Father feared for life of Ireland teenager Shane Duffy

BRIAN Duffy believed he was being asked to say goodbye to his footballer son Shane as the teenager prepared to undergo life-saving surgery.

The 18-year-old Everton defender was rushed to hospital in Dublin on Friday evening after suffering an horrific injury during a Republic of Ireland training game.

His father travelled with him in the ambulance to hospital, where it was discovered he had ruptured his hepatic artery.

However, as he was being prepared to go to theatre, young Duffy's blood pressure dropped alarmingly. His father said: "As I was going in the door, I was told to get back – his blood pressure had completely dropped.

"Professor John O'Byrne asked me if I wanted to talk to Shane before they took him up for surgery, and I said, 'Good luck to you Shane, you're in good hands here'.

"But I believe at that stage that they wanted me to say 'Cheerio'.

"I had a really bad feeling. I said to John, 'I know you are telling me that everything is positive, but I have a really, really bad feeling'."

Mr Duffy was in the crowd when his son was injured in a collision with Irish Amateur side goalkeeper Adrian Walsh, but it was only later that the extent of his injury became apparent.

The teenager's heart was X-rayed and he had a CAT scan when he reached hospital, but 3.6 litres of blood had leaked into his abdomen.

However, surgeon Gerry McEntee and his team finally managed to stop the bleeding and repair the damage, and the youngster is now well on the way to recovery.

The situation has dominated the build-up to tonight's friendly match with Paraguay at the Royal Dublin Showground.

Republic manager Giovanni Trapattoni has set his sights on a place in the finals of Euro 2012 after being denied a trip to the World Cup.

Some of the players who impressed during last week's training camp – Paul Green, Shane Long, Keith Fahey and Greg Cunningham – could get chances as substitutes tonight, but Trapattoni will otherwise go largely with experience.

The exception to that is 25-year-old Coventry keeper Keiren Westwood, who will win his fourth cap as he deputises for the injured Shay Given.

Trapattoni said: "Westwood is a goalkeeper with a great personality. Physically, he is fantastic. He has personality and a presence that I like very much, and I don't think he will be fazed by the game."