Gary Breen is a hero.
A tall, commanding centre-back who could mark any striker out of a game, then man who most regularly appears in the dreams of other Irish men earned 63 caps for the boys in green, scoring 7 goals in the process.
He was an ever present in Irish team from 1998 to 2006, and he rarely put a foot wrong. He muscled his way into the starting line-up for the 2002 World Cup despite tough competition in the form of Kenny Cunningham and Richard Dunne, and he came away as one of our heroes of the tournament.
So here is our tribute to an Irish legend, the one and only Gary Breen.
Deep in thought.
A training ground joker.
He always played with passion.
And he never took any shit.
He had a great leap...
...and a devastating wrestling finishing move.
Training with one of the best Irish players of all time, and Kenny Cunningham and Roy Keane.
Safe as houses at the back...
...and a threat in the opposition box.
Reliable.
Respectful.
Recommended
He was at his best in Japan/Korea.
He wasn't half bad in getting there either.
He sometimes wore clothes there were simply not true.
He lead from the back...
..but his goalscoring record was impressive.
He mastered the art of the ear-flick.
He always had tough competition for places.
He wasn't the quickest.
But he rarely lost his man.
The man.
The myth.
The legend.
...The dream.
Photo credit: SportsFile.
