Roy Carroll appointed NI goalkeeping coach

Roy Carroll is the new goalkeeping coach for the Northern Ireland senior men’s team.

The former Northern Ireland keeper takes over from Steve Harper after he left the role last week to become Newcastle United Academy Manager.

Carroll (43), who has been goalkeeping coach to Northern Ireland’s Under-19 and U17 teams for the past six months, has been coaching for several years.

Northern Ireland senior men’s team manager Ian Baraclough said:

“I’m delighted to have Roy on board. He served Northern Ireland with distinction as a player and I fully expect him to carry his enthusiasm with him into his role as a coach.”

And Carroll said:

“It was always my ambition to forge a career in coaching once I had hung up my goalkeeping gloves so this is a real privilege.

“I am looking forward to mentoring and developing our keepers of the future and I can’t wait to get started.”

Back in February Carroll was appointed as goalkeeping coach for Northern Ireland’s U19 and U17 teams.

The following month he was drafted in by Baraclough – when Harper was not available due to club commitments – to act as goalkeeping coach for the senior side’s matches against Italy, USA and Bulgaria.

Carroll, who played for Dungannon Swifts in the Danske Bank Premiership last season, had a glittering 20-year full-time professional playing career at clubs across Europe before returning home to Northern Ireland in 2016.

The former Manchester United, West Ham United and Wigan Athletic keeper won 45 caps for his country and also played for Northern Ireland 11 times at U21 level.

On returning to his Fermanagh roots he joined Linfield, with whom he won a couple of league titles and an Irish Cup, before switching to Dungannon last season after a lengthy injury lay-off.

Over the past five years he has also been providing coaching expertise to clubs at various levels across Northern Ireland and has set up his own coaching academy for goalkeepers.

During his time at Manchester United he won a Premier League medal (2002-03), while he won a Super League title and two cups with Olympiakos when he played with the Greek club between 2012 and 2014.

His list of previous clubs also includes Hull City, whom he joined as a trainee in 1995 before turning pro, along with Derby County, Odense BK (Denmark), OFI Crete (Greece), Rangers and Notts County.