International football was a great experience - Joseph

Last updated : 11 July 2008 By Bigrich.....
Marc was eligible to play for Antigua through his dad, who by chance heard on the radio that they were looking for players.

So Joseph snr put his son's name into the hat and the Millers defender found himself playing international football during the summer with former Miller - Justin Cochrane

Speaking to todays Advertiser, the 31 year old explained; "I was asked to play for Antigua last season but my commitments at Rotherham meant I couldn't go out there. Luckily, they got through a game against Aruba, which meant they had a two-legged World Cup match against Cuba in the off season, so they asked me to go and participate.".

"The Antigua squad was in Ipswich for a fortnight so after my summer holidays I caught up with them and then flew back out to Antigua, where we had a training camp for two weeks before the first leg, which was played at the Vivian Richards Stadium."

"It was a good atmosphere. It wasn't a sellout but we had a few thousand fans there, which was good in a country that's more or less addicted to cricket."

"We lost 4-3, which was unlucky because they scored about five minutes from the end. People didn't give us much of a chance against them. We were the underdogs and were unfortunate to lose."

Marc spoke of the searing heat for the return leg in Cuba; "We had a couple of training sessions out there. I thought Antigua was hot until I got to Cuba. It was unbelievable."

"Unfortunately things didn't go to plan and we lost 4-0. If we had got through we would have been playing teams like USA and some of the bigger teams. It's unfortunate it didn't happen but we gave it a good go. "It was a good experience and it's something I'm glad I did. I got the chance to play for the country my dad was born in and a country that's close to my family and friends."

"I told the gaffer before I flew out that I wanted to go and do it for myself and get some experience. If I don't get a chance to play for them again then at least I can say I had the chance and took it."

"Depending on what happens here and time pressures, I'd like to play again," he said. "Antigua have a tournament coming up against local countries like Trinidad and Barbados. I'm never going to say never but it depends upon my commitments here." he added.

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