Martin Keown's son, Niall, has been named in Ireland's Under-21 squad for an upcoming European Championship qualifier.

Keown senior, the former Arsenal star, was pursued by Jack Charlton back in the day (1990s). The 43-times-capped ex-England defender's mother was born in Galway, and his father in Fermanagh.

But 19-year-old Reading centre-half Niall has chosen to represent Ireland and is set for his Under-21 debut against Andorra in Waterford later this month. 

"I'm really looking forward to linking up with the Under-21s," Niall told Aidan Fitzmaurice in today's Herald.

"There's a strong Reading contingent in the Irish Under-21s, and it'll be good to hook up with them.

"Dad used to get a lot of stick from his family for playing for England.

"I was aware of all that so it wasn't really a big decision for me to represent Ireland."