NOEL O'REILLYtalks to the experienced midfielder who has made the most of his chance with Blackburn to force his way into Trapattoni's plans

THIS TIME last year Keith Andrews was preparing to face Lincoln City in the lower echelons of the English game. By this time next week, the 28-year-old will have played his part in World Cup qualifiers against Bulgaria and Italy. It’s been some 12 months.

The story of Andrews’ journey from lower league wilderness to the international stage is one of the more intriguing among the current crop of Irish players.

Having initially made his Premier League debut with Wolves in 2003, a career that looked highly promising was on the verge of petering out. Spells at Stoke, Walsall and Hull failed to convince various managers that Andrews was anything special and, going nowhere fast at Molineux, the midfielder dropped down the divisions to MK Dons.

Keith Andrews – journeyman. It was not an epitaph the driven Dubliner was willing to accept.

His self-belief undimmed, it was just going to be a matter of proving himself.

Paul Ince’s arrival as manager in Milton Keynes energised the club and, having led the side to promotion, the “Guvnor” made Andrews, his former captain, one of his first captures when he took over at Blackburn in the summer.

Critics pointed to the signing as evidence that Ince was out of his depth, but Andrews ignored the criticism and went about his business. Back among the elite, he wasn’t about to let a second chance at the big time slip through his grasp. After establishing himself as a regular at Ewood Park, international recognition soon followed and a goalscoring debut against Poland, albeit in a 3-2 defeat, hinted at a promising future.

Clearly impressed, Giovanni Trapattoni handed him his first start in the 2-1 win over Georgia last month and, but for Kevin Doyle straying offside, Andrews would have been on the scoresheet again. Having finally arrived, Andrews is making himself at home.

“Yeah, I feel very comfortable,” he says of his time in the Ireland set-up. “I’ve said from the get-go that the lads have been fantastic, there’s a good atmosphere around the place. Everyone gets on, there’s good craic, and likewise with the staff. I’ve been made to feel very welcome coming in and anyone else coming in would say the same thing, really.”

Andrews’ time on the highways and byways of the English game has provided a greater appreciation of what he’s achieved. Mixing it with Andrea Pirlo and Stiliyan Petrov is a far cry from slogging it out at the likes of Dagenham and Redbridge.

“Yeah, I’ve been on record as saying that the fact I’ve had to work very hard to get where I am, I think it makes it all the sweeter,” he admits. “I can only talk about it from my experience, but I certainly appreciate the way this season’s gone, last season and the accolades I’m getting. So, yeah, I’m really enjoying it.”

The step up in class is glaringly obvious, but after handling every challenge thrown his way this year, Andrews remains confident he won’t be found wanting: “At club level, I had to step up and it might be something similar from Georgia to Bulgaria and after that to Italy. It’s just one of those natural progressions, though.

“I think the team as a whole is going to have to play better than possibly we have been. It might suit us that they’ll possibly come and play a bit more. It’s going to be a tough game but it’s still one everyone’s looking forward to.”

An ability to ghost into the opposition box late and undetected has added an extra goalscoring threat to the Irish attack. Two strikes in the last month for Rovers, including the winner in a relegation game with Hull, are testament to his predatory instincts.

His primary role, however, will be to provide stability in the centre of Ireland’s midfield alongside Glenn Whelan. Petrov – “it’s down to me to keep him quiet” – is an obvious danger but the uncertainty surrounding the Bulgarian’s starting line-up will mean some extra homework for the Irish squad.

“I know they’ve got some very good players,” Andrews says. “I don’t know whether they’re all going to be fit, we’re hearing some conflicting stories on that, but we’re under no illusions, it’s going to be a very difficult game.”

Andrews knows a win on Saturday leaves Stanimir Stoilov’s side high and dry, but avoids talk of of a two-horse race between Ireland and the Italy just yet.

“I think it’s a little bit early,” he insists. “We need to go into this game not even thinking about the Italian game. We need to concentrate on getting the three points from this game, which would be a massive plus.

“It would put a hell of a gap between the two teams and after that we can maybe sit down and think along those lines.”