In his latest Sky Sports column, Niall Quinn discusses James McCleans Premier League journey and his importance to Republic of Ireland. Kyle Walker-Peters Jersey ... James McClean is one of those guys who always seems to be just arriving somewhere.He came to the Premier League relatively late. He was 22 when we signed him at Sunderland from Derry City. We bought a long shot and he gave us fireworks. Bang! Suddenly he had arrived into the reserve team. Bang! Now he was in the first team. Bang! He was all over Twitter like a Kardashian. Bang! He was playing for Republic of Ireland. Highlights from the Republic of Ireland’s Group D World Cup qualifier against Moldova In Moldova of all places he might finally have put his baggage down and announced that he is here to stay. His two goals put Ireland in a very strong position to qualify and if the team gets to Russia in 2018, I believe James will be a leader and a key player.Seeing him score a couple of goals told us a lot about not just his talent, but that potential for leadership. It also gave me a lot of pleasure. Not just because of the kind of person James is, but because a lot of people put a lot of faith in him along the way and more often than not he has repaid them well. James McClean now plays for West Brom under Tony Pulis The leaps of faith started with Bryan Pop Robson, a goalscoring hero of the north east. Pop left his scouting job at Chelsea, wanting to get back up to his family and his roots in Hexham. Steve Bruce and I gave him the job as chief scout.Pop came in on the first day and said, Listen, there is a bargain out there that we were recommended to come and watch when I was at Chelsea. It was a lad called James McClean at Derry City. Given the structure at Chelsea and James age, Chelsea had decided not to pursue the transfer.There were a few other clubs looking at James that summer including Everton. Steve Bruce and I had never heard of James McClean, let alone seen him play, but it was Pop Robsons first day on the job, he was enthusiastic and it didnt seem like the time to knock him back. I agreed to approach Sunderlands owner Ellis Short to get permission to make the signing. Republic of Ireland manager Martin ONeill claims he is happy with the performance of his side as they beat Moldova 3-1 Ellis asked a number of pertinent questions, starting with, How many times have you seen him play, Niall? I answered truthfully. Zero times. What else did I know? Well, from what I knew of the League of Ireland and the list of players on our radar at the time, McClean wasnt near to being on the list but…Between the jigs and the reels Ellis agreed and we spoke to Derry. By the way, Pop also told us to sign a certain guy named Michu on that first day. Swansea fans will not be alone in remembering the 20-goal debut season that followed, but Steve and I chose James.He was playing under the management of Stephen Kenny at Derry and as so many players do under Stephens guidance, he had made quick progress. Watch NOW TV Watch Sky Sports for just ￡6.99. No contract. We held negotiations in Castleknock, Dublin when I was back home to see the All Ireland Gaelic football semi-final in 2011. James agent, Eamonn McLoughlin, was always a very likeable guy as agents go, easy to deal with. All through the deal there was one burning issue that Eamonn pushed for. He wanted me to call the FAI and tell them James wanted to switch from Northern Ireland to the Republic. We agreed a fee with further payments if James made the first team and another payment if James played for Ireland. Niall Quinn thinks James McClean will be key for Republic of Ireland if they qualify for the 2018 World Cup I spoke to John Delaney at the FAI. I explained how we at Sunderland felt this lad had a decent chance and asked JD to consider securing him for Giovanni Trapattoni. John showed great faith too by starting the paperwork and he also invited James parents to the next Irish game in Dublin. Meanwhile James had arrived in Sunderland.He was different. Everything was new to him but he wasnt fazed or overawed. He had a great desire to work on his game and to make it as a player. When he came we assumed it would take him a year or two to make the first team but he made his mark almost straight away, scoring in a 4-3 win for the development team against Newcastle United. Steve Bruce took note but he moved on not long after that and Martin ONeill, another Derry man, arrived.Martin first saw James play for the reserve team in the glamorous yet windswept surroundings of Eppleton Colliery Welfare FC in Durham. Our reserves beat Manchester United reserves 6-3. That was in mid-week. That very weekend James made his first-team debut, coming off the bench against Blackburn in Martins first game in charge, and he turned the game around. We came from behind for a win as many leaps of faith were well rewarded.It was as simple as just adding water. Instant folk hero. James McClean made his Sunderland league debut against Blackburn Its a funny thing but for all the controversies that have followed James since then, he seldom gets the credit for remaining true to who he is. The worry with a player who makes such rapid progress in the Premier League is that his head will be turned. The quiet lad you signed will be appearing in tabloids smoking a shisha pipe in some nightclub in Marbella at 4am with a pile of neer do well hangers-on who he didnt know two weeks previously. Not James.When I look at him playing now I still view him in those terms. Will he keep it on the rails?For instance, most young players who make the first team gradually work their way up to having a more respectable car in the players car park. James hadnt been long in the first team when I was gazing out the window of my office one day to see a massive, gleaming Range Rover-type thing pulling in and young James hopping out on the drivers side. Uh-oh?Martin ONeill spotted the vehicle too. You could probably have seen it from the moon and Martin had a quiet word. The car was back in the dealers showroom within a day or so. James McClean scored twice in Republic of Irelands win over Moldova Even in Moldova yesterday when James hit an awful free kick I found myself looking at him and thinking, Ah James, if youd spent less time getting yourself decorated with ink in tattoo parlours and more time practising free kicks that might have gone better for you. But thats just the old man in me tut-tutting for the sake of it.James is one of those characters who wobbles but always rights himself in the end. When Martin left Sunderland, James was gone not too long afterwards.He wasnt Paolo Di Canios cup of tea and maybe, vice-versa, Paolo wasnt too inspiring for James. Wigan came looking and he had no problem going there to continue working on his career and to get himself back into the Premier League. It was a sensible move and it worked out fine for him.James is 27 now. If you look at him objectively in a world where so many people are faking it, he is a young man whod rather wear his heart on his sleeve. He makes mistakes. After the game in Moldova for instance he had a crack at the Irish media.I would advise him just to respond to people either through what he does on the field or by talking to them one-on-one, but I understand his frustrations and I think hell learn.That has been his story so far, always learning, always arriving somewhere new. He was worth every leap of faith shown in him.Niall Quinn is chairman of Fleet Street Sports media group and writes for SportsVibe. Read his column every week on skysports.com and the Sky Sports appsYou can watch Englands tour of Bangladesh, plus Premier League football on Sky Sports. Upgrade now and enjoy three months at half price! Also See: Ireland ease past Moldova ONeill: Big win for Ireland How did your internationals do? Football live on Sky Vincent Janssen Jersey . Nathan Beaulieu, Tomas Jurco, Danick Gauthier and Jonathan Huberdeau had a goal and an assist each as the Sea Dogs extended the longest streak in the Canadian Hockey League this season. Davinson Sanchez Jersey . Fans in the Jets viewing region can watch the game on TSN Jets at 5:30pm ct and listeners can tune in to TSN Radio 1290 Winnipeg. http://www.hotspurfcproshop.com/kyle-walker-hotspur-jersey-uk/ . This week they discuss the Philadelphia 76ers, Gregg Popovich, Royal and Ancient Golf Club and Bill Belichick. ATLANTA -- The Braves big bear is healthy. That was bad news for Colorados Franklin Morales. After sitting out most of the week with an illness, Evan Gattis homered twice to support Julio Teherans six scoreless innings and Atlanta beat the Rockies 7-0 on Sunday. Gattis was given the nickname "El Oso Blanco" -- Spanish for "The White Bear" -- as a rookie in 2013, when he hit 21 homers. He is on pace for a bigger year as he has replaced Brian McCann as the teams primary catcher. Gattis (6 foot 4, 260 pounds) drove in three runs with the two homers, giving him 10. "Hes a big, strong boy," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. Justin Upton and Chris Johnson added two-run homers for the NL East-leading Braves, who have won six of eight. Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki left the game in the eighth inning. He appeared to limp slightly while walking slowly off the field, accompanied by a trainer. He said he avoided an injury when he hit his left foot on his backswing. "I think Im all right," Tulowitzki said. Gattis missed four games with viral symptoms. He returned with no hits and a walk in Saturdays 3-1 loss to the Rockies before hitting a homer in the second and a two-run shot in the fourth off Franklin Morales (3-4) on Sunday. "Ive got my strength back -- or lucky," Gattis said. Teheran (4-3) began the day fourth in the NL in ERA. He lowered his average from 1.92 to 1.77 with six scoreless innings. He had seven strikeouts while allowing only four hits. It was the second straight dominant win for Teheran, who was coming off his second shutout of the season, a 5-0 win over Milwaukee on Tuesday. After throwing a career-high 128 pitches against the Brewers, Gonzalez limited the right-hander to 93 pitches on Sunday. "That worked out great," Gonzalez said. "We want these guys for 35 starts, and he understood right away. Weve got to keep an eye on these guys. We want them for the long haul." Anthony Vavaro pitched two perfect innings and Luis Avilan recorded the final three outs to complete the combined four-hitter. Josh Onomah Jersey. . Morales lasted only 4 2-3 innings, giving up five runs and three walks and five hits, including three homers. Johnson added to the lead with his two-run homer off Nick Masset in the eighth. "This Atlanta club hits the ball in the seats," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. "Thats what they do. "A couple of balls got elevated and they hit them out." Gattis hit his first homer off Morales with one out in the second, a towering shot that sent centre fielder Charlie Blackmon crashing into the wall near the 400-foot mark. Upton walked with one out in the fourth before Gattis lined his second homer of the day about 12 rows deep into the left-field seats. Left fielder Carlos Gonzalez took one step to his right before standing and watching the homer quickly reach the seats. "I tried to use both sides of the plate, but sometimes I missed my spots and thats why I got hit," Morales said. Teheran didnt look sharp early. Blackmon and Michael Cuddyer had back-to-back singles to open the game before Teheran recovered with three straight outs. In the second, a single by Charlie Culberson and fielding error by second baseman Tyler Pastornicky on D.J. LeMahieus grounder put runners on first and second with one out. Following a sacrifice by Morales, Teheran escaped the inning when shortstop Andrelton Simmons charged a grounder by Blackmon, who was out on a close play at first. NOTES: The three homers allowed by Morales set a season high. ... Josh Rutledge replaced Tulowitzki at shortstop. ... ... Gonzalez said Pastornicky and Ramiro Pena are not in a strict platoon at second base. Gonzalez said Dan Uggla would start "whenever we feel we can get a good matchup." ... The Braves open a two-game series against the Red Sox on Monday when RHP Ervin Santana faces Boston RHP Clay Buchholz. ... The Rockies move to Philadelphia, where RHP Jhoulys Chacin will face RHP Kyle Kendrick on Monday. Cheap Canadiens Jerseys Cheap Predators Jerseys Cheap Devils Jerseys Cheap Islanders Jerseys Cheap Rangers Jerseys Cheap Senators Jerseys Cheap Flyers Jerseys Cheap Penguins Jerseys Cheap Sharks Jerseys Cheap Blues Jerseys Cheap Lightning Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Cheap Canucks Jerseys Cheap Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Capitals Jerseys Cheap Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '