Fettis makes international return
Saturday, March 22, 2003
Article summary
Goalkeeper Alan Fettis is back in the Northern Ireland squad more than three years after winning his last cap.
Article body
Northern Ireland coach Sammy McIlroy has called up Hull City FC goalkeeper Alan Fettis for the UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifiers against Armenia and Greece on 29 March and 2 April respectively.
Carroll withdrawl
Fettis was drafted in because Manchester United FC's Roy Carroll withdrew because of family reasons. He won the last of his 25 caps in a 2-2 home draw against Moldova in November 1998.
Taggart no-show
Steve Jones, Colin Murdoch and Danny Griffin are absent through injury while Leicester City FC’s Gerry Taggart requested not to be selected becuase of club commitments.
Scottish inclusions
Included in the 19-man squad are Cheltenham FC's Michael Duff and Grant McCann, while Patrick Thistle FC’s Stephen Craigan and Andy Kirk of Heart of Midlothian FC are also selected.
Slow start
Northern Ireland are currently bottom of Group 6 with one point from their two games so far, having suffered a 3-0 defeat in Spain in their opening game but then held Ukraine to a 0-0 draw.
Northern Ireland squad
Taylor, Fettis, McCartney, Williams, Duff, Hughes, Kennedy, Craigan, McCann, Johnson, Gillespie, Lomas, Horlock, Mulryne, Healy, Quinn, Kirk, McVeigh, Elliott.