It ended with two grannies...and perhaps it could be reignited by one grandmother.

Ireland assistant manager Roy Keane has revealed that he bumped into one of Stephen Ireland's grandmothers on a flight this week and added that she had asked him if he could recall her grandson to the national team setup.

As we all know, the Stoke midfielder entered a self-imposed Ireland exile after it emerged that he had lied about the death of not one, but two grandmothers in 2007 as a means of withdrawing from a squad.

In recent months, there have been indications that he could return to the squad, although nothing concrete has materialized yet.

But if Ireland's grandmother has anything to do with it, the 27-year-old midfielder will get a recall.

"I spoke with the grandmother this morning. She was on the flight coming over and asked me would he get back involved.  I couldn't lie to her. I said he'd have a chance if he's playing well. I think Martin had a conversation with him, and all that needs to fall into place," said Keane at an event at University College Cork, confirming that the door was not shut.