KEITH O'NEILL, the injured Norwich City player, may have recovered in timed for the Republic of Ireland's World Cup game in Madedonia on April 1st.

After earlier indications that he would fail to make the deadline, O'Neill believes that he is now a fortnight ahead of schedule, in his recovery from damaged ankle ligaments.

And that will reassure Mick McCarthy, the national team manager, whose options in attack have dwindled with the retirement of John Aldridge and Niall Quinn's ongoing fitness problems.

"With a little luck and a lot of hard work, I've got myself back to a position in which I could play a reserve team game for Norwich against Tottenham early next week," said O'Neill.

"Depending on how I make out in that game, I could then be in line to play for the first team against Bolton the following weekend in a game which is very important to both clubs.

"To have any chance of getting into Ireland's team for the game against Macedonia, I need to be fit and playing first team football for Norwich. I am now more hopeful that I'll meet both of those deadlines."

O'Neill, who has scored four goals in just eight appearances for Ireland, availed of his enforced rest to undergo an operation for a hernia problem which has troubled him for some time.

McCarthy, who returns from Skopje today after watching Macedonia play Australia as part of their preparations for the World Cup game, plans to check on the fitness of another of his younger forwards, David Connolly, at the weekend.