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Stephen Kenny is very much his own man and plenty has been made about whether senior Ireland players will relate to him.

So let me tell you a couple of things about Stephen and his methods.



Yes, he is a little bit eccentric but that is the making of the man. When I played for him, it drew me in.



It was an attraction. He never gave you the full picture, just snippets. He’s interesting and you wanted to know more about him.



Football was traditionally a tough environment, a macho world where men had no choice but to suppress their feelings.



Managers ranted, managers roared. It was all they knew. But at Longford Town, I saw Stephen cry while delivering a team talk.



But do you know what? Yes, it was a little out of the ordinary but players quickly bought into it because they saw how passionate he was.

(Image: ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne)





And my word, you listened to every team talk he gave thereafter.



If a player gave Stephen a gentle bit of stick over it, he took it for what it was - innocent fun.



But Stephen is a brilliant judge of character and if he thought someone was sniping at him, you wouldn’t last long.



So I’ve no fear whatsoever about him making big decisions. He handles that side of things particularly well. He can be ruthless and the Ireland players should know that.



Look at his time with Shamrock Rovers. It was deemed a failure but too many players in that dressing room had egos and it didn’t work.



The formula won’t work if players are more concerned about their own persona, but I don’t see it being a problem in this Irish dressing room.



Stephen is a little unorthodox in some ways, but he doesn’t tolerate egos. He learned that from his Rovers experience.



The hope is that we’ll have an Irish team that entertains while playing with a swagger - and if he pulls that off he’ll be a huge success.



I’m also delighted to see Jim Crawford succeed Kenny as Under-21 boss having been one of his two assistants up to now.



Jim was my central midfield partner at Shelbourne for six years and he’s a great guy. He’s actually very similar in personality to Stephen.

(Image: ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy)





Jim is a quiet guy, very thoughtful, keeps himself to himself but he’s very professional - something he got from playing at Newcastle United and Reading.



He was great with Wes Hoolahan. Being the youngest and smallest in our team, you’d always keep an eye out for Weso.



Every day at training, Jim did extra work with him. It was always about improving his touch. They’d be lashing balls at each other, testing their control.



Jim was always a man who knew what he wanted. He never had to flaunt himself in any way, but he could have the craic too.



He’d cut you in half with a look. And on the pitch he was a competitor.



I called him the silent assassin. He’d be in and out of a tackle, job done. The opponent would have stud marks down his shin and wouldn’t know where it came from.



And just like Stephen, there is no ego with Jim whatsoever.



He’s from Jobstown in Tallaght and wasn’t handed anything in life. He worked hard for everything he got. Stephen - also a Tallaght man - is the same.



I lost my hunger for football twice in my career and it’s a horrible feeling.



The first time was just before I met Stephen in a Swords pub in 2001 when he wanted to sign me for Longford.

(Image: ©INPHO/Andrew Paton)





He got that job when he was 26 and I knew nothing about him. But he reinvigorated something inside me.



The second time was towards the end of my career. I just lost my hunger and had no intention of staying involved. I was interested in other pursuits, like music.



So I admire and envy people like Stephen and Jim. They never waver. They are pure football people.



They have spent a lifetime doing their apprenticeship in the game, going about their business quietly, putting in the hours. They have a great aptitude and hunger for it.



Good luck to both of them, but I’m really excited about where Ireland can go under Stephen.



Irish teams have always relied on playing with heart and passion and they are indeed noble qualities. But they only get you so far.



We’ve needed to transition and evolve for a long time and by taking a different approach, I’m confident this is it.