Boys in Green squadwatch: Who was chomping at the bit in the Championship last night?

Everyone else might have been watching some other game last night, but with plenty of his squad in action, we hope that Trap had at least one eye on events in the nPower Championship.

Conor Sammon

Being picked to start against Poland last month must have been a huge shot in the arm for Sammon, but the Derby striker failed to repay Trap’s faith in him with a patchy performance that featured a few heavy touches and a failure to convert a glorious opportunity to open his Irish account.

That game came in the middle of an incredibly lean spell for Sammon, which thankfully ended last night when he put the Rams in front against Championship leaders Cardiff City on their own ground.

Prior to that, he had gone eight games without a goal and he missed a penalty against Crystal Palace that would have earned his side a draw at the weekend, but last night’s goal would have helped restore his confidence somewhat and although it is unlikely he will feature against Austria and Sweden, it should help ensure that Trap doesn’t forget about him completely in the months ahead.

David Meyler

Last night was certainly one to forget for Steve Bruce’s Hull City as they dropped out of the automatic promotion places following a 4-2 defeat to a Super Kevin Phillips-inspired Crystal Palace, which was the latest example of the Tigers’ wildly erratic form of late.

There have been 18 goals scored in total in Hull’s last three games, but ten of them have been conceded by the side featuring a sizeable Irish contingent, of whom David Meyler had most reason to take some consolation from last night’s result.

David Meyler scored last night but he also got booked... again

Meyler converted a Robbie Brady cross to put a gloss on the scoreline late on to remind Trap that he provides an alternative to the Whelan/McCarthy axis in midfield (Keith Andrews seems unlikely to be fit) or could perhaps be the extra body in that area if our Italian manager decides he needs extra security in the middle away from home.

Meyler could, however, do with watching his discipline, having picked up a yellow card for the third consecutive game and his ninth of the season so far. Yes, Irish fans love a midfielder who loves a tackle, but we also love having 11 players on the pitch at all times, so keep the cool, David.

Greg Cunningham

Marc Wilson’s return from injury and Stephen Ward’s restoration to the Wolves starting line-up last night suggests that Cunningham will have a fight on his hands trying to hang onto the left-back berth he filled against Poland, but there have been encouraging signs in the last few weeks.

Bristol City looked dead certs for the drop at one stage, but three games without defeat have inspired hope that they might be able to stage an unlikely great escape after all. Cunningham has played 90 minutes in all of those games and Bristol City have kept clean sheets in their last two encounters, including the 0-0 stalemate against Brighton last night.

Like Sammon and Meyler, a prominent role against Sweden and Austria seems unlikely for Cunningham, but the Galway man is giving Trap plenty of food for thought nonetheless.