REPUBLIC OF IRELAND TRAINING CAMP:Dean Kiely tells Mary Hanniganthe opportunity to work with three legends was too good to ignore

WHILE MUCH of the focus since Giovanni Trapattoni's appointment as Republic of Ireland manager has been on efforts made to encourage the return of Stephen Ireland, Steve Finnan and Andy O'Brien to the international fold, Dean Kiely quietly stepped back in, five years after he'd had his fill of being Shay Given's rarely used understudy. One phone call from Liam Brady was all it took, the "carrot of working with three football legends", Trapattoni, Brady and Marco Tardelli, "too much to resist", said the 37-year-old.

In a career that now spans two decades it has, he admits, been one of the more unexpected turn of events, coming at the end of a season that had its share of lows before ending on a high, West Bromwich Albion reaching the semi-finals of the FA Cup and winning promotion to the Premier League.

Despite not always enjoying the backing of the club's own supporters, twice being booed during games, Kiely's manager, Tony Mowbray, stood by him, extending his contract until the summer of 2009 (it had been due to expire this month). Next season he will expect to be playing regularly in the Premier League, as well as challenging Given for a place in the Irish team. He is, then, largely back to where he left off when he withdrew from the international set-up.

"In an ironic sort of way the selfish decision I took all them years ago (to quit Ireland) to maintain that good form and the nick I'm in is probably why I've been asked back - because I am in good form, physically and mentally, at 37," he said. "Although I have a little bit of chuckle when people say 'veteran', I can't help what my birth certificate says, but I'm telling you that I'm feeling as good now as I did a decade ago."

With injuries ruling both Shay Given and Wayne Henderson out of the training week in Portugal and the games against Serbia and Colombia, Kiely's return was timely, not least because injured Birmingham City goalkeeper Colin Doyle was also forced out of the squad, resulting in Carlisle United goalkeeper Keiren Westwood being called up as back-up to Kiely and Scunthorpe United's Joe Murphy.

"I'm not Irish as such, but I'm a Catholic boy and it's in my blood through my dad's mum," said Westwood, a Manchester-born 23-year-old when asked to detail his Irish roots, but Kiely will trust that Westwood will need divine intervention to deny him the opportunity of adding to his eight caps against Serbia and Colombia.

"It's just good to be involved again," said Kiely. "I got a shout quite a while ago from Liam, but I kept it under wraps. He just said I'd add to the squad and add some experience, because I've been around the block. I've found out over the past two or three years that if there's anything I want to do, then I'll do it and this felt right. I've said for a lot of years that I wouldn't do it but when I had time for reflection, the decision suited me to come back into the fold and I'm happy I have.

"I'm finding my feet around the manager, he's got great presence about him and when he talks about football you listen."