Ireland Under-21s Head Coach Jim Crawford has handed first-time call-ups to six players after naming his squad for the Under-21s EURO Qualifier double-header against Türkiye and San Marino in Cork next week.

Zak Gilsenan (Blackburn Rovers), Tyler Goodhram (Oxford United), Adam Murphy (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Alex Murphy (Newcastle United), Tony Springett (Norwich City) and Owen Mason (Wexford) all receive their first call-ups to Crawford’s squad as they prepare for their opening qualifying games.

Rocco Vata (Celtic) and Matt Healy (Royal Francs Borains) who have been named in previous squads this year but had to withdraw are also named among the squad of 24.

Under-21s captain Joe Hodge has been ruled out after suffering an injury during Wolves’ Carabao Cup tie against Blackpool earlier this week while Cork City’s Tiernan Brooks also misses out due to an injury sustained against St.Patrick’s Athletic in July.

Ireland take on Türkiye in an evening kick-off (7.30pm) on Friday, September 8 at Turner’s Cross. They then return to Turner’s Cross on Tuesday September 12 (kick-off 7.30pm) for the visit of San Marino.

Fans are advised to secure their seat for both games in advance. A duo deal is available that secures a seat for both qualifiers priced €15 adults, €10 for juniors and €40 for a family ticket (two adults and two juniors) - Ticketmaster charges apply.

They can be purchased here.

Ireland go into the games in good form having beaten Iceland 2-1 at home in March. They then followed this with a 2-2 draw against eventual U21 EURO Semi Finalists Ukraine before beating Kuwait 3-0 to end their June international window.

The squad is set to meet up on Sunday where they’ll be joined by new assistant coach Paul McShane who was appointed to the role on Monday.

Republic of Ireland Under-21s Squad

Goalkeepers: Killian Cahill (Brighton & Hove Albion), Josh Keeley (Tottenham Hotspur), Owen Mason (Wexford, on loan from Mansfield Town)

Defenders: James Abankwah (Udinese), Sam Curtis (St. Patrick’s Athletic), James Furlong (Brighton & Hove Albion), Anselmo Garcia MacNulty (PEC Zwolle), Sean Grehan (Crystal Palace), Bosun Lawal (Fleetwood Town, on loan from Celtic), Alex Murphy (Newcastle United) Sean Roughan (Lincoln City),

Midfielders: Zak Gilsenan (Blackburn Rovers), Tyler Goodrham (Oxford United), Matt Healy (Royal Francs Borains), Ed McJannet (Lecce), Adam Murphy (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Killian Phillips (Wycombe Wanderers, on loan from Crystal Palace), Rocco Vata (Celtic)

Forwards: Sinclair Armstrong (Queen’s Park Rangers), Conor Carty (St. Patrick’s Athletic, on loan from Bolton Wanderers), Aidomo Emakhu (Millwall), Johnny Kenny (Shamrock Rovers, on loan from Celtic), Andrew Moran (Blackburn Rovers, on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion), Tony Springett (Norwich City)

UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualifiers - Group A

Friday, September 8 | Ireland U21 v Türkiye U21, Turner’s Cross, Cork, KO 7.30pm
Tuesday, September 12 | Ireland U21 v San Marino U21, Turner’s Cross, Cork, KO 7.30pm