John Egan opens up on Sheffield United captaincy standards and Jack O’Connell example

John Egan has opened up on the art of captaincy at Sheffield United after he succeeded legendary striker Billy Sharp as the Blades’ club skipper earlier this year. Egan has been at Bramall Lane for five seasons now and turns 31 next month but has vowed to keep improving himself “as a person and a player” until the day he hangs up his boots.

The £4m United paid Brentford for the Republic of Ireland defender must rank as one of the best value-for-money signings in the club’s history as he prepares to make his 222nd Blades appearance in all competitions this weekend at Tottenham Hotspur. Egan went into the international break as something of an injury concern but he played 90 minutes for Ireland against France, being withdrawn with 15 minutes or so to go in defeat to the Netherlands on Sunday.

Egan wore the armband in Sharp’s absence last season so his ascension to United’s club captain was not the biggest surprise, but it is an honour the defender is not taking lightly. “There are bits that come with it but Billy Sharp was an unbelievable club captain so I learned a lot from him,” he said. “Having the armband a lot last season gets you used to it. It’s about me doing what I do and the added responsibilities off the field come with it.

“It’s something I relish. I’ve been here a long time and I’m very familiar with the club; what it means to play for Sheffield United and what it takes to get the fans off their seats. It’s just about trying to drill that into people coming into the building and set standards in training every day.

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“I think [the standards] come from the lads who’ve been here a long time now and the way the training is. When I first came I learned it straight away, just from seeing the tempo of the training. It has to be high intensity here. When it’s not, that’s the time to speak and get it back. Down the years when we’ve been at our best training has been intense every day.”

Egan also wore the armband in previous stints at Gillingham and Brentford and describes Sharp and Ireland teammate Seamus Coleman as two skippers he has enjoyed playing under and learning from. “I don’t look to mould myself into anything; I am my own man,” he insisted. “Sharpy was a brilliant captain here for the last five years I’ve been here; at international level Seamus is a fantastic captain and I’ve learnt a lot from him too.

“It’s these kind of guys you really look up to. When I was younger John O’Shea was captain at Sunderland when I was a young player coming through. I’m getting used to the role now but it’s up to me to keep improving myself as a person and a player. I don’t want to stop trying to improve until the day I finish and trying to drive standards around me. We’ve got a lot of experience in the changing room who have that mindset anyway and a lot of leaders in the group.

“A huge example the last couple of years was Jack O’Connell, who hadn’t been playing but was still coming in every day setting a huge example, leading in his way. I could go through a good five, six, seven lads who do the same; setting examples every day for people to look at and be inspired by. Which is what we like to create here.“