Blackburn Rovers prodigy Rory Finneran earns international acclaim

Teenage prodigy Rory Finneran capped a fine season for club and country by ending it with an international award.

The 15-year-old was named the Republic of Ireland Men’s Under-15 International Player of the Year at the 33rd FAI International Awards held in Dublin.

ble The award was recognition for a memoraaiden season at international level for Finneran, who has now earned 14 caps for his country.

The Academy starlet captained Ireland for the first time in a 3-1 victory over Australia Under-16s at the start of the year, before leading them to victory over hosts Italy in the final of the Torneo delle Nazioni in May.

It left Finneran reflecting on an excellent campaign, with the award the perfect end to an excellent year.

He said: “It’s an honour to receive the award and it’s a great way to cap off a really good season.

“It’s a real honour to play international football, especially when you’re walking out with the music playing and hearing the national anthem.

“The lads have been great with me, especially with it being my first year. I’ve got along with them all straight away and it’s just been a really good year.

“We’ve played against some top teams, the likes of Spain, Italy, Croatia and you just keep learning when you’re playing against really good players. So I’ve had some good challenges and some really good new experiences.”

With Rovers, Finneran is continuing to make great strides in the Academy set-up.

Although still only 15, he has played alongside senior players in the internal games organised by Jon Dahl Tomasson and is tipped for a big future.

Finneran has been with the club since Under-8s level, and will begin his scholarship next year.

His stock is undoubtedly growing, with the left-footed, defensive-minded midfielder having already played seven times for Rovers Under-18s last season.