JOE HODGE HAS been named captain of the Ireland U21 side that will face Iceland in Sunday’s friendly at Turner’s Cross.
The midfielder made his U21 debut against Israel last September and has made five Premier League appearances for Wolves this season.
Head coach Jim Crawford said: “I’ve long been a big admirer of Joe and he is one of a number of players in this squad who played with us in the last campaign.
“He’ll be able to share that experience with this new group of players and show those leadership qualities. Joe has had a fantastic season with his club and I’m excited to see him captain his country.”
Hodge said: “It’s not about one person being the leader, you need a team of leaders. It was like that in the last campaign with Conor Coventry, Lee O’Connor and Brian Maher, to name a few, and if we show anything like they did in this campaign we’ll be set well.”
Crawford also confirmed that Shelbourne’s Kian Leavy and St Patrick’s Athletic’s Jay McGrath have been called into the squad.
Cork City’s Matt Healy (on loan from Ipswich Town) misses out due to injury.
