Trap leaves Reids out of squad

Giovanni Trapattoni says that now is not the time to tinker with his squad after once-again leaving Steven Reid, Steve Finnan and Andy Reid at home. Trapattoni has named a 25-man squad for our World Cup play-off against France, with Anthony Stokes earning a call-up in place of the injured Noel Hunt. But the veteran Italian has resisted the temptation to recall more players because he doesn’t want to upset the harmony of the squad ahead of the double-header. Trapattoni said: “We performed strongly throughout the qualifying group stages. We were undefeated in all ten games and this is a reflection of how we have played and also the mental strength of this team. France have a strong squad but we go into this play off knowing that we are only 180 minutes away from qualifying for the World Cup.” Republic of Ireland Squad to play France: Goalkeepers: Shay Given, Keiren Westwood, Joe Murphy; Defenders: John O’Shea, Richard Dunne, Stephen Kelly, Kevin Kilbane, Eddie Nolan, Sean St. Ledger, Paul McShane, Darren O’Dea; Midfielders: Aiden McGeady, Damien Duff, Darron Gibson, Glenn Whelan, Keith Andrews, Liam Miller, Stephen Hunt, Andy Keogh, Liam Lawrence; Forwards: Kevin Doyle, Robbie Keane, Shane Long, Leon Best, Anthony Stokes.