STEPHEN QUINN’S COMPETITIVE Ireland debut was a long time coming, and the midfielder hopes that his late break will inspire others to keep chasing their dream.

The win in Tbilisi last month was an emotional one for the 28-year-old midfielder and he dedicated it to his late parents.

“I think everyone knows how much it meant to me with my parents passing. It was a proud moment for the family and me.

“I’ve worked so hard to get there. I’m 28 getting my first qualifying game so it was a hard road and a long road but I never doubted myself.”

Quinn’s experience shows that if you’re good enough, you’re still young enough to get your chance.

“You can never give up on it,” he added. “There are plenty of lads across the water who would give an arm and a leg to put on the green jersey.

If you just dig deep and keep it going, for every young lad the chance will come if you keep plugging away and work hard.

James McCarthy’s injury could open the door for Quinn to start in midfield against Gibraltar tomorrow evening or in Germany on Tuesday.

“It’s really confident at the minute,” he said of the mood in the camp.

“The lads are really looking forward to these two qualifying games and hopefully we can come up with another couple of wins. Even four points would be great.”

He didn’t miss a beat when asked who might be Ireland’s key man in breaking down the Gibraltar defence.

“There’s one man — Aiden McGeady can unlock any defence and he showed that against Georgia. He’s a real key man for us.

“Obviously we’ve got Robbie Keane there who can bang the goals in and is prolific. We need those boys to step up.”

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