Kevin Doyle is expecting to have his leg pulled by Wolves boss Mick McCarthy when he returns to his club after one of the biggest nights of his life.
The 25-year-old striker will follow in McCarthy's footsteps when he captains the Republic of Ireland in their friendly against World Cup hosts South Africa at Thomond Park.
Doyle said: "I am sure he will have a laugh on Thursday when I meet back up. I don't know how many times he was captain, but he did a great job."
He added: "I am sure I won't have the privilege of being captain as many times as he was and in major tournaments like he was, but it's still an honour for me.
"I just phoned my parents and they were delighted. They didn't expect me to be playing in the game, so for them to hear I was going to be made captain, they were delighted.
"Very few people get to captain their country. It's a friendly game but to me, that doesn't make any difference.
"I will remember it - you never know when I will get the chance again. There are five or six lads who have more caps than me and would have been ahead of me, so I will relish every second that I get to be captain."
Doyle will be one of only three men - Sean St Ledger, provided his knee problem does not resurface, and Keith Andrews are the others - who started in Nicosia in line to do so again.
The likes of Keiren Westwood, Liam Lawrence, Darron Gibson and Caleb Folan, who will all play, have only a handful of caps between them.
Copyright (c) PA Sport 2009, All Rights Reserved.
