sentences:  Born in Cork, County Cork, McCarthy began his career as a trainee with Brighton & Hove Albion, where he made over 200 league and cup appearances before joining Wycombe Wanderers for a fee of £100,000 in July 1996.He made over 250 appearances for Wycombe in seven seasons at the club, helping the club to a FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool in April 2001.He scored Wycombe's first goal in their quarter-final win over Premier League side Leicester City, paving the way for Roy Essandoh to score the winner.