Ireland go into finals one man short

World governing body FIFA have refused a plea by the Republic of Ireland to add Celtic midfielder Colin Healy to their squad as a replacement for captain Roy Keane who was sacked last week.

Tomorrow is the deadline for the 32 competing nations at the World Cup finals to replace injured players in their squad but Keane was dumped from the Irish squad after rowing with coach Mick McCarthy.

FIFA have reiterated that players can only be replaced because of injuries or unforeseen family problems such as a bereavement.

The Irish federation's general secretary Brendan Menton said: "My information is that our request has been turned down."

"We made a case for exceptional circumstances - rather than on medical grounds - but we weren't confident we would win it, and that has turned out to be the case.

The Irish now have a squad of 22, one less than their rivals, after Keane's bust-up with the management team last week.