Northern Ireland v Luxembuourg (05/09/2024)

JOSH MAGENNIS THE ELDER STATESMAN

“It was unfamiliar when the new faces started coming in but Michael is very good at creating scenarios that allow for team bonding, so you get to know each other very quickly. “In the past footballers would have met in the pub and had a good old chat, but those days are gone. It is about trying to keep everyone together without being intrusive. “Michael always makes it enjoyable. Whether we go for a walk, do a quiz or go out for a meal, Michael is quite forthcoming with those ideas. He is big on the team dynamic and has been since he came in.” As he looked ahead to a UEFA Nations League campaign in a C3 group that includes games against Belarus as well as Bulgaria and Luxembourg, Magennis was in no doubt about what Northern Ireland’s ambitions should be. And, on the verge of his 80th cap, the former Wigan Athletic, Hull City, Bolton Wanderers, Charlton Athletic, Kilmarnock, Aberdeen and Cardiff City striker insists his appetite for representing his country will never fade. He said: “If you’d asked me a few years ago I’d have said this campaign would be about progression and learning but I think we have to be competing to win and finish top of the table. “I think everyone in our group will feel they can beat anybody but we have the quality to do that consistently, and that is what will set us apart. We are going into this campaign genuinely thinking we can win the group and that is how we will prepare.” He added: “I can’t really describe the feeling I get when playing for Northern Ireland. I’ve said it before, I never take getting to play for my country for granted. I approach every cap like I did my first.” Only with a lot more responsibility now than back then, of course.

Sitting in the room were legends such as Steven Davis, Gareth McAuley, Jonny Evans and Aaron Hughes, and Magennis would go on to form strong bonds with them all. However, he laughs as he says he finds himself looking around the camp these days and wondering where all of his mates have gone, with Evans’ retirement last month the latest in what has been a steady stream of Northern Ireland greats exiting the international stage. Indeed such has been the churn of players in recent years that Magennis and Paddy McNair are the only players in Michael O’Neill’s squad for this upcoming Nations League double header at home to Luxembourg and away to Bulgaria that played in Euro 2016. Being the experienced player, however, is a role the 34-year-old is comfortable with. “What Paddy and I have on the international stage is experience of the set-up,” he said. “As much as you need to look after yourself and make sure you perform well, you have an obligation to your team-mates to try and help show them the way. “When I first came in I remember not knowing things like where to go and have dinner, where to get your kit or what time to be at training for. I had to learn all that and had senior players teaching me. Now I’m one of those senior players.” So, with so few of the Euro 2016 squad left, does it feel like a changing of the guard almost two years into O’Neill’s second spell in charge? “Sort of,” continued Magennis, who is enjoying life at Exeter City after a summer move to the League One club. “We have seen the amount of new players that are coming in. For a long time we were blessed with continuity and you could more or less pick the squad apart from one or two new faces.

IRISHFA.COM

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