(Image: Inpho)
The upcoming clash in Plovdiv will be the 14th time the Boys in Green face Bulgaria. The inaugural clash ended with the Irish running out 1-0 winners in the round of 16 of the 1924 Paris Olympics. The most recent fixture wasn’t quite as glamorous – a dismal 0-0 draw in front of an empty Aviva on a cloudy November’s evening to round up a dire Nations League campaign.
With a blend of now retired and still active players, here was the XI from that evening in 2020
GK – Darren Randolph – Retired
Bulgaria was Randolph’s 50th and final game in an Irish jersey. The Bray native didn’t have to work hard to get his 21st clean sheet for the national side. He only had to make one save across the 90 minutes – mind you, one more shot on target than Ireland managed!
An uneventful 18 months at Bournemouth, where he didn’t play a single second of first team football, proved to be Randolph’s 10th and final club of his career before he hung up his gloves for good in the summer of 2024. Nowadays, he is the owner of the Darren Randolph Academy and KAT Gloves where he continues his evident passion for goalkeeping.
RB – Dara O’Shea – Ipswich Town
The game fell during O’Shea’s first season of Premier League action with West Brom. He did his job on the evening winning 12 of the 14 duels he contested. He’s continued to show that kind of fight and desire, with both Burnley during their promotion winning season in 23/24 and with current club Ipswich.
In spite of Ipswich’s subpar season, which has seen them drop out of the top tier before they even got the chance to get comfortable, O’Shea has stuck his hand up as a decent performer. I am almost certain a Premier League club will snap him up in the summer as he has now proven himself to be more than capable in my opinion.
CB – Shane Duffy – Norwich City
Captain on the evening and ironically our biggest goal threat for large periods of the Stephen Kenny era, Duffy was the first name on the team sheet during this period. At the time he was having a tough old time in Scotland with Celtic, a move that I thought would be a match made in heaven.
He has returned back south of the border since that stint in Glasgow. The 33 year old now captains Norwich who sit in 10th, six points off the play-off spot with ten game weeks to go.
CB – Kevin Long – Toronto FC
An appearance of any sort was a rarity for Kevin Long in 2020. In fact, he hasn’t pulled on the green shirt since the Bulgaria game. Still contracted to Burnley at the time, it was near impossible for him to disrupt the Ben Mee and James Tarkowski partnership.
69 league appearances during his 13 year stay at the club tells the story of his time in Lancashire. He now gets regular minutes in Canada and has just commenced his second season of MLS action with Toronto FC.
LB – Ryan Manning – Southampton
The then-Swansea man was one of two debutants on the night, the other being substitute Troy Parrott.
Now at Southampton, he’s had a rough welcome to life in the Premier League. Championship football likely awaits him next season. Here’s hoping he can get close to emulating the 15 goal contribution season he had for Swansea down there in 22/23 for both Southampton and the national side.
CM – Jason Knight – Bristol City
This was Knight’s first start for the national side, having made his debut against Finland previously in the campaign. He has shown great versatility and been an ever present since his debut. Playing in multiple positions and rarely dipping below a 7/10 performance.
He now plies his trade with Bristol City, where he has stayed true to brand and featured in all 90 of the 90 possible games. He is also the club captain.
CM – Conor Hourihane – Retired
His international highlight was without question his solitary goal. A free kick versus Georgia that grabbed headlines for more than one reason. It coincided with the protest against John Delaney which had fans throwing tennis balls onto the pitch as the free kick was about to be taken.
Barnsley would prove to be both his final professional club and his maiden managerial position. He returned as first team coach, with Darrell Clarke as head coach. On the 12th March the Corkman was appointed interim head coach until the end of the season following the sacking of Clarke.
CM – Robbie Brady – Preston
With 68 caps and 10 goals, Brady has both accumulated the most appearances and found the back of net the most times out of anyone in this eleven.
A season highlight was a tremendous free kick versus Burnley last month in their 3-0 win over them in the FA Cup.
RW – Daryl Horgan – Dundalk
Horgan is the sole representative from the League of Ireland. The Lilywhites got relegated last season of course and will have to go through a season of life in the second tier. Despite their financial woes, they should return within a season with minimum fuss. Horgan has played every minute of their opening four games, where they are yet to lose and sit in first place
ST – James Collins – Lincoln City
With over 200 club career goals, Collins boasts a scoring record better than most of his fellow countrymen that spent their careers in the English league system. He was a latecomer to the national side however, debuting a couple months shy of his 29th birthday. The Bulgaria game was one of 14 times he pulled on the green jersey. These days he plays with Lincoln City where he has 5 goals in 11 league games since dropping to the third tier side in January from Derby.
LW – Ronan Curtis – Port Vale
Like a few others on this team, Curtis hasn’t actually featured in a competitive international fixture since this clash. He’s had a couple of memorable club moments since this game, most notably his role in AFC Wimbledon wins over MK Dons. Other than that he’s found it tough to progress up to football ladder and is currently with League Two side Port Vale.