Past Barry O'Connor - delisted 2022

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Barry O'Connor
Barry O’Connor made the challenging switch from Gaelic football to Australian rules football when the Sydney Swans signed him as an International Category B Rookie in 2019. O’Connor, who hails from county Wexford on Ireland’s east coast, has trained as a key defender ever since arriving at the Swans at the beginning of the 2020 pre-season, with his marking ability, strength and speed his key attributes. His move to the Swans has linked him with assistant coach Tadhg Kennelly, from county Kerry, and teammate Colin O’Riordan, from county Tipperary.

Barry O'Connor
DOB: 26 June 1998
DRAFT: #Undefined, 2019 Other
RECRUITED FROM: County Wexford (Ireland)

 
I posted on this a little while ago, and you are correct. The Swans' strike rate on Irish players is about 20-25% which is pretty much the same as the standard rookie success rate.

About 80% of these players will fail (same goes for all the other rookies talked up on this board)

Surely sample size should matter no?

If there are 40 rookies drafted after 50 or so other players then the fail rate would be naturally high.
International recruits are hand picked to the point where I'm guessing there are only 1 or 2 every year on average, yet shares the same fail rate.
 

RobbieK

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Aug 20, 2009
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Surely sample size should matter no?

If there are 40 rookies drafted after 50 or so other players then the fail rate would be naturally high.
International recruits are hand picked to the point where I'm guessing there are only 1 or 2 every year on average, yet shares the same fail rate.

They are hand picked, but hand picked from a population that has never played the game before and have to travel to the other side of the world to try and make it against people who have been playing it all their lives. They are often more speculative than local rookies in that regard.
 
Oct 14, 2016
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Good luck Barry, we're with you all the way

You forgot the rest of the sentence

we’re with you all the way... until we’re against you and then you’re dead to us... and we’ll remind you of this fact long into your retirement and throughout the past players thread.

Insert maniacal laughs 😈

have I done that right...? or are my main board visits starting to rub off?
 

Gman12

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Apr 8, 2009
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They are hand picked, but hand picked from a population that has never played the game before and have to travel to the other side of the world to try and make it against people who have been playing it all their lives. They are often more speculative than local rookies in that regard.

thats exactly it. No player here dreams of playing AFL, it's something that might come along if they are decent at 18 or 19 and give a trial a go and then maybe a trip out to Australia for a trial. If it works, great, if it doesnt, so be it. It's a contributory factor to failure rates of Irish players, AFL isnt their first love and then being away from family and team mates grown up with.

Also the success of players is very much at odds with the ability of GAA. Tommy Walsh was named the equivalent of Rising star and also All Australian (15 players named, not 22) and was an exceptional GAA player already at top level. Zac Tuohy was a nice handy player at half back on a Laois under 18 team that had a good year, but would have been players on his own team, nevermind elsewhere, that would have been rated much higher than him. There is no guaranteed success in converting a player over and whilst the skills are somewhat similar, adapting to the game is very much unforeseen and unknown as to how a player will go.
 

Mick Oxlong

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I posted on this a little while ago, and you are correct. The Swans' strike rate on Irish players is about 20-25% which is pretty much the same as the standard rookie success rate.

About 80% of these players will fail (same goes for all the other rookies talked up on this board)
Very very happy with this!

Good luck Bazza. Pumped to see you line up in 2020.
Surely sample size should matter no?

If there are 40 rookies drafted after 50 or so other players then the fail rate would be naturally high.
International recruits are hand picked to the point where I'm guessing there are only 1 or 2 every year on average, yet shares the same fail rate.

Showdown at Mod HQ!
 

Crust

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Jun 9, 2016
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Just dont see the benefita of drafting a guy thats never played the game before compared to kids who have been playing for 12-15 years

It's not all bad news. One of the advantages about non-local recruits is that they don't have 12-15 years of poor kicking habits to be broken down and replaced with good habits.
Tadhg, Zac Tuohy, the great Jim Stynes, Mike Pyke all developed good skills because they have or had athletic ability, and were taught correct technique.
 

Wolftone

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Without knowing the actual success rate or hit rate of a drafted rookie, but is it any different to that? There are what, up to 80 players drafted every year, 40 or so through the rookie draft (with players doubled up being re entered this way) and 30 or so entered through Cat B rookies or supplemental drafting. Thats about 150 players every year, of those, how many end up "successful"? The Irish selections stand out more because there is a bit of hype with a player coming in from abroad, but I wouldnt have thought their actual progress was much different to a standard rookie being drafted?

I could be way off on those figures too, only going on averages and estimates.

Hoping Barry goes well for Sydney though. He's a good lad and has a great attitude.
Look first draft picks can be duds too. If they are Rookies they are not really expected to make it. But we have a better record with Rookies than any other club

On ANE-LX2J using BigFooty.com mobile app
 
why so happy
Always a big supporter of the Irish lads as I follow (not very closely albeit) Gaelic footy and so I knew the name! A legendary name in Ireland sport (in particular Hurling).

So from great "stock", already 193cm and looks well built for his age. He's young but has already has exposure to (& seemingly excelled at) Gaelic footy, Hurling, Soccer & Rugby (among other sports)... The biggest tick for me though is all the comments about how good a decision maker he is (and having seen some vision it seems to be supported).

So I'm excited to see him run out and have a crack.
 
Irish recruit Barry O’Connor, secured as a Category B rookie, will make the number 35 jumper his own
 
Oct 2, 2016
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Article on him at training. Playing as a key defender

 
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