Ex-Ireland ace ‘killed’ grandmothers to skip international duty and see partner

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    A former Ireland star 'killed' three of his grandmothers to get out of international duty and see his girlfriend who was lonely at the time.

    Receiving an international call-up is the ultimate honour for most players. But that wasn’t the case for ex-Manchester City ace Stephen Ireland in 2007 when he was called up for Ireland’s squad to face the Czech Republic.

    The Irish went into the crucial Euro 2008 qualifier needing a win to have any chance of qualification for the looming tournament, and Ireland was one of the players then-manager Steve Staunton was relying on to get the job done. But the retired midfield had other ideas, and when his girlfriend called him less than an hour before the game started, pleading for him to join her, representing Ireland was the last thing on his mind.

    ALSO READ: 9 footballers who should have earned more international caps including Mata, Cole and Zola

    Tending to his girlfriend, turned wife Jessica Lawlor, whom he later claimed had a miscarriage, was now Ireland’s top priority, and that’s when he decided to serve up grandmother No1 – who was live and kicking – to leave his team-mates in the lurch and rush to his partner's side.

    Staunton had no qualms about letting Ireland leave and a private jet was even ordered for the Premier League legend to get to Jessica swiftly. Speaking about the incident at the time, Ireland said: “The manager went back into the dressing room to get my phone and when I got it I immediately rang my girlfriend to get more details.

    “My girlfriend was distraught and explained that she had just suffered a miscarriage. Jessica said she was very lonely and wanted me to come home. She said she thought they might let me home quicker if they thought my grandmother had died.”

    However, Ireland’s lie was exposed when his maternal grandmother, Patricia Tallon, read about her 'death' in the newspaper and made it clear she was very much alive. That was when Ireland decided to ‘kill’ his two other grandmothers.

    Do you think Stephen Ireland should've been forgiven for lying about the death of his grandmothers? Let us know in the comments section below

    Ireland's next 'victim' was his father’s mum, Brenda Kitchener, who he claimed had died instead of Patricia. But Brenda put Ireland’s lie to bed when she also learned of her untimely demise in the paper, and reportedly threatened to sue the publication for the story.

    Despite being caught out twice, Ireland still insisted he was telling the truth, and this time claimed his grandfather’s divorced partner was the one who had kicked the bucket. But once again, Ireland was exposed for being dishonest, and he finally put his hands up.

    At that point, Ireland had run out of grandmothers to 'kill' and admitted: “I decided at that stage that I must tell the truth and admit I had told lies. I realise now that it was a massive mistake to say my grandmothers had died and I deeply regret it.

    “It was wrong and I sincerely apologise as I have caused a lot of problems for many people. I would like to apologise to my grandmothers and all my family. I have learnt a valuable lesson from this mess and hope those I have hurt will forgive me."

    But the damage was already done, and it was to be the last time the six-capped Ireland would play for his country. Even former Man City boss Sven Goran-Eriksson, whose had his fair share of scandals, lambasted Ireland for his bogus lies that also affected his club career.

    Ireland was enjoying the time with his girlfriend so much that he also asked Sven to grant him compassionate leave for City’s match against Aston Villa. But even though Ireland was villain No.1 in the eyes of many, surprisingly, one of his ‘dead’ grandmothers stuck up for the disgraced star years later and begged Ireland’s assistant manager Roy Keane to usher him back in from exile during a chance meeting on a plane in 2014.

    Keane revealed that there was a chance for Ireland to get back into the team if he played well, but it wasn’t to be. However, Ireland’s lies didn’t end his domestic career and he went onto have glowing spells at Aston Villa, Stoke, Newcastle, and Bolton before hanging up his boots in 2018 with 305 Prem appearances to his name.

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