Magennis targets 100 caps as World Cup game looms

Josh Magennis says he is dreaming of winning 100 caps for Northern Ireland as he prepares for their World Cup play-off in Italy.

The 35-year-old Exeter City striker is one of his country’s most experienced players with 86 caps so far and is relishing the game in Bergamo on Thursday.

Should Northern Ireland win, they would travel to face either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina in a one-off match the following Tuesday with World Cup qualification at stake.

“I think the motivation for me, whether that’s scoring 15 goals in one season, playing every single minute of one game, it’s to get 100 caps,” he told BBC Radio Devon.

“The only way to do that is perform at Exeter and try and do well. But I’m still chasing that, whether I attain that or not, that’s not up to me, but that will always be my motivation.

“If I don’t attain that it would be absolutely criminal of me to have any ill feeling because I’ve had 80-odd caps before that that have been absolutely sensational and every one of those have meant the world to me and more.

Magennis was part of the Northern Ireland squad that qualified for the 2016 European Championship – their first major tournament since the 1986 World Cup.

The former Wigan, Hull City, Charlton and Bolton striker played in two group matches and the last 16 defeat by Wales in France and knows how important it would be for his country to reach the World Cup.

“For Northern Ireland we haven’t managed to attain that since the 1980s,” he said.

“We have the likes of Jimmy Nicholl, who’s on our staff, Gerry Armstrong, Pat Jennings, when you see these lads, they always tell you about what it was to play for your country.

“Most importantly it brings the country together. When we were at Euro 2016 all the fan zones, everything was green and white

“When we came back and the way we were welcomed it was something I’ve never witnessed before, so it’s not just personally but together as a country it would be unbelievable.”

Magennis is aware that time is not on his side after a 17-year professional career that has seen him play in all three tiers of the English Football League and the top flight in Scotland.

He has seen his chances at Exeter narrow in recent months due to the form of fellow forward Jayden Wareham, but Magennis says he is fit and ready for selection.

“I’m not at the stage now where I’m having to have down days or days inside or anything like that,” he added.

“I’m still training as much as the other lads, I’m still contributing as much as the other lads and I’m just making sure that that I’m fit and available and when I’m needed I can contribute in some way.

“I think it would be different if if I was just hanging on for the sake of hanging on and I was cheating myself or cheating my country – I would never do that.