Lurgan experience for Lewis

Lewis McCann scored for Northern Ireland Under 19s in warm up for next year’s UEFA Under 19 tournament

Lewis McCann played three games in seven days for Stephen Frail’s Northern Ireland Under 19s in a warm up tournament for next year’s UEFA Under 19 tournament (19th July to 1st August 2020 in Belfast, Ballymena, Lurgan and Portadown).

The eighteen year old Par played 82 minutes in Tuesday night`s 3-0 defeat to Norway at Mourneview Park, Lurgan. Then on Friday night the young Irishmen lost 3-1 to Portugal but Lewis scored in 86th minute in the match also played at Mourneview Park, Lurgan.

Monday night`s match in Lurgan saw Northern Ireland draw 1-1 with Germany after a German goal in the sixth minute of added time countered the Irish lead. Lewis McCann’s shot from the left side of the box had been deflected into his own net off by a German defender to give the home side a 55th minute lead.

The Edinburgh born player won his first Under 19 cap on 5th September 2018 against Slovakia and these recent games were at Under 19 level, Lewis had also been capped for the Under 21s. His manager Stevie Crawford praised Lewis for his international recognition and for his work and attitude as a Dunfermline player pushing for first team starts:-

“First and foremost I am delighted for Lewis. I think people forget what age he is when they see the size of him. It is great for him, he has been involved with their under 21s as well and the fact that he has been away and started all three games as a striker shows that he is adaptable to positions.

“I could see him playing at times out on the left, he can play in off the striker or as an out and out striker. There is a lot of development in Lewis as well. It is great that he is attracting attention on the international side but he would be the first to credit the boys for helping him mature.

“He was a very young seventeen year old when I came in last year. I have seen a big change in him. I know Greg Shields spends a lot of time with him on mentality with the younger ones that sometimes you do not physically see on the training pitch or in matches.

“It is brilliant for Lewis, brilliant for the players because he is representing them and also for the club that we have somebody playing at a decent level, scoring against Germany and then win on penalty kicks is no mean feat.

“He travelled back on Tuesday, will get his day off on Wednesday with the rest of the boys and since he started three games, whether he does a full session with us on Thursday or whether he just does a recovery session, we will just have to see after he has spoken to both Kevin and Gary.

“He is quite laid back off the pitch, he is an intelligent boy and with the conversations that I have had with him, I know that his involvement and with going away with the Under 21s he has seen a different side. It is a job, it is great going away with your country but I think that he now sees football as a profession and that has brought a professionalism to the way that he is conducting himself.

“Also I think it has created a hungriness to be and around the first team environment here. He is not getting carried away, he is working extremely hard on a daily basis and physically he has probably developed more that most for a boy his age. He is only eighteen and we must make sure that we look after him.”

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