Adam Idah made his senior debut for the Republic of Ireland in their UEFA Nations League clash with Bulgaria last Thursday.
The Norwich striker started up front in Stephen Kenny's first game as senior boss, but defender John Egan knew about Idah long before the rest of his Ireland teammates.
Egan presented his fellow Cork man with a Player of the Year award when Idah was just 13 and the FAI have shared a brilliant snap from when they first met.
Ahead of Sunday's game, Egan said: “He’s a good lad. I’ve known Adam a few years now. He’s from Cork and back in the day, he was scoring a lot of goals for Corinthians.
“I presented him with an award when he was about 13 and he was the same size as me, so he’s a big unit.
“We played against each other in the Premier League this year and he put up a little picture of me presenting him with the award and then me marking him in the Premier League, so it was quite funny.”
On Idah's debut, Egan added: “I was delighted for him. I was delighted that he got his first Irish start the other night and hopefully it’s the first of many.
“He’s a really good prospect. Hopefully he’ll keep the head down now, keep improving and hopefully see where it takes him.
“He’s a really good player and his hard work starts now. It’s up to him to build on this and keep impressing in a green shirt and at his club.”
