Merseyside’s Irish connection: Newspaper selects Liverpool and Everton’s greatest Irish XIs

Some great players have graced the red and blue jerseys down the years

In honour of St Patrick's Day, the Liverpool Echo newspaper have played out a fictional Merseyside derby between the finest Irishmen to have lined for Liverpool and Everton, and we have to say we'd be more than happy to into battle with either of these sides. Everton: Pat Jennings Tommy Clinton Richard Dunne Lee Carsley Mick Meagan Billy Bingham Kevin Sheedy Peter Farrell Tommy Eglington Bobby Irvine Norman Whiteside Sub: Dave Clements Liverpool: Elisha Scott Steve Finnan Phil Babb Mark Lawrenson Steve Staunton Ray Houghton Ronnie Whelan Jason McAteer Robbie Keane John Aldridge Steve Heighway Sub: Sam English It's hard to have toom many quibbles with either of these sides, but Seamus Coleman would have every right to feel hard done by when this team was read out in the dressing room, while James McCarthy and Darron Gibson haven't yet done enough at the club to warrant inclusion (although Pat Jennings is there despite never actually playing a game for the Toffees). And yes, they really did leave out Killa Kevin Kilbane. The Liverpool side is less contentious, where 'the only selection dilemma was whether to push Steve Staunton into centre-half, where he played regularly towards the end of his career, in order to accommodate Jim Beglin. But we think Babb and Lawrenson would make a better partnership'.