James Vincent’s dream of playing international football for Northern Ireland is over but it will not stop him trying to keep Inverness at the top of the Premiership table.
The 23-year-old Glossop-born player thought he qualified through his grandfather but is not eligible to play for Michael O’Neill’s side.
He said: “It looks like Northern Ireland won’t be happening. My agent had mentioned it and we thought I might have qualified through my grandfather.
“It turns out it was his father who would have qualified, so it looks like being one relative too far.
“It’s a shame because it would have been great. Every player would like to have a chance at international level.
“I am not saying I would have been picked, far from it, but it would have been nice to have the chance.
“My agent is still looking into it but it seems like it is not to be. The main thing for me is Inverness and focusing on doing well for the club.”
Hibs head north this weekend after Inverness defeated Dundee to book a home quarter-final League Cup tie against Dundee United and midfielder Vincent wants to make amends for a below-par display at Dens Park.
He added: “The manager (Terry Butcher) gave us a couple of days off after the Dundee game because we had not met the standards we usually set.
“He told us to go away and think about things then come back in ready for the Hibs match.
“We have been really strong this season but whether you win or lose the manager encourages us to think about what we have been doing.
“There have been a lot of positives so far but we were not happy with the performance at Dundee.
“We went into the next round but we could easily have been knocked out.
“We need to turn the negative things from Tuesday night into positives for the Hibs match.
“We are at home and we have won three times in front of our own supporters this season. We have dominated teams in Inverness and we will look to do the same again this weekend but it won’t be easy.”