On-loan goalkeeper Stephen Henderson is enjoying the experience of working with one-time hero Mick McCarthy — and hopes it won’t be the only time in his career.
Henderson, who is with Town from West Ham until January, has ambitions to go all the way to the top and win senior international honours for the Republic of Ireland.
Now 24, the Dubliner earned caps at U16, U17 and U19 levels before graduating to play eight times for the U21 side.
He has yet to make his senior debut but in February was on the bench for a friendly against the Czech Republic so is clearly in manager Giovanni Trapattoni’s thoughts.
With McCarthy confirming that he would one day like to take charge of the Irish for a second time, Henderson is excited at the prospect of working with him at international level.
Henderson said: "When I was growing up Mick was getting us to major tournaments like the World Cup in 2002. He’s obviously a hero back in Ireland and to be working for him now is very special to me.
"I’d have been 14 when we got to the World Cup. I remember it as if it was yesterday. There was so much hype and then there was the Roy Keane saga, which was a bit of a mess.
"I was on Mick’s side — honestly I was — and there was a massive divide regarding people either agreeing with Mick or Roy. It was a bit of a crazy time but he did great for the country.
"Who knows, if I impress him enough and he does get the job hopefully it will work out for both of us.”
For the time being, however, Henderson is confident that McCarthy can build on the 1-0 win at Birmingham that marked his first game in charge and go on to become an Ipswich hero.
He added: "He started off well on Saturday. The appointment alone, along with Terry Connor, has given the club a huge lift and it shows the size of Ipswich Town to be able to attract a manager like Mick McCarthy.
"The fans here are brilliant, second to none, and it made sense for him to come here. Hopefully he can get the club to where it belongs.”