Irish manager Mick McCarthy has emphatically denied that he knew there was any problem with Tony Cascarino's Irish qualifications. Furious McCarthy rubbished claims in the 'Irish' Sun newspaper that the manager had known since 1996 that Cascarino was ineligible to play for Ireland.

The storm erupted in the launch of Big Cas's ghost-written autobiography, due to published next week. In it, the 88-times capped striker admits that he discovered in 1996 that the Irish grandfather through whom he claimed qualification was not, in fact, a blood relative.

Never the less, Cascarino was awarded an Irish passport and continued to play for the Republic.

Yesterday's Sun screamed 'Mick knew Tony was a phoney', claiming the Irish manager had known since 1996 that he was picking a player whose eligibility was in doubt.

But McCarthy said: "I found out last Wednesday because the journalist who wrote the book, Paul Kimmage, contacted me to give me a few days' advance warning. I was completely taken aback.

"I still regard Tony as an Irishman. I don't think he tried to deceive anyone. From my point of view there was never any question of his eligibility.

"Tony received an Irish passport in 1996 at the time when FIFA demanded all players have one and once he had it he felt - rightly, in my view - that he was entitled to continue playing for Ireland.

"I would never knowingly select a player unsure of his Irish qualifications."