Brad Lyons ‘proud’ as new fan watches his return to Northern Ireland line-up
Kilmarnock captain Brad Lyons had a new fan watching on as he got back into the Northern Ireland side on Friday night.
Midfielder Lyons, 28, made only his second international start in the 1-0 World Cup qualifying loss in Slovakia, two years after the first came on his debut at home to Slovenia in October 2023.
His sixth cap was his first appearance for his country since he came off the bench late on in June’s 1-0 friendly victory over Iceland, but since then he and his fiancee Aishlyn have welcomed their son Theo into the world.
“Looking at my phone there, my family and friends, my fiancee has my wee man in a Northern Ireland kit,” Lyons said after the game. “It’s the proudest moment of my life, having my boy watching me…
“(Aishlyn) surprised me and went out and got him a Northern Ireland kit so I got the photo before the game.
“I do everything for them so it was a proud moment to have them watching me. Without them I couldn’t do this.”
Although defeat ended Northern Ireland’s hopes of getting out of Group A in this qualifying campaign, hopes of reaching next summer’s World Cup remain alive as they are now sure of a play-off place thanks to the Nations League.
Lyons and his fiancee are due to tie the knot next summer but he has picked a date, hoping there might yet be a trip across the Atlantic to factor in.
“I’ve planned it well, don’t worry,” he said. “My life outside of football is perfect so it’s reaping rewards on the pitch.”
Lyons came into Michael O’Neill’s side after injuries to Shea Charles and Ali McCann, plus a suspension for Ethan Galbraith, forced a full overhaul in midfield.
In his post-match press conference, O’Neill said Lyons had played “extremely well” in what was an often scrappy match.
“It was a real proud moment,” Lyons said of getting the nod. “The last start was two years ago. It was a long time coming.
“I was really proud and really happy that Michael could trust me in that role in such an important game.”
Lyons is now hoping for another chance to impress in the final group fixture at home to Luxembourg on Monday. There is no longer anything riding on that game in terms of qualification, but players will want to impress as attention shifts to the play-offs in March.
“I think Monday night is massive, to be honest,” Lyons added.
“Michael said it straight after as well, that we want to play at Windsor, put on a good performance, hopefully get a good result and show the fans what it means to us and hopefully take that momentum into March.
“Yes, it’s disappointing (to be out of contention in the group) but we’ve got a play-off, all focus is on that and it starts on Monday night.”