“WE’RE on our way, we’re on our way, to the World Cup, we’re on our way…”
If you’ve been to a Northern Ireland football match recently you’ll probably have heard this song belting out from the stands. But there’s still a long way to go if Michael O’Neill’s side are to reach a first World Cup in 40 years next summer.
At the recent play off draw, they were pitted against four-time World Champions Italy in the semi final.
The venue will be revealed on December 18 but it will be away with the Italians deciding which city they want to host it in. If NI get through that they’ll most likely face an away final in Wales. No easy task but if you watched Scotland’s game against Denmark which saw them qualify for their first World Cup since 1998 you’ll know anything is possible.
The Republic of Ireland are also an example of that… after two games their World Cup dream looked to be over and they ended up finishing second in their group and will now face the Czech Republic in their play off in March.
The finals in the USA, Canada and Mexico will be an amazing spectacle next summer but having local interest there would make it even more special.
We all remember the Euros in 2016 when both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland won awards for their fans. Imagine if both got to the finals again next year?
Michael O’Neill has always been quick to bring realism to the table when it comes to his young squad.
NI manager Michael O’Neill and his inspirational captain Conor Bradley
When he took over again for his second stint in charge of the national team he lost a lot of experience with Northern Ireland’s most capped player, Steve Davis, and Stuart Dallas both facing career ending injuries.
Jonny Evans also had injury struggles before retiring. So O’Neill was forced to bring in new blood, although he has always liked giving youth a chance. What has followed even he has been slightly surprised by.
“We know the talent this young group has but they’ve probably got to this level slightly quicker than I expected,” he told me during this year’s World Cup qualifying group.
The likes of Conor Bradley, Shea Charles and Ethan Galbraith have been lighting up the pitch each time they play for their country and the fans have also been treated to some special goals from Isaac Price.
The win over Slovakia at the Clearer Twist National Stadium at Windsor Park was one of the best atmosphere’s in Belfast I’ve experienced. It reminded me of the Greece match when Northern Ireland qualified for Euro 2016.
Next year’s World Cup may come a little too soon for this young group, but rest assured they’ll give it a good go. If they don’t make it, the next campaign will be one to watch because there is too much talent and togetherness in this side for something special not to happen.
Part of the George Best memorabilia exhibition at the Windrose in Carrick
Former Northern Ireland manager Sammy McIlroy was in town recently for a special celebration of George Best’s life on the 20th Anniversary of his passing.
The event, held at the Windrose in Carrickfergus, saw unique memorabilia on display from George’s life and career and was attended by his sister Barbara, along with her husband and daughter.
I spoke to Sammy for an interview on UTV about his memories of George, who he played alongside at Manchester United and Northern Ireland.
“George looked out for me as soon as I moved to United and he was part of the build up my first goal on my debut,” Sammy told me. “I’ve never seen anyone play football the way he did and we will never see the likes again.”
Sammy has also been impressed with what Michael O’Neill has done with his squad and believes the team can go far, saying: “I like how they’re playing. They’ve got great young talent and I think they have the potential to go to a major tournament together.
“Italy will be hard to get past in the play-off, even though they’re not the Italy of old but that will be a very tough away match. But they will have learnt so much from the World Cup qualifiers and will come out stronger from this campaign which they will to take into the next one.”
Speaking of former Northern Ireland managers, Tanya Oxtoby is now in that category. After two years in charge of the women’s senior national team, Tanya has moved on to take charge of Newcastle United and I wish her every success in the new role.
Tanya helped steady the ship when the team had been in a bit of a limbo period after reaching their first ever Euros in 2022. She leaves behind a squad with huge potential and I for one can’t wait to see who comes in to move the group forward now.
And finally, as Christmas edges closer it can only mean one thing, sparkles! The Sport Inspires lunch, hosted by the Mary Peters Trust, was the start of the festive dinners for me and what a treat it was.
Held in the Europe Hotel, beautifully decorated as always for Christmas, guests were treated to an afternoon in the company of inspirational sporting heroes with new Ulster Rugby General Manager Rory Best first up on stage followed by Olympic royalty in Torvill and Dean alongside Lady Mary, and our most recent Olympic gold medallist Rhys McClenaghan wrapped things up with an inspiring insight into his winning mindset later in the day.
Rhys also performed various routines on the pommel horse before the event started and took questions from the arriving guests in a new ‘show and tell’ pre event display he is keen to take around the country. “Normally people just see gymnastics every four years on TV during the Olympics,” he explained. “I want to change that and let people see it live.”
It was a fitting end to a memorable year for Lady Mary who celebrated 50 years of supporting local athletes through her Trust in 2025.
Rhys summed up the impact made by the Trust with these powerful words: “When you have someone like Mary who backs you as a young person and says ‘I believe in you’ it makes you feel like you can achieve anything. Having her believe in me helped me become an Olympic champion.”
Rhys McClenaghan and Rory Best were special guests at Sport Inspires lunch
