Young Player: C Healy (Celtic), C Morrison (Birmingham City), S Reid (Millwall). U-21: T Butler (Sunderland), W Hoolahan (Shelbourne), J Murphy (West Brom); eircom League: S Byrne (Longford T/Shelbourne), G Crowe, K Hunt (Bohemians); U-19: S Kelly (T Hotspur), S Paisley (Man City), S Thornton (Sunderland); Under-17: W Flood (Man City), S O'Mahony (Kingdom Boys Athletic), R Ryan (Sunderland); Under-16: S Foley-Sheridan (Aston Villa), P McShane (Manchester United), G Nash (Ipswich Town); Schools: W Doyle (Gorey CS/Bohemians), A McCormack (Ard Scoil Lasalle/Preston NE), V Tyrell (St Declan's CBS/Bohemians); Junior: K Bruen (Ballymun Utd), P Holden (Evergreen FC), P Long (St Kevin's Boys); Intermediate: R Coyle (Quigley's Point Swifts), G Dunning (Bluebell Utd), D Moore (Douglas Hall FC); Women's senior: E Byrne (Arsenal), C Scanlan (Leeds Utd), Y Treacy (Arsenal); Under-18: S Byrne (St James' Gate), S Moylan (Lifford FC), M Waldron (St James' Gate); Football For All: S Foy (Irish Deaf Sports), T McDonald (Irish Visually Impaired Sport), F O'Riordan (Cerebral Palsy Sport). International Personality Award: Michel Platini.
