{
  "id": 17946412,
  "title": "Mee and Kenny handed first Northern Ireland call-ups",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/mee-and-kenny-handed-first-northern-ireland-call-ups",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-03T10:13:08.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/mee-kenny-handed-first-northern-101308750.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Dermot Mee, a 23-year-old goalkeeper from Manchester United, and Eoin Kenny, a 20-year-old forward from Portsmouth, have been selected for their first Northern Ireland call-ups. Mee, a former Northern Ireland underage international, will provide competition for the team's first-choice goalkeeper, Pierce Charles, despite not having played competitively this season. Kenny, the son of former Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny, joined Portsmouth from Dundalk in July and has made one league appearance for the Championship club. The squad omits defenders Dan Ballard, who injured his hamstring, and midfielders Ali McCann and Jamie McDonnell, who are both injured. Liverpool's Conor Bradley, who hasn't played since January, remains a regular absentee. Northern Ireland are currently unbeaten at the top of League B2 and can earn promotion to the top tier for the first time. The team will face Ukraine at Windsor Park on November 14 at 19:45 GMT and then travel to Hungary for their final match on November 17. Both games will be broadcast live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds. Northern Ireland is the only team left in the competition without a conceded goal this year. Shea Charles scored the winning goal against Georgia in September, and a draw at home to Hungary in October followed by another goalless draw against Georgia. If Northern Ireland top the group, they would be promoted to League A and likely secure a play-off spot for Euro 2028.",
  "summary": "Manchester United goalkeeper Dermot Mee and Portsmouth's Eoin Kenny are handed their first Northern Ireland call-ups for November's Nations League games with Ukraine and Hungary.",
  "key_points": [
    "Dermot Mee, 23, becomes first Northern Ireland goalkeeper",
    "Eoin Kenny, 20, joins as first Northern Ireland forward",
    "Northern Ireland unbeaten at top of League B2"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC Sport Football",
        "title": "Mee and Kenny handed first Northern Ireland call-ups",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/mee-and-kenny-handed-first-northern-ireland-call-ups-17953427",
        "published": "2026-11-03T10:07:54.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}