Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team

Republic of Ireland Under-21
Nickname(s)	Boys in Green
Association	Football Association of Ireland (FAI)
Head coach	Jim Crawford
Most caps	Conor Coventry (28)
Top scorer	Robbie Brady (7); Kevin Doyle (7)
First colours	Second colours
First international
	Rep. Ireland 1–1 Northern Ireland ; (Dublin; 8 March 1978)
Biggest win
	Rep. Ireland 5–0 Estonia ; (Tallaght Stadium, Dublin; 10 August 2010)
Biggest defeat
	Germany 8–0 Rep. Ireland ; (Baunatal; 23 March 1993)
Best result	Have never qualified

The Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team is a representative team of Irish football players. It is governed by the Football Association of Ireland and represents them at Under-21 level against the national teams of other national associations. The team played its first match in 1978 and has competed in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship since 1988.

History[edit]

As a European under-21 team, the Republic of Ireland participates in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which takes place every two years. There is no Under-21 World Cup, although there is an Under-20 World Cup. Ireland did not enter the first five Under-21 Championships, entering for the first time in 1988 but failing to qualify. Ireland have never qualified for the European Under-21 Championships.

UEFA European Under-21 Championship record[edit]

UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship record									UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Qualification record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D *	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1978	did not enter								–	–	–	–	–	–
1980									–	–	–	–	–	–
1982									–	–	–	–	–	–
1984									–	–	–	–	–	–
1986									–	–	–	–	–	–
1988	did not qualify								4	0	2	2	3	7
1990	did not enter								–	–	–	–	–	–
1992	did not qualify								6	1	0	5	5	14
1994									8	1	1	6	7	20
1996									8	2	2	4	7	9
1998									8	3	0	5	11	7
2000									8	4	2	2	13	12
2002									8	4	1	3	10	7
2004									8	2	2	4	8	11
2006									8	1	2	5	10	14
2007									2	1	0	1	2	1
2009									8	1	2	5	4	14
2011									10	1	4	5	5	11
2013									8	4	1	3	15	10
2015									8	2	2	4	10	12
2017									10	4	0	6	14	17
2019									10	4	2	4	12	15
2021									10	6	1	3	15	8
2023									12	6	3	3	17	11
Total								134	43	27	64	160	187

*Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shootout.

UEFA European Under-21 Championship[edit]

2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification[edit]

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Italy	5	3	2	0	13	2	+11	11	Final tournament	—	15 Oct '24	2–0	22 Mar '24	26 Mar '24	5 Sep '24
2	Republic of Ireland	5	3	1	1	12	8	+4	10	Play-offs	2–2	—	11 Oct '24	10 Sep '24	3–2	3–0
3	Norway	5	3	0	2	17	6	+11	9		10 Sep '24	3–2	—	7–0	15 Oct '24	26 Mar '24
4	Latvia	5	2	1	2	5	10	−5	7		0–0	1–2	6 Sep '24	—	2–1	2–0
5	Turkey	5	2	0	3	10	7	+3	6		0–2	6 Sep '24	2–0	11 Oct '24	—	5–0
6	San Marino	5	0	0	5	0	24	−24	0		0–7	22 Mar '24	0–7	15 Oct '24	10 Sep '24	—

Updated to match(es) played on 21 November 2023. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Results and fixtures[edit]

2023[edit]

26 March Friendly	Republic of Ireland	2–1	Iceland	Cork, Republic of Ireland
16:00 GMT	Tom Cannon 23' Festy Ebosele 29' Johnny Kenny 82'	Report	Kristall Máni Ingason 14'	Stadium: Turners Cross Attendance: 6,000

13 June Friendly	Republic of Ireland	C–C	Gabon	Austria
17:00 GMT		Report
Note: Fixture cancelled on 12 June as Gabon elected not to travel to Austria for the fixture.

16 June Friendly	Ukraine	2–2	Republic of Ireland	Bad Blumau, Austria
17:00 GMT	Artem Bondarenko 16' (pen.) Danylo Sikan 73' (pen.)		Andrew Moran 45+5' Bosun Lawal 82'	Stadium: Union Sport-Club Blumau

19 June Friendly	Republic of Ireland	3–0	Kuwait	Bad Radkersburg, Austria
16:00 GMT	Ollie O'Neill 5' Conor Carty 7' Aidomo Emakhu 52'	Report		Stadium: Parktherme Arena
Note: Fixture abandoned after 70 minutes due to a racist comment by a Kuwait player towards Ireland substitute Sinclair Armstrong.

8 September UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Republic of Ireland	3–2	Turkey	Cork, Republic of Ireland
19:30 GMT	Andrew Moran 56' Zak Gilsenan 87' (pen.) Aidomo Emakhu 90+6' Sean Roughan 90+9'	Report	Kenan Yıldız 22' (pen.) Cihan Çanak 76'	Stadium: Turners Cross Attendance: 3,754 Referee: Joonas Jaanovits (Estonia)

12 September UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Republic of Ireland	3–0	San Marino	Cork, Republic of Ireland
19:30 GMT	Rocco Vata 8' Rocco Vata 45+2' Sinclair Armstrong 66'	Report		Stadium: Turners Cross Attendance: 3,826 Referee: Antoine Paul Chiaramonti (Andorra)

13 October UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Latvia	1–2	Republic of Ireland	Jelgava, Latvia
13:00 GMT	Lūkass Vapne 90+2'	Report	Armstrong Oko-Flex 15' Armstrong Oko-Flex 57'	Stadium: Zemgale Olympic Center Referee: Oliver Reitala (Finland)

17 November UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Norway	3–2	Republic of Ireland	Drammen, Norway
17:00 GMT	Halvor Rødølen Opsahl 20' Kristian Arnstad 72' (pen.) Lasse Selvåg Nordås 77'	Report	Aidomo Emakhu 37' Sinclair Armstrong 53'	Stadium: Marienlyst Stadion Referee: Walter Altmann (Austria)

21 November UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Republic of Ireland	2–2	Italy	Cork, Republic of Ireland
17:30 GMT	Killian Phillips 31' Sinclair Armstrong 48'	Report	Wilfried Gnonto 45+1' (pen.) Wilfried Gnonto 90+6'	Stadium: Turners Cross Referee: Lionel Tschudi (Switzerland)

2024[edit]

22 March UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	San Marino	v	Republic of Ireland	San Marino
TBD		Report

6 September UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Turkey	v	Republic of Ireland	Turkey
TBD		Report

10 September UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Republic of Ireland	v	Latvia	Cork, Republic of Ireland
TBD		Report		Stadium: Turners Cross

11 October UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Republic of Ireland	v	Norway	Cork, Republic of Ireland
TBD		Report		Stadium: Turners Cross

15 October UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification	Italy	v	Republic of Ireland	Italy
TBD		Report

Staff[edit]

The Under-21s' management team includes:^[1]

Position	Name	Appointed
Head coach	Jim Crawford	5 April 2020
Assistant coach	Alan Reynolds	9 July 2020
Assistant coach	Paul McShane	28 August 2023
Goalkeeping coach	Rene Gilmartin	24 April 2020
Lead Performance Analyst	Martin Doyle	April 2020
Sports Scientist	Paul Walsh	18 March 2023
Sports Scientist	Adam Fox	June 2021
Chartered Physiotherapist	Glauber Barduzzi	24 April 2019
Athletic Therapist	Kieran Murray	March 2022
Doctor	Dr Mortimer O'Connor	March 2021
Performance Nutritionist	Ian Byrne	March 2023
Kitman	John Crudden	May 2023

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

Players born on or after 1 January 2002 are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

The following players were called up for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification fixture against Norway and Italy on 17 & 21 November 2023.^[2]

Caps and goals updated as of 21 November 2023, after the game vs Italy.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Josh Keeley	(2003-05-17) 17 May 2003 (age 20)	6	0	Tottenham Hotspur
16	1GK	Tiernan Brooks	(2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 20)	2	0	Notts County

4	2DF	Bosun Lawal	(2003-05-30) 30 May 2003 (age 20)	9	1	Fleetwood Town
12	2DF	Sam Curtis	(2005-12-01) 1 December 2005 (age 18)	7	0	St Patrick's Athletic
14	2DF	Sean Roughan	(2003-03-14) 14 March 2003 (age 20)	6	0	Lincoln City
5	2DF	Anselmo García MacNulty (captain)	(2003-02-19) 19 February 2003 (age 20)	5	0	PEC Zwolle
3	2DF	Tayo Adaramola	(2003-11-14) 14 November 2003 (age 20)	4	0	Crystal Palace
17	2DF	Sean Grehan	(2004-01-01) 1 January 2004 (age 19)	4	0	Crystal Palace
2	2DF	James Abankwah	(2004-01-16) 16 January 2004 (age 19)	2	0	Charlton Athletic

7	3MF	Ollie O'Neill	(2003-01-08) 8 January 2003 (age 20)	10	2	Fulham
8	3MF	Matt Healy	(2002-04-12) 12 April 2002 (age 21)	5	0	Francs Borains
6	3MF	Killian Phillips	(2002-03-30) 30 March 2002 (age 21)	5	1	Wycombe Wanderers
13	3MF	Baba Adeeko	(2003-04-03) 3 April 2003 (age 20)	4	0	Wigan Athletic
21	3MF	Zak Gilsenan	(2003-05-08) 8 May 2003 (age 20)	3	1	Blackburn Rovers
10	3MF	Adam Murphy	(2005-04-08) 8 April 2005 (age 18)	2	0	St Patrick's Athletic

22	4FW	Aidomo Emakhu	(2003-10-26) 26 October 2003 (age 20)	6	3	Millwall
9	4FW	Sinclair Armstrong	(2003-06-22) 22 June 2003 (age 20)	5	3	Queens Park Rangers
18	4FW	Johnny Kenny	(2003-06-06) 6 June 2003 (age 20)	4	1	Celtic
20	4FW	Conor Carty	(2002-05-25) 25 May 2002 (age 21)	4	1	Bolton Wanderers
11	4FW	Tony Springett	(2002-09-22) 22 September 2002 (age 21)	3	0	Norwich City

Recent call-ups[edit]

The following players have also been called up to the Republic of Ireland under-21 squad in the last 12 months and remain eligible:

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Killian Cahill	(2003-11-03) 3 November 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Brighton & Hove Albion	v. Norway, 17 November 2023^PRE
GK	Owen Mason	(2004-03-24) 24 March 2004 (age 19)	0	0	Mansfield Town	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023^PRE

DF	Connor O'Riordan	(2002-06-07) 7 June 2002 (age 21)	3	0	Crewe Alexandra	v. Italy, 21 November 2023^PRE
DF	James Furlong	(2003-10-19) 19 October 2003 (age 20)	4	0	Hull City	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023
DF	Evan Weir	(2002-04-16) 16 April 2002 (age 21)	0	0	Drogheda United	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023^PRE
DF	Alex Murphy	(2004-06-25) 25 June 2004 (age 19)	0	0	Newcastle United	v. Turkey, 8 September 2023^INJ
DF	Festy Ebosele	(2002-08-02) 2 August 2002 (age 21)	5	0	Udinese	v. Iceland, 26 March 2023
DF	Jay McGrath	(2003-04-15) 15 April 2003 (age 20)	0	0	St Patrick's Athletic	v. Iceland, 26 March 2023

MF	Kian Leavy	(2002-03-21) 21 March 2002 (age 21)	2	0	St Patrick's Athletic	v. Italy, 21 November 2023^PRE
MF	Andrew Moran (vice-captain)	(2003-10-15) 15 October 2003 (age 20)	8	2	Blackburn Rovers	v. Norway, 17 November 2023^SEN
MF	Joe Hodge (captain)	(2002-09-14) 14 September 2002 (age 21)	5	0	Wolverhampton Wanderers	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023
MF	Ed McJannet	(2004-01-25) 25 January 2004 (age 19)	3	0	Lecce	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023^PRE
MF	Rocco Vata	(2005-04-18) 18 April 2005 (age 18)	1	2	Celtic	v. Latvia, 13 October 2023^INJ
MF	Tyler Goodrham	(2003-08-07) 7 August 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Oxford United	v. Turkey, 8 September 2023^INJ
MF	Darragh Burns	(2002-08-06) 6 August 2002 (age 21)	2	0	Milton Keynes Dons	v. Kuwait, 19 June 2023
MF	Jack Henry-Francis	(2003-09-23) 23 September 2003 (age 20)	1	0	Arsenal	v. Kuwait, 19 June 2023
MF	Dara Costelloe	(2002-12-11) 11 December 2002 (age 20)	1	0	St Johnstone	v. Kuwait, 19 June 2023
MF	Harry Vaughan	(2004-04-06) 6 April 2004 (age 19)	0	0	Hull City	v. Kuwait, 19 June 2023
MF	Cian Hayes	(2003-06-29) 29 June 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Fleetwood Town	v. Iceland, 26 March 2023

FW	Armstrong Oko-Flex	(2002-03-02) 2 March 2002 (age 21)	3	2	FC Zürich	v. Italy, 21 November 2023^PRE
FW	Dylan Duffy	(2002-11-28) 28 November 2002 (age 21)	1	0	Lincoln City	v. Kuwait, 19 June 2023
FW	Tom Cannon	(2002-12-28) 28 December 2002 (age 20)	1	1	Leicester City	v. Iceland, 26 March 2023
^INJ Withdrew from latest squad due to injury ^WD Withdrew from latest squad ^PRE Preliminary squad / standby ^SUS Player is suspended ^SEN Player called up to Senior squad

Note: Names in italics denote players that have been capped for the senior team.

References[edit]

^ "Management Profiles". Football Association of Ireland. 24 January 2019.
^ https://www.fai.ie/ireland/news/u21-crawford-names-24-man-squad-for-norway-italy-qualifiers

External links[edit]

[mgmtstaff-1] "Management Profiles". Football Association of Ireland. 24 January 2019.

[2] ttps://www.fai.ie/ireland/news/u21-crawford-names-24-man-squad-for-norway-italy-qualifiers

[1]

[2]

v t e Republic of Ireland national football team
General	Football Association of Ireland Players Managers
Venues	Aviva Stadium Lansdowne Road Croke Park Dalymount Park
Results	Complete list of matches (1924–present) Irish Free State results (1924–35) Ireland (FAI) results (1936–54) Republic of Ireland results (1954–present) — 1954–59 1960s 70s 80s 90s 2000s 10s 20s Major tournament record
Players	Players Dual Ireland players Born outside RoI
Goals	Robbie Keane Hat-tricks
World Cup finals	1990 1994 2002 (including Saipan incident) World Cup record
European finals	1988 2012 2016 Euro record
Other tournaments	1924 Olympic Football Tournament 1948 Olympic Football Tournament Brazil Independence Cup (1972) Kirin Cup (1984) Iceland Triangular Tournament (1986) U.S. Cup (1992 1996 2000) Unity Cup (2004) 2011 Nations Cup UEFA Nations League
Rivalries	England Northern Ireland
Songs	"Olé, Olé, Olé" "Joxer Goes to Stuttgart" "Give It a Lash Jack" "Put 'Em Under Pressure" "Watch Your House for Ireland" "Here Come the Good Times" "The Rocky Road to Poland" "The Irish Roar"
Other National teams	Women's B U-23 U-21 U-19 U-17 League of Ireland XI
Awards	FAI International Football Awards