United have signed Alan O’Brien from Newcastle on loan for a month and the 20 year-old pacy left winger will go straight into the squad for the game with Bristol Rovers on Saturday.
O’Brien is a young midfielder with considerable international experience having been a regular in the Republic of Ireland Under-18 and Under 19 squads, he is also a key member of the Magpies' second string and is contracted to Newcastle until the end of June 2006 after joining the North-East giants from schoolboy club St Joseph's Boys in Sallynoggin in his home country.
Queen of the South tried to take the young winger on loan at the end of August but the managerial team at the Toon were reluctant to let him to go. O’Brien had been training with Queens in the pre-season with a view to a loan move but the deal collapsed four weeks into the season with South manager Iain Scott saying : " I spoke with Tommy Craig (Newcastle reserve team coach) and he informed me that the lad has been playing so well lately, in fact so well that he’s on the verge of earning a place on the first-team bench.
"He’s going nowhere" said Tommy, "he’s being retained at St James Park."
Infact O’Brien did just that making his first-team squad debut when he was an unused substitute in Newcastle’s 3-0 win at Blackburn on the 18th of August and the Cumbrians will be hoping he can bring a bit of Premiership class to their attacking play which at times has looked all-too one dimensional.
Where this leaves Simon Hackney and Peter Murphy in the pecking order is anybody’s guess and while many United fans while be pleased to O’Brien join the club they will be hoping to see a goalpoaching striker appear on the Cumbrians' books next.
The following snippet is taken from a reserve team report this season on www.thisisthenortheast.co.uk
:"Alan O'Brien was the hero last night as Newcastle cantered to a 4-0 victory against Hartlepool at Victoria Park.
The fleet-footed wide man dazzled the Pool defence in a mesmerising opening 45 minutes of bewitching wing play.
Manager Graeme Souness could do far worse than hand the 20-year-old a place on the bench for Wednesday's Intertoto Cup clash against Deportivo La Coruna after last night's impressive showing.
The Magpies' speedy winger tormented throughout and capped an excellent display by providing first-half assists for goal scorers Daryl Smylie, Marc Walton and Michael Chopra, before Smylie added his second and his team's fourth from the edge of the box to compound Pool's misery ten minutes from the end."
Alan O’Brien fact-file :
Born – 20th February 1985 in Dublin
Height – 5’9
Weight – 11st