Ian Harte has not yet ruled himself out of making Mick McCarthy's line-up for the vital World Cup 2002 qualifier against Holland at Lansdowne Road on Saturday. The left-back was withdrawn from the Irish squad by Leeds boss David O'Leary after picking up a shin injury during the Premiership clash against West Ham at the weekend which required nine stitches. However, Harte has expressed his determination to recover in time for Saturday's massive game, which is good news for McCarthy who could have a major defensive headache on his hands if Harte is ruled out.
According to reports, Harte phoned the Irish manager last night to express his resolve to play against the Dutch on Saturday. Although he is still rated doubtful for the match, he will undergo further treatment at his club early in the week before flying into Dublin on Wednesday to join up with the rest of the squad.
However, if Harte cannot play, it leaves McCarthy with just one recognised left-back in his squad, Steve Staunton, but the Aston Villa player has not played in that position in a competitive match for almost two years. If McCarthy is forced to utilise Staunton in the left corner, it leaves him with a problem in the centre of his defence as to who would partner Richard Dunne.
There was some good news for the Irish boss yesterday when all of his squad members involved in club matches came through the games unscathed. Several other members of the squad are in action tonight in First Division games so McCarthy will be left to sweat it out for another 24 hours before he can really start working on his game-plan for Saturday's encounter.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
