Richard Dunne says he has learnt a valuable lesson after returning to the Manchester City side following a serious breach of club discipline. The Republic of Ireland defender was fined and suspended for two weeks in September after turning up for training in what boss Kevin Keegan called a 'dishevelled state'. The Dubliner says he is grateful for his club's support and believes the result of a specially devised, solitary training regime imposed upon him is that he has returned fitter than ever.
Dunne told the club's official website, www.mcfc.co.uk: "I am grateful for the second chance as it would have been easy for them to say they have had enough of me. All the coaches have helped me and I have had a really hard month's training which seems to have paid off. The key now is not to let it slip. As the manager said, there had to be a change in my lifestyle. The change had to come from within myself and everything I did in the past has to remain there. The problem was not that I was drinking excessively but that I was drinking at the wrong times. You have to learn that if you are going to have a drink then there is a right time to do it."
Dunne also praised the City fans for their support during his personal crisis and set his sights on re-establishing himself at Maine Road before looking ahead to life with the Republic of Ireland. He continued: "The aim is to stay in the City side and get back in the Republic of Ireland squad. Mick McCarthy said if I was back in the City squad before their match in mid-November then he would put me back in the squad. I have had an excellent reception from the fans. Now it is them I have to repay more than anyone else and I hope I can do that. I want to put everything back on a good platform and have people write positive things about me, rather than slagging me off."
Filed by Shane Murray
