Northern Ireland’s Men’s Under-17 head coach Andy Waterworth has named his squad for U17 Euro 2025 elite round qualifiers later this month.
Round 2 League A will decide the seven teams joining hosts Albania in this year’s U17 Euro finals, which will take place between 19 May and 1 June.
Northern Ireland have been drawn in Group A7 along with hosts England, Slovenia and Israel, with the games in the mini tournament being played between 19 and 25 March at St George’s Park.
Waterworth has chosen a 20-strong squad for the three games at the FA’s national training centre in Staffordshire.
Matchday one will see the U17s take on Slovenia on Pitch 4 at St George’s Park next Wednesday (19 March) at 7pm.
Their second game is on the same pitch against Israel on Saturday 22 March, and once again it’s a 7pm kick-off.
Northern Ireland’s final game in the mini tournament is against England. That match is scheduled to be played on Pitch 6 at St George’s on Tuesday 25 March (7pm).
Waterworth’s side reached the elite round after topping their group in round one of the qualifiers in November. They registered wins against both Scotland and Republic of Ireland, and were defeated by Lithuania, in Round 1 Group 8.
The U17s warmed up for the elite round qualifiers by taking part in a preparation tournament at La Nucia in Spain last month. It was organised by the Norwegian Football Federation.
Northern Ireland drew 1-1 against Poland and 0-0 with Norway in Spain, and they were narrowly defeated 2-1 by Sweden. All three of those countries are also taking part in the elite round qualifiers this month.
Most of the players in the Northern Ireland panel have been or are currently part of the JD Irish FA Academy or the association’s JD National Performance Programme.
The Northern Ireland U17s squad for this month’s qualifiers features:
Goalkeepers - Finn McDonnell (Bohemians), Corey Sheridan (Finn Harps).
Defenders – Callum Leacock, Calum Anderson and Alex Watson (all Linfield), Oisin Gamble (Cliftonville), Coist Walker (Crusaders), Noah McDonnell (Aberdeen), Cead McGrath (Derry City), Ben Wilson (Glenavon).
Midfielders – Troy Savage (Burnley), Jack Faloona (Glentoran), Matthew Burns (Coleraine).
Forwards – Chris Atherton and Paul McGovern (both Glenavon), Ceadach O’Neill (Arsenal), George Feeney (Tottenham Hotspur), Joel Kerr (Glentoran), Brandon Downey (Crusaders), Kalum Thompson (Linfield).
