Updated Mar 4th 2020, 12:19 PM

DAVID MEYLER GREW up the son of an All-Ireland winner.

His father John, a former dual player with Cork and ex-manager of the senior hurlers, was a crucial influence.

To make it as an Ireland international and Premier League footballer though, you need the help of several people.

Really, he had several footballing fathers. But his dad was especially pivotal.

“It 100% helped me,” he tells The42. “As now I’m a father of two, it’s finding a balance of how much you want your child to have it and how much your child wants it themselves. That’s the big thing.

“I always turned to my dad and was like: ‘I want to be a professional footballer. I want to play in England. I want to play for Ireland.’ He made sure I had everything available to me and steered me on the right path to do that. I wanted it more than he wanted it for me.

“So growing up, that was a massive thing and he helped me get better. I wouldn’t have been able to fulfill my potential or fulfill what I had without someone like him driving me on.

“It’s almost as if you want to outshine them. My dad won an All-Ireland with Cork in ’86, he won a lot with Finbarrs locally. As he keeps reminding me, my dad played with Ireland colleges.

“I wanted to go on and be successful. I’ll never forget the day my son was born. My dad was over in England. He said: ‘That’s it like.’ I said: ‘What do you mean?’ I was confused. He said: ‘My job is done now and it’s over to you.’ I looked at him. ‘I’ve given you the platform to do everything. Now, it’s your turn. I didn’t do half bad. Now you’ve got to try to beat me.’ It’s almost as if there’s been this competition that we want, which has always been healthy, but it’s driven us to success.”

David’s father John is former manager of the Cork hurlers.

Source: Laszlo Geczo/INPHO

John was not the only one who had a big influence on a young David. His mother, Stella, was an international swimmer and pushed for him not move to England at a young age, despite receiving an offer to do so.

“My mother didn’t want me to go. She was right. I was too immature. I was too hyper. Too giddy in the classroom. I was just a hyperactive child, who couldn’t sit still and wouldn’t listen. If I’d gone to England at 15 or 16, I’d have been home three or four years later. I think that’s the truth and I can only be honest.

Meyler’s mother didn’t get her way amid another dilemma though — around sixth year, he dropped out of school, foregoing the Leaving Cert, in order to sign professionally for Cork City.

However, the teenage midfielder had only got a handful of senior games under his belt before English football came calling again.

“I’ve heard different things. I believe Johnny Fallon Senior saw me playing a game, happened to do a bit of scouting, spoke to Roy Keane, Roy Keane then sent someone to look at me, something along those lines, and then I was invited over for a trial for Sunderland, I did okay. And then it was just coming to an agreement with Cork City of how much they had to pay for me. I’ve been told that by several different people, so I’d take value from that.”

Meyler was attending an event in Dundrum Town Centre where fans had an opportunity to take selfies with the Champions League trophy.

Meyler had idolised Keane during his childhood. All of a sudden, the Manchester United legend had gone from being a near-mythical figure to his boss.

“It was surreal,” he recalls. “I’d grown up in Cork watching this fella play football, thinking: ‘I want to be like him.’ He’s pretty modest in the way he speaks about himself as a player, but he was exceptional in everything he did — his passing, his desire, his work rate, his effort. He could even score goals when he needed to, he was a complete midfielder.

“The chance to work with him, I felt he could improve me even if I could take a bit out of him, even from the time I was with Ireland, you’re still picking his brain. What can I get better at? He was very good to me and I owe him a lot for the majority of things I achieved in my career.”

And was the young Meyler somewhat intimidated by an iconic figure like Keane?

“As I got older and worked under different managers from Steve Bruce to Martin O’Neill at times, you took a bit of a tongue lashing. But a lot of the time, you probably do deserve it — that’s what people forget. Certain players think they’re being picked on, but I always tried to prove them wrong. I looked them in the eye and said: ‘I’ll prove you wrong.’ So I loved it.

“It almost felt to me as if they cared. They wanted you to do well and this is what they were trying to make you do better. I never had a problem with it.

“Some people can’t handle it. Mind you, I experienced 15 years of my dad giving it to me before I had it off them. So I was well used to it.”