Coleman joy at reigniting his international career

SEAMUS Coleman has revealed he feared his international career was over when he was dropped from the Republic of Ireland squad earlier this season.

- By JOE THOMAS Everton FC Correspondent

Everton's club captain was forced to reckon with the prospect of his Ireland career having ended on someone else's terms when he missed out on the World Cup qualifiers during the first international break of the campaign.

That came after a start to the season in which Blues and Ireland teammate Jake O'Brien started as Everton's right back, Coleman's lack of Premier League minutes appearing to impact Heimir Hallgrimsson's plans.

Just three months later he has returned to the fore and played a central role in taking Ireland to the brink of a shock qualification for the World Cup.

Coleman, who turned 37 this year, was speaking after Troy Parrott's hat-trick secured a surprise comeback win in Hungary to take Ireland through to the playoffs for the tournament, to be held in the USA next summer. It followed three consecutive victories, against Armenia, Portugal and then in Budapest, all of which Coleman was key to.