IT was supposed to be a day of celebration for James McClean -- but cyber haters set out to ruin it.
The soccer star closed down his Twitter account last night amid a tirade of abuse.
McClean (below), who was born in Derry, has ignored taunts from people who argued he should play for Northern Ireland. But the abuse hit a new level last night after he was selected by Giovanni Trapattoni for the Republic's Euro 2012 squad.
One of the messages -- thought to be from a 16-year-old in Belfast -- warned that he would be murdered.
"F**k up, you dirty fenian b*****d. I'll make sure you get shot when you set foot back in God's country," the message said.
McClean (23) responded: "Love the dogs abuse I'm getting off shocked NI fans. Just worry about watching your own country at the Euros ... Oh wait, #mybad #awkward."
The FAI welcomed McClean's decision to close his account: "It's a pity that it has come to this, but it is in his best interests in the short term," said a spokesman.
The PSNI said that it would not be discussing the death threats but confirmed it would investigate any threat on a person's life.
hnews@herald.ie