Stephen Hunt: a Royal appointment

I spent a bit of one-on-one time with Stephen Hunt this week in Dublin. He’s just as you imagine him and a reporter’s dream as has been noted.

As well as making clear his opinion on the depressing and soporific Stephen Ireland saga and freaking out a bit when told Sky Sports News may have suggested he handed in a Reading transfer request Hunt admitted, though Roy Keane is his hero, he won’t play for him while he’s in charge of Ipswich Town. this year at least.

“As a player he was magnificent, to be fair to him. For United and Ireland he was exceptional; I went to see United when I was at Brentford and he was just different class,” he said.

“I never played with him and I don’t know the man. But as a player he was exceptional.”

“I read Keane’s book; I go through a phase whre I go through people’s books and highlight them and use the passages [for motivation] but I must have highlighted the whole thing. But I know Dunphy wrote it didn’t he?”

“I wouldn’t neccessarilty like to play for him now at Ipswich but who knows.”

After a well-deserved holiday, the Waterford man plans to keep fit in the close-season by training with the Wexford hurlers if he can get his way. And he admits he keeps in touch with the championship action here.

“I watched Cork play last week, unfortunately for you. But these things happen. But they look ok actually. They have a point to prove haven’t they and that’s why I think they do ok actually. Sean Óg (ÓhAilpín) did ok, didn’t he?”

“Tell Sean Óg I hurled the shit out of him when you see him. [The two took part in the Guinness hurling cube promotion last year]. Tell him to come over to me, actually.”

As we speak Ireland’s cricket players are preparing for their Super 8s showdown this week but their soccer-playing counterpart has little interest (“Do I bollocks!”).

“Therell be a hurley coming home with me anyway hopefully,” he says however, “I play golf all the time, handicap 11 so not too bad but I’m having a nightmare. I went on holidays and I’m beaten five days in a row – twice by (clubmate) Jay Tabb, once by a Corkman; Liam Miller. Not happy with it actually. And he milks it too.”

The last I see of the winger, he’s giddily dragging a suitcase through the doubledoors of a swanky city-centre hotel lobby. He’s heading for the airport and then he’s off on his hoildays.

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas – but maybe not when the ever-chatty Stephen Hunt is involved.