Republic of Ireland footballer James McClean was given a special honour by the Mayor of his home town of Derry in recognition of his 100th international appearance.
The Creggan man became only the sixth Irish player to reach the landmark in the recent European qualifier victory against Gibraltar at the Aviva Stadium, joining an illustrious list that includes Robbie Keane, Damien Duff and Steve Staunton.
Mayor of Derry City and Strabane, Patricia Logue said his career is a shining example to young people of what can be achieved with dedication and hard work.
“I was privileged to host James McClean in the Guildhall and recognise his outstanding achievement of making his 100th appearance for Ireland,” she said.
“James has enjoyed an outstanding football career that has seen him consistently perform at the highest level of club and international football for over a decade.
“His dedication to his craft and his tenacious work ethic make him a brilliant role model for the many young people in our City and District who look up to him and he is a shining example of what can be achieved with the right attitude.”
McClean made his debut for Derry City in July 2008 after coming up through the ranks with his local club Trojans and at Institute FC.
His high energy performances on the left side under Stephen Kenny soon caught the eye of English scouts and he made the move to the Premier League and Sunderland FC in August 2011.
The following year he made his Republic of Ireland debut and forced his way into the Irish squad for the 2012 European Championships.
He went on to have successful spells at Wigan Athletic, West Brom and Stoke City and has been a mainstay in the Republic of Ireland squad for over 10 years, netting significant goals in away wins in Wales and Austria and appearing at the 2016 European Championships in France where Ireland reached the second round.
“Throughout his achievements in club football in England and with the international side, James is someone who has never forgotten his roots,” Mayor Logue added.
“He returns home when his schedule allows and he has always been more than generous with his time in meeting the public and supporting local causes.
“While 100 caps is an outstanding achievement I fully expect James to go on and achieve much more in the game and on behalf of everyone in the Council area I want to congratulate him and wish him all the luck in the world in his future endeavours.”
In an interview with BBC Radio Foyle following his landmark achievement, McClean paid tribute to the "close-knit" and "hard headed" people of Creggan where he grew up for giving him the "resilience" to succeed as an international footballer.
"Creggan is my home," he said. "I've always said this - you're a product of your environment. If it wasn't for everything that I learned growing up in Creggan then I probably wouldn't be where I am today. The Creggan people, you know, have a very close-knit community and I think they take as much pride seeing me accomplish what I've accomplished as well as I do.
"They've known me since I was a kid, since I was a baby, since I was no age. Everybody knows everybody so if one is going on to do good things they all feel that sense of pride as if they're a part of it as well and, look, it's special the way the people of Creggan have treated me."
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