THE name most associated with Ireland’s infamous end-of-season USA tour in 2007 is Joseph Lapira.
The American student was famously called into the Ireland squad by Steve Staunton who had been tipped off about his eligibility by his uncle, who worked for the FAI.
Believing he was just being brought in to train, Lapira was thrown on against Ecuador in the Giants Stadium, becoming the first male amateur player in 43 years to win a full cap.
But another substitute that night, who also started the second game against Bolivia, created his own bit of history.
Joseph Ó Cearuill became the first — and to date only — senior international with a surname as Gaeilge.
At the time — he was on loan to Brighton from Arsenal — he was also the only player in the entire English League with all five vowels in his name, possibly my favourite football statistic of all time.
What a pity, then, given those quirky facts, that his son does not bear it.
Flick through a ‘Where Are They Now?’ feature on that group of players — nine of whom, including Ó Cearuill, never lined out for their country again — and it will chart the downward trajectory of his club career.
After his release from the Gunners, he had a five-month stay with Barnet in League Two, spent the 2008 season with St Pat’s before lining out for ten English non-league sides in the space of seven years.
You may have thought you had heard the last of him.
But there is a new fact to add in when that flashback article next gets an airing — he is the father of a 14-year-old who, on Saturday, made headlines when he became the youngest player to line out for Manchester United’s Under-18 side.
And he marked the occasion by scoring twice in a 13-1 win over Leeds United.
His name is JJ Gabriel. The JJ stands for Joseph Junior. Gabriel is a result of his father changing the family surname, according to a report, ‘in a nod to their religious beliefs as well as making the United starlet more brandable’.
Given that he first came to prominence at the age of nine when a video of his skills was posted on YouTube in which he was named ‘Kid Messi’, I am going to hazard a guess that it had more to do with the latter than the former.
The teenager is, apparently, keen to shed the nickname and, in any case, there is more of a connection with the Argentine’s career-long rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
He has posted a picture of him signing for United in February 2022, alongside the Portuguese star’s son. He is called Cristiano Ronaldo Junior.
Of course he is. You probably could have guessed that.
Could it be that, as the career of JJ’s father did not pan out as he might have liked, he has made it his business to ensure that the same does not happen to his son?
Possibly. Parents living vicariously through their kids is nothing new.
A father of a former team-mate of my son once showed me the Instagram page he had created for his pride and joy.
I am fairly sure my face betrayed my real feelings as I muttered some platitude in reply. They were Under-8s at the time.
Maybe Ó Cearuill is not like that but it is said that he chose to home-school his son ‘to maximise his football prospects’.
HOPE FOR THE FUTURE
Not surprisingly, given the first team’s never-ending struggles, United fans are latching on to this glimmer of hope for the future.
The left-footed attacker’s precociousness has seen him warm up with United for their FA Youth Cup ties this season, although he was too young to play in the competition.
Now that he has been fast-tracked to the Under-18 side at an early age, the hype machine has gone into overdrive — although you do not have to search particularly hard to find previous examples of other young talents who have struggled to live up their billing.
But, almost inevitably, it seems as though the club faces a fight to hold on to him, with a move abroad made easier because he possesses an Irish passport.
Whatever about using that to aid his club career, there appears little prospect of him using it when it comes to international football.
The FAI got in touch with his camp last year but the approach was not greeted with much enthusiasm.
In February, he made his debut for England’s Under-15s, the same month he announced on his Instagram account that he had signed a new deal with Nike.
The FAI has learned the hard way that, just because a talented player’s father played for Ireland, it does not necessarily mean they will follow in their footsteps.
Ethan Ampadu has amassed 54 caps to date for Wales, despite his dad Kwame being a Dubliner who played for Ireland up to Under-21 level. Ryan O’Leary — the son of Pierce and nephew of David — played for Scotland at underage level.
Stephen Ireland’s son Josh lined out for England’s Under-15s but later pulled on the green shirt, as did Anthony Scully.
His dad, Tony, and Declan Perkins were team-mates on the same Ireland Under-21 side, even playing against England together in 1994 but 21-year-old Sonny Perkins, now with Leyton Orient, has only represented the Three Lions.
So far, anyway.
And the most high-profile example is Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap, whose dad Rory was capped 11 times by Mick McCarthy and Brian Kerr.
He could still play for Ireland although it has been privately suggested that the backlash against Robbie Keane and Rory for working in Israel for Maccabi Tel Aviv has made that possibility ever more remote.
HOT PROSPECT
If there is a tug-of-war for Gabriel, then it would be in keeping with the apparent competition for his signature in every other aspect of his career.
Although he has been in Nike’s stable since the age of nine, adidas hosted him at Old Trafford for United’s draw against Chelsea in an attempt to woo him.
And, by posting a waving goodbye emoji on Instagram recently, he has prompted speculation that he might be looking to pastures new.
Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid have been mentioned in passing as clubs that might be interested now or at a later date.
There is broad agreement that he is a real talent with an anecdote of how he popped a dislocated shoulder back in before scoring a hat-trick and teeing up the other goal in a 4-0 win over Blackburn Rovers cited as evidence of his determination and resilience.
Maybe, from his own experience, his dad is well-placed to navigate the choppy waters of professional football.
For JJ’s sake, you hope that he is not affected by the expectation that has been placed on his shoulders at such a young age and goes on to have a long and rewarding career.
But what a shame that it will not be done in the name of his father. It might not be ‘brandable’ but the goal-scoring gaeilgeoir has a certain ring to it.
