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Sport

27th Sep 2018

After playing in the Liam Miller tribute game, Roy Keane went for a kickaround with some local Cork kids

Paul Moore

Great stuff from Keano.

Every single football fan in Ireland was watching the recent charity game to help raise funds for Liam Miller’s family and the Marymount Hospice.

Anyone that watched the match in Páirc Uí Chaoimh could clearly see that the the occasion was a massive success as the city of Cork – and the Irish football community – came together to pay their respects to a man that served his county and country with distinction and pride.

45,000 people turned out out to show their support for the late Celtic, Manchester United and Cork City midfielder, who tragically passed away in February at the age of 36 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Aside from a glowing tribute from Alex Ferguson, Miller’s former teammate at Manchester United, Roy Keane, spoke affectionately about his fellow Corkonian.

“It was great, a really nice day. Great for Liam and his family that they got a great turnout. Huge crowd, good atmosphere and a nice way to finish the day with the penalty shootout. People travelled from all over the country – and England and Scotland – for the match, so it’s a good day for Cork. There was a great atmosphere, there was a real good buzz in the city and people have done great work to make this happen. I’m really proud of the people that made the effort,” said Keane.

After joking about his missed penalty, the Irish assistant manager also told Virgin Media Sport that he knew he’d only last about 35 minutes in the match but to his immense credit, Keane didn’t stop playing there.

After admitting that it “was nice to get the boots back on again,” the Manchester United icon kept on playing because he got involved in a football match with some local kids from the Corrib Lawn/Ballinderry Park area of Cork.

RedFM radio host Neil Prendeville shared the following picture on Twitter and it’s a small example of why Keane got such a cracking ovation from his fellow Corkonians.

Great stuff.