Ireland Men’s Under-17s will kick-off their European Championship qualifiers this week when they head to Austria.

Head Coach Paul Osam will lead the 2009-born Under-17s group in the first round of qualifiers where they’ll take on Kosovo on Wednesday (October 8), the Faroe Islands on Saturday (October 11) before finishing up against the hosts Austria on Tuesday, October 14.

The top two teams in the group will earn a place in the Elite Round which will take place next Spring. The group winners of that phase will progress to the UEFA Under-17 EUROs in Estonia next year. 

Speaking ahead of the qualifiers, Paul Osam said: “These games will be a tough test for the group, but they’re a challenge we’re really looking forward to. A lot of hard work and preparation has gone into these games from the staff and the players and the reward is reaching the Elite Round next year. That’s a huge incentive for the players and these games will be huge for their development."

Republic of Ireland Men’s Under-17s

Goalkeeper: Darragh Brunton (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Xander Grieves (Wolverhampton Wanderers).

Defenders: Danny Burke (Shamrock Rovers), Tadgh Prizeman (Shamrock Rovers), Josh O’Connor (St. Patrick’s Athletic),  Aidan Gabbidon (Malmö FF), Sean Spaight (Dundalk).

Midfielders: Curtis Egan (Bohemians), Tom McGrath (Cork City), Josh O’Dwyer (Shamrock Rovers), Ryan Sheridan (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Jason Spelman (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Niall Sullivan (St. Patrick’s Athletic), Kian Quigley (St. Patrick’s Athletic). 

Forwards: Joe Byrne (St. Patrick’s Athletic), David Dunne (Monaco), Ben Mahon (Shamrock Rovers),  TJ Molloy (Dundalk), Cillian Murphy (Cork City), Archie Quinn (Shamrock Rovers).

UEFA European Under-17 Championship Qualifiers

Wednesday, October 8 | Kosovo vs Ireland, Lindabrunn, Austria, KO 11am 
Saturday, October 10 | Ireland vs Faroe Island, Lindabrunn, Austria, KO 11am
Tuesday, October 14 | Ireland vs Austria, Stadion Wiener Neustadt, Wiener Neustadt, Austria, KO 2pm 

Kick off are Irish time*