Gavin Cooney reports from FAI HQ, Abbottstown

IRELAND’S 1-1 FRIENDLY DRAW with Qatar in an empty Hungarian stadium at the end of March last year is one of the least memorable games of Stephen Kenny’s reign and it’s soon about to be forgotten for another reason. 

Robbie Brady receives treatment for the injury sustained against Qatar last year. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

That game was the last sighting of Robbie Brady in an Ireland jersey, but after spells with injury and without a club, Brady is back in the Ireland squad for the upcoming Nations League games with Scotland and Armenia. 

“It’s been too long”, smiled Brady at the FAI Headquarters at Abbottstown this afternoon. “It has been great being back in. [I've] just picked up where I left off and the lads seem happy to have me back in.” 

Brady suffered an achilles injury in that draw with Qatar that ruled him out for the rest of the season, robbing him of an on-pitch farewell to Burnley. He remained a free agent even after the subsequent transfer window closed, returning home to build up his fitness with Damien Doyle, the FAI’s Head of Athletic Performance.

“It was difficult. I had quite a few offers actually around the transfer window but I wasn’t ready to go into somewhere and start. I left it as late as I could and Damien gave me the option of working with him back here, which was brilliant and I managed to move when the window closed.”

It wasn’t until midway through October than he penned a short-term deal with Bournemouth, for whom he made just seven appearances and wasn’t retained for their season in the Premier League. 

He then went on trial at Preston, who signed him to a one-year contract. 

“It was where I was at”, says Brady of having to prove himself on trial. “The manager phoned me and said, ‘Come in and we’ll have a chance to see where you are physically, and you can come in and have a look at us and see if you like it as a club and the way we are trying to do things.’ It was pretty straightforward when I went in, there was a lot of factors that suited me and I’m delighted with it.” 

Brady has been excellent in a truly strange season for Preston, playing regularly at left wing-back. Although Preston have conceded just four goals this season – the best defensive record in the Championship – they have scored just three times in their 10 games. A 2-0 loss to Sheffield United at the weekend was the first time one of their league games didn’t finish either 0-0, 1-0, or 1-1. 

“It’s going well, if you’d watched any of the games we’ve played, some of the performances have been really good but the ball just hasn’t seemed to go in the net as of yet”, says Brady. “It’d be worse if there was no chances at all. I’m more than confident it will click and the lads will be putting the ball away.” 

Brady is excelling on a personal level, and has thus forced his way back into the international squad. He was, in truth, pushing at an open door: Stephen Kenny has been desperate to pick him, constantly name-checking him in squads from which he was excluded and more than once describing him as one of the most technically gifted players at his disposal. 

“The last six to 12 months he has left it to me”, says Brady of his international manager. “I told him what I felt I needed and he told me what he felt I needed and it sort of speaks for itself. I wasn’t playing enough football to put myself in contention and I knew that myself.

“He’s been great for me since he first come in, and keeping in contact, and [giving] his thoughts on me and where he thinks I can get to. I wasn’t able to get myself in a position to give him what he needed. I am back fit and healthy and in a good place now to make an impact.”

Robbie Brady speaks to the media at Abbottstown. Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

He rejoins an Irish squad in a much better place than the one he was last involved in: that Qatar friendly took place in the gloomy aftermath of the home defeat to Luxembourg last year. He has kept up-to-date with the games since, though did admit it was difficult to watch from the fringes. 

“It’s been hard to watch when you’re not involved. Trying to keep your head but you are watching games seeing what you could do differently. But I think the lads have been excellent.

“It is not enjoyable watching the games but I will always watch. When I am not involved I am a fan as well. I have played with a lot of these lads for a number of years now. You like keeping an eye on all the Irish lads at club level so the chance to watch them all together is brilliant.”