Nations Cup fixtures out

Republic: Take on Wales in opening game

The full match schedule is:
Feb 8: Republic of Ireland v Wales
Feb 9: Northern Ireland v Scotland
May 23: Republic of Ireland v Northern Ireland
May 24: Wales v Scotland
May 26: Wales v Northern Ireland
May 27: Republic of Ireland v Scotland

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The Carling Nations Cup fixtures have been announced with the Republic of Ireland playing Wales in the opening game.

The tournament takes place in Dublin in 2011 with Scotland and Northern Ireland also competing.

The first game sees Giovanni Trapattoni's Republic face managerless Wales on February 9 with Northern Ireland taking on Craig Levein's Scotland the following day.

Trapattoni said: "The Carling Nations Cup is a tournament that we would very much like to win, particularly playing at home in Dublin.

"The matches will provide us with a good opportunity to see our players in games with a real competitive edge at an important time in our bid to qualify for 2012."

Relishing

Northern Ireland boss Nigel Worthington is also relishing the tournament.

He said: "I am really looking forward to the Carling Nations Cup, as competitive games against our neighbouring countries don't come around too often.

"There are bragging rights at stake here, not only for the fans but also for the players as no-one will want to lose against their closest rivals.

"Northern Ireland are more than capable of winning this tournament and we hope to get off to a good start against Scotland in February."

Levein added: "Now that the schedule has been announced we are really looking forward to our visit to Dublin next year.

"This exciting new competition brings together four groups of passionate fans and also allows me to test my squad, in a competitive environment, in the middle of our Euro 2012 qualifying campaign."

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