Though he did not see Jack Byrne's late winning goal for Shamrock Rovers against Dundalk on Friday night in person - he had left Tallaght Stadium just minutes earlier - Mick McCarthy was impressed with the midfielder.

"I did see Jack’s goal – on my phone in the car!" McCarthy told the FAI website.

"And yes, it was a great goal and maybe as good as the earlier Jordan Flores strike for Dundalk that has been seen by so many across the globe by now and rightly so.

"What did impress me on the night was Jack’s ability to see a pass and make the pass. Plenty of players can see a pass but Jack is able to play the ball as well and that was a key factor in the game.

"He certainly gave me plenty to think about with that performance and I loved everything about the game. The atmosphere was electric, the record crowd had a real buzz about them and it was a great advert for the League."

Shamrock Rovers 3-2 Dundalk - Jack Byrne curls a sublime effort home from the edge of the box to put Rovers in front #rtesoccer pic.twitter.com/j6MzI0fOWF — RTÉ Soccer (@RTEsoccer) February 28, 2020


A major injury worry for McCarthy ahead of this month's play-off against Slovakia is Seamus Coleman. The 31-year-old played just under 30 minutes for Everton against Manchester United at the weekend before leaving the game injured.

"Our thoughts are with Seamus now," said McCarthy.

"Our doctor Alan Byrne has been in touch with the medical team at Everton and we will wait on their prognosis.

"It’s not good news as of now but, like James McClean, Seamus is a fighter and he will do everything he can do to be on the plane to Slovakia. We will keep our fingers crossed for him."

Picture credit: Sportsfile