Former West Cork Schoolboys League Kennedy Cup and Dunmanway Town goalkeeper Aaron Mannix has been called up to the Republic of Ireland U15 international squad.
FORMER West Cork Schoolboys League Kennedy Cup and Dunmanway Town goalkeeper Aaron Mannix has been called up to the Republic of Ireland U15 international squad for an upcoming trip to Poland.
The region’s Emerging Talent Programme and WCSL club Dunmanway Town have been responsible for nurturing the talents of rising star Mannix for many years.
Currently representing Douglas Hall in the Cork Schoolboys League, Mannix has been rewarded for a string of impressive displays with a chance to show what he can do on the international stage.
Republic of Ireland U15 head coach Jason Donohue announced his 18-man squad for two upcoming friendly internationals in Poland earlier in the week.
Beginning with a three-day training camp in Meath, Aaron Mannix and his fellow internationals will travel to Poland and take on the home nation in two friendlies on Tuesday, November 20th in Koloberg (6pm kick-off) and in Ploty two days later (11am kick-off).
Mannix was his usual calm and unflappable self when contacted by The Southern Star for reaction to his Irish U15 international call-up last week.
‘I was delighted when I was contacted by someone in the FAI to say I had made the U15 international squad,’ the former Dunmanway Town net-minder stated.
‘We are going to Poland for two friendlies against them. Before that, the squad will be meeting up in Meath for a couple days to take part in a training camp. I have been training and playing with Douglas Hall in the Cork Schoolboys League as well as taking part in a few training sessions with Cork City FC.
‘Conor Twomey, who used to play with Ardfield, plays with Douglas as well and things have been going well enough for us since signing for them. We have two or three games in hand on the teams around us in the league and hoping to make up ground on them in the coming weeks.’
Not content with lining out for his new club and periodically training with Cork City, Mannix is also the current Cork Schoolboys U15 Inter-League’s goalkeeper. Drawn in Group 2 of the Subway SFAI Munster Inter-League, Mannix began his campaign with another clean sheet in the 3-0 victory over Waterford.
Intriguingly, next up for the former Dunmanway Town goalkeeper and his Cork team mates is a trip to West Cork to take on the hosts on November 11th. He will be up against some familiar faces that afternoon.
‘I’m looking forward to playing West Cork in November,’ Mannix admitted.
‘I owed the West Cork Schoolboys League and Dunmanway Town for everything they did for me because without them I wouldn’t have got this far. During my time playing for Dunmanway, I also got to attend specialist goalkeeper training sessions at the FAI’s headquarters up in Abbotstown.
‘Going to Poland with an Irish team is very exciting and I know a few of the players who will be travelling which is good.’
It has been a whirlwind few months for Aaron Mannix but the former West Cork and Dunmanway shot-stopper possesses all the necessary skills and temperament to make a name for himself on the international stage.
