ANOTHER piece of sporting history opened up to the celebrated Kelly family yesterday with the news that Gary could join his younger brother, Alan, in the Republic of Ireland squad for next Tuesday's game against Wales.

It followed the withdrawal of Shay Given who informed Mick McCarthy that he will not have recovered in time from torn stomach muscles sustained in a reserve team game for Blackburn.

McCarthy was quick to stress that Gary is just one of the players in line for the job of providing cover for his brother. Another is Keith Branagan, the Bolton goalkeeper, who made his first appearance for Ireland in a "B" game against England at Anfield two years ago.

Branagan, a regular member of the Bolton team which won promotion to the Premiership in the 1994/95 season and was then returned to the First Division in summary fashion, is not currently in the first team at Burnden Park. And at this point, the Irish manager is not certain whether that's down to injury or loss of form.

That could be influential in McCarthy's choice of a replacement. Another pointer is the fact that he recently dispatched Seamus McDonagh, one of his scouting assistants, to watch Gary in action for Oldham Athletic.

And McDonagh, who knows a thing or two about the requirements of the job at international level, was suitably impressed by the form of the man who is thriving on his move from Bury to Oldham in October.

"The word from Seamus is that Gary Kelly is playing as well as he's ever done and considerably better than in the closing season of his time with Bury," said McCarthy.

"I haven't yet made up my mind about a replacement but irrespective of who gets the job, whether it's Gary Kelly, Keith Branagan or somebody else, I'll not be going to Cardiff with too many goalkeeping doubts on my mind.

Gary, a member of one of football's great goalkeeping dynasties, has represented Ireland at every level, from schoolboy through to "B" status. But unlike his father, Alan, capped 47 times, and Alan Jnr, honoured on 16 occasions, he has never played in the senior team.

He has, however, qualified as a squad member on a number of occasions, the last being in October, 1994 when after his brother had been withdrawn, he was summoned to provide the cover for Packie Bonner's in the European championship qualifying game against Liechtenstein, Bonner's last appearance in competitive international football.

"I'm conscious of the fact that of the three of us, I'm the only one without a senior cap but having lived with that situation for some time, I won't be losing any sleep if I'm not called up," said Gary.

"That's not to suggest that I don't value the honour. To be called into the squad as cover would be an honour to win a cap, would rate as the biggest achievement of my career.

"Some years ago, I took myself out of the shop window when I became unhappy with Newcastle Utd and joined the first club which came in for me. That happened to be Bury and it was a mistake.

"You don't get much of a profile when you're playing with one of the smaller clubs and I paid for my rashness. But this season I've been give the chance of playing at a relatively big club, Oldham, and that's helped to get me some attention again."

Although Gary (30) has been on the scene for some time and at different times figured in the calculations of Eoin Hand, Jack Charlton and Mick McCarthy, he has never found himself in the same squad as his brother.

In all, five sets of brothers have played at senior level for Ireland but one has to go back to the O'Learys, David and Pierce, in the early 1980s to discover the last of them.

As yet, McCarthy still doesn't know if he may legislate for the presence of David Connolly in his attacking formation in Cardiff. Connolly, yet to appear in the team this season, encountered the latest in a long list of fitness problems when damaging a hamstring in a game for Watford last week.

He has not been in communication with the manager in the intervening period.

"They meet Manchester City in the FA Cup on Wednesday and Brentford in the championship at the weekend and obviously David will have to play in one or both of these games to have a chance of Joining us in Cardiff."

Also troubling the manager is the fact that John Sheridan, recalled to the squad for the first time since the European championship play off against Holland 14 months ago, hasn't appeared in Bolton's team sheet for recent games.