Jamie McGrath keen to repay courageous Stephen Kenny in Amsterdam

Jamie McGrath is not writing Stephen Kenny off just yet, and the Aberdeen midfielder is looking to sign off the Euro 2024 qualifying campaign on a high with a victory away from home against the Netherlands.

Ireland's attempt to qualify for next summer’s showpiece was always going to be a tough task, placed in a group with European heavyweights France and the Dutch, however, the campaign failed to ever ignite and while the expected defeats came against the big two, the real disappointing factor was losing home and away to fourth-seeded Greece.

The manager’s fate has yet to be decided and his three-year tenure will be appraised by the FAI board following Tuesday night’s friendly with New Zealand at Lansdowne Road.

And McGrath - an injury doubt ahead of Saturday's game - is hoping that the manager will be given more time to work with the emerging squad, which has been totally transformed over the past few years.

"We don't know for sure," said McGrath, when it was suggested that this was likely to be his last competitive match in charge. "But of course we want to [get him the result].

"We want to finish the campaign on a high. Every time you play in the green shirt, you have to do the jersey proud, but of course we always give our best for the gaffer.

"And personally, he's been really, really good for me and my career. He gave me a chance at Dundalk and obviously brought me up here to get my first cap. So yeah, of course we’ll do it all for him as well."

McGrath, more than any other player in the squad, has built a long-term relationship with the manager having first worked under Kenny as part of the all-conquering Dundalk team of the last decade, so it is no surprise that he would be supportive in what may be the last days of his