Posted Feb 22nd 2007, 6:46pm by james evans

Holy Foley

Interview piece I did with Republic of Ireland under-21 Player of the Year Kevin Foley :

"A problematic season on the pitch for Luton Town has been made somewhat more palatable by the continuing emergence of Republic of Ireland under-21 Player of the Year Kevin Foley.

The youngster who - despite being raised in the town - retains a fierce loyalty to his homeland, chats to Luton At Large man Frank Grice about football, family, and Heinz baked beans.

“I'm delighted with how things are going and being recognised as someone for the future is great for a player's confidence”, he said. “I've already had two Young Player of the Year awards at Luton and that, combined with the encouragement of the manager Mike Newell and support of my family has been a big thing for me.”

Foley, who has just turned 22, insists he is not one to set goals, though admits he has contemplated his chances of making it to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa with Steve Staunton's senior squad.

“I've been in a couple of the main squads and it's a great taster. Having a manager who, in his day, was a defender like me helps a lot, but the whole squad have been really welcoming, and once you get the taste of something that big you want to keep going back for more, so I've got real hopes I will involve in three years time.”

Foley was a 9-year-old playing for his local club team Barnfield Colts when he and two others were invited to join a clutch of other youngsters from the area at a regular Luton Town training camp.

“It's obviously exciting getting picked out at such a young age, but all you want to do is play football so you don't think too much about where it might all lead.”

Indeed, it was to be almost five years before Foley sampled real glory when, at the age of 14, he and his Cardinal Newman school team scooped the Heinz National Schools Cup.

“It was an amazing experience. We didn't think much of it at first and joked that the winners would receive a tin of beans or a bottle of ketchup. But we progressed through our area heats to make it to the national stages, and eventually through to the Final which was held at Highbury.

“It was great to be travelling away from home comforts while representing your local area, and I think having tasted that success at such a fantastic stadium I knew what I wanted to do with my life.

“That's not to say I stopped bothering at school. Working hard was always important because at the end of the day you never know what's around the corner. Even now with things going well at Luton, I know not to take anything for granted.”

In 2002 Foley had impressed sufficiently to earn his first run-out with the Hatters first-team, coming on as a 2nd-half substitute in a Football League Trophy match at Woking.

He appeared three more times that season, and registered his first senior goal against Yeovil Town. However, it was only after a hugely impressive pre-season that Foley earned his chance to make a permanent stamp on the starting eleven, at the beginning of the 2003/04 campaign.

“We were playing Rushden & Diamonds on the first day at Kenilworth Road and it was to be my first league start. Other players have said how they rise to that moment and embrace it. I wanted to feel that, especially as Luton were my hometown club, but my over-riding thoughts were 'what am I doing here?'. I would rather have been anywhere else than stood in that tunnel waiting to run out!

“But once I had a few good touches those nerves subsided and I didn't look back.”

Having lost several key players over the past six months, it is maybe understandable that Luton look likely to end the season in a scrap for survival near the foot of the Championship.

“We hit a bad patch over the festive period and haven't been helped by injuries,” Foley continues.

“If we can get a bit of consistency I've no doubt we'll get the points we need to stay up, but we need to make Kenilworth Road a tough place to come to again. It was the home form from last year that really saw up surpass expectations and many teams are put off by having fans so close to the pitch.

“Making that work to our advantage is key to our survival hopes.”

Whatever the scoreline when Luton host Ipswich Town on March 17th, there will certainly be cause for celebration for the Foley clan.

“St Patrick's Day has always meant a lot to me and my family and you can guess the way we like to enjoy ourselves. A fair few relatives come over from Ireland to stay with us, and this year will be no different, so hopefully we'll be toasting three points that day as well."