Patience has been the hallmark of Kevin Long’s club career so he’s had no problem awaiting his chance under Mick McCarthy.
The Burnley man shone on his first Ireland involvement under McCarthy by scoring against Bulgaria four weeks ago.
That was a friendly and Long has his eye on easing the manager’s injury crisis if asked to slot in against Georgia on Saturday.
Richard Keogh is definitely out and Shane Duffy still has only an outside chance of recovering from a calf strain.
Long is primed to feature, something he’s been used to preparing for since moving cross-channel from Cork City a decade ago. At 29, he’s played just 142 club games and, as he quips, most them were “before I was 22”.
He was almost 27 when earning his first cap at any level for Ireland. Since those pair of outings against Uruguay and Austria in the summer of 2017, the Cork native has added just 10 more caps.
It’s been a similar story at club level. His only action for the Clarets this season was a League Cup tie against Sunderland as he waits on the sideline for James Tarkowski or Ben Mee to get either injured or suspended.
“It can be frustrating,” he admits. “If other lads for Burnley or Ireland are playing well, there’s not much I can do.
“I spoke to Mick briefly about it in the past. He wants me playing games, first and foremost, but is aware of the position I’m in at Burnley.
“He’s stuck by me and hopefully I can repay him for that.
“If I get a chance on Saturday, I’ll be ready to take it with both hands. This match, and the trip to Switzerland on Tuesday, are huge games. They’re the type of you want to be involved in.
“I haven’t played much this season but feel fine and fit. Burnley arranged an Under-23 last week so it was nice to get 90 minutes.
“He (Sean Dyche) knows what he’s got with me, that I’m an honest player and I would never slack off in training.”
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