Northern Ireland new boy Matty Kennedy says he had “no hesitation” swapping tartan for green after opting to switch allegiance from Scotland.
The St Johnstone winger represented the Scots at underage level and played alongside the likes of Andrew Robertson and Callum McGregor in the U21s.
But a senior breakthrough failed to materialise and the 24-year-old, who has Scottish parents but was born in Dundonald, has agreed to be part of Michael O’Neill’s plans.
“I met Michael in Edinburgh with my agent for a coffee and he was dead positive,” said Kennedy.
“My family is Scottish, but at the end of the day I was born in Dundonald and it’ll be a great honour to put the shirt on.
“As soon as Michael showed faith in me there wasn’t any hesitation to make the switch. Both my parents are proud of me and there was no hesitation on their part either.
“Obviously I spoke to them about it; Michael said ‘speak to your parents and see how that goes’, but my mum and dad are both all for it.”
If Kennedy, who joined St Johnstone from Cardiff City in 2018, doesn’t feature against the Dutch, a debut could come in Monday’s friendly with the Czech Republic in Prague.
The former Everton youngster said: “There are a lot of good players here, but if I get the nod at some point, hopefully I can come in and create chances for the team.
“I’m a winger who likes to create chances for the strikers, cross the ball, get on the ball and take players on.”
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