[19
APR 00] COVENTRY CITY NEWS
Breen
Prepares To Battle Back
Gary Breen, so often
Coventry City's stop-gap centre back, says he is determined to prove
that he is the number one centre half in the club.
Breen
has had to take a backseat, firstly to Paul Williams and Richard Shaw
and now there is another hurdle, in the burly shape or Scotland
skipper Colin Hendry.
But
the Irishman, who has collected more than thirty caps for his country,
despite finding it difficult to gain a regular Premier League place,
is undaunted by the competition.
He
said:
"I
had a few niggling injuries and I missed some of the early games,
because I was away playing for Ireland as we tried to qualify for
Euro 2000.
"Hopefully
after a break in the summer I can try to reclaim my place as the
No.1 centre half.
“I
am pleased that the Republic of Ireland stuck by me when I was not
in our first team and I look forward to winning more international
caps starting with the forthcoming matches against Holland and
Portugal."
Coventry's
manager Gordon Strachan's preferred centre back pairing at the start
of the campaign was Paul Williams and Richard Shaw and Breen's first
game of the season did not arrive until November.
He
then had a long run alongside Williams until Shaw returned from injury
in February.
Now
that Hendry has been signed from Glasgow Rangers and has gone straight
into the side, the Irishman has another problem.
But
since his move from Birmingham City he has shown a resilience of
character that has enabled him to climb every obstacle in his path.
Saturday's
match at West Ham United will be his 98th for the club and with three
games to the end of the season, he has every chance of reaching the
century mark.
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