There are some moments that stop you. Josh Cullen found himself scrolling through the previous list of FAI senior international player of the year winners - McGrath, Aldridge, Staunton, Houghton, Townsend, Duff, Dunne, Brady.
The names staring back at him were like landmarks dotted along the roadway travelled by the Ireland football team, from Stuttgart to Genoa and from New Jersey to Lille. Roy and Robbie were there as well, of course. Players bigger than the game.
And now, forever more, Cullen’s name too will be attached to the list. He’s now part of that story, part of the never-ending journey. The 26-year-old Burnley midfielder has become the 32nd footballer to win the FAI’s senior player of the year accolade, recognition of his composed and commanding displays for Stephen Kenny’s side.
“It’s a huge honour,” he admitted. “I was only looking at the list of everyone who has won the award. To get myself on the same list as plenty of Irish footballing legends is brilliant, so it’s a huge honour for me and my family. It took me by surprise, but it was a very nice surprise to start off this week.”
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Having the surprise delivered by Paul McGrath at the team hotel on Monday night capped off the moment. McGrath, a two-time winner of the award, also presented the Ireland players with their caps for the year.
“To have a legend of Irish football like that to come in and speak a little bit about his career and pass a bit of advice on was great and a huge honour,” admitted Cullen.
“It was very nice of him to give up his time to come and give us our caps and have a little chat with us. It was an enjoyable evening.”
And this has been an enjoyable chapter in Cullen’s career. He joined Burnley from Anderlecht in July, a move that saw him reunited with Vincent Kompany - who had managed him with the Belgian outfit.
“I think internationally and with my club over the last couple of years I have improved as a player and worked hard on my game,” he said.
“There is always improvement, there are weaknesses in everybody’s game you want to improve on, and also the strengths you want to go from being good to great at.
“I think the day you stop trying to get better and improving as a player is the day your career is probably coming to an end and for me that is obviously a long way away and I’ll keep trying to improve every day.”
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Cullen’s grounding came through the academy system with West Ham United but he has been flourishing since moving to Turf Moor, making 18 starting appearances in Burnley’s 21 Championship games so far this season. The Clarets are currently top of the table, having collected 41 points.
“Yeah, obviously we’re in a good spot at the minute, but we know that we are not even halfway through the season in terms of games played so there is still a very long way to go.
“But with a lot of changes in the squad and obviously a new manager coming in and gelling a new squad together, I think we can be happy with the first period of the season. There’s a little break now while the World Cup is on and then it’s back to business, hopefully we can take off from where we’ve finished.”
With promotion back to the Premier League a realistic target for Burnley, the year ahead is stuffed with potential for Cullen. He has become an ever-present in Kenny’s Ireland teams too and so the prospect of sell-out qualifiers against France and the Netherlands are also on the horizon.
“Yeah, these are the years that you dream of as a young player and a young lad growing up,” he stated.
“To be able to represent your country in massive qualifiers we have coming up in the next year and to have the opportunity to try to fight and get into the Premier League is a massive thing in my career as well. I’m really looking forward to the future and what lies ahead.”
Cullen has played in the Premier League already. During his time with West Ham he made three brief top-flight appearances between 2015-18.
“I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself and start talking about being in the Premier League before we get there,” cautioned Cullen.
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“But as a player I feel like I’ve improved, I’ve developed a lot of experience throughout different leagues, obviously my time at Anderlecht helped me see a totally different side of the game.
“I feel I’m a much better player now than I was then and if we can gain promotion I’ll be feeling like I’m well equipped and ready for the challenge of the Premier League.”
Cullen has shown to be calming presence around the middle for Ireland and he possesses an innate ability to read the game. Leading the Ireland midfield is something he is ready to do.
“Obviously you come into the squad and you make a few appearances and you’re feeling your way in. But as you grow your experience of playing in big games and being a more familiar face, naturally a bit more responsibility comes and a bit more of a role as a leader, I suppose. That’s something I enjoy. It’s something I’m willing to take on and lead in any way I can.”
