Republic of Ireland coach Martin O'Neill his assistant Roy Keane will attend Sunday's clash between St Patrick's Athletic and Sligo Rovers

Martin O'Neill and Roy Keane will attend the President's Cup meeting of St Patrick's Athletic and Sligo Rovers at Richmond Park on Sunday.

The high-profile duo will be present for the inaugural staging of a game that has been added to the calendar with the support of Michael D Higgins, a keen follower of the local scene. Liam Buckley's league champions will host Ian Baraclough's FAI Cup winners in a curtain-raiser ahead of the 2014 SSE Airtricity League campaign which kicks off on this day week.

It will give the Irish management team a chance to have a look at two of the country's top sides as they complete their preparations. O'Neill has committed to attending matches during the 2014 season, while Keane has a strong interest in the League of Ireland and attended fixtures during his time out of work before his appointment by the FAI.

FUTURE

Keith Fahey, who won 16 caps under Giovanni Trapattoni and still hopes to return to the international stage in the future, will be on show for the Saints.

After their trip to Inchicore, O'Neill and Keane will join up with the Ireland squad at the '3'/FAI International Awards in RTE studios before returning to their Portmarnock base ahead of Wednesday's friendly with Serbia at the Aviva Stadium.

O'Neill is expected to confirm his finalised 23-man panel on Saturday evening – cut down from his provisional 29-man selection.

He is already planning without Andy Reid, who is scheduled for a hernia operation – Nottingham Forest manager Billy Davies says the 31-year-old could be out for longer than originally feared.

Early reports suggested Reid would face over a fortnight on the sidelines, but Davies said that his key man could miss the next six weeks of Forest's promotion push.

Irish Independent