Past Irish Watch

[Paul D]

Caroline Wilson on 3AW today confidently annouced that the Lions were signing another Irishman over the split round. I assume that this means Gubby Allen is in Ireland at the moment.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Caroline Wilson on 3AW today confidently annouced that the Lions were signing another Irishman over the split round. I assume that this means Gubby Allen is in Ireland at the moment.

Very interesting. I got the feeling that after Begley was moved on that Voss may have flagged a move away from the Irish experiment.

Obviously not.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Link

The best part is, he was already a Lions/Vossy fan before we signed him!

Ulster tearaway Niall McKeever signs for Brisbane Lions

Andrew Hamilton | June 23, 2009 12:00am

BRISBANE have plucked another rising talent from the Emerald Island, signing Ulster speedster Niall McKeever to a two-year-deal.

It was struck on the weekend when Brisbane football manager Graeme Allan dropped by his home north of Belfast with a contract, some Lions gear and a couple of Sherrins with which to hone his skills.

Most players are first invited out on a trial basis, but McKeever has inked a two-year-deal as an international rookie and will join his teammates when they reconvene for the 2010 pre-season in November.

The 198cm, 95kg 20-year-old has caught the eye of several AFL clubs, having been a standout at player agent Ricky Nixon's talent identification camp at Mayo, the home county of future teammate Pearce Hanley.

He missed out on the International Rules series as a minor because the annual cross-code clash was cancelled, but would be on track for senior selection if he were available the next time the series was played.

McKeever will earn a minimum of $120,000 in the two years and more if he is elevated on to the senior list and starts to play games.

"I want to challenge myself as a professional sportsman. This has nothing to do with money," he said.

"I want the opportunity to train as a full-time athlete and see how far I can go."

McKeever has become a regular Saturday morning Irish couch potato as the national broadcaster presents a wrap of the previous weekend's AFL action.

On the day Allan visited his home in Portglenone, about 30 minutes north of Belfast, he was buzzing with excitement at Brisbane's round 12 victory over Hawthorn.

He said he first became interested in the game through the exploits of Sydney's Tadgh Kennelly and has followed fellow Ulsterman Martin Clarke's progress closely.

McKeever became a Lions fan when his brother, a recently graduated doctor, spent much of last year on the Gold Coast and started attending Brisbane's games.

His tales of the excitement and atmosphere of the games he relayed back home had McKeever dreaming of an AFL career.

He is also an avid fan of Lions coach Michael Voss and has watched videos of his past games.

"I am delighted. It is such a great opportunity for me to sign with an illustrious club like Brisbane," he said.

Allan said McKeever's greatest challenge was to master the art of kicking but was confident that if he could develop his foot skills he could develop into a good AFL player.

"He has the physical attributes to be a success, he is a good size and is very quick and we believe he could make a key defender," he said. "We've given him a contract, the rest is up to him."

McKeever has been a major driving force behind Antrim's unlikely charge at an Ulster championship.

The Northern Ireland county has been starved of success but is a win away from an Ulster County final against powerhouses Tyronne or Derry.

 

[brenjay]

hopefully another mitch clark!

 

[mish33]

Gee that was quick. I wonder why we signed him before getting him out here for a trial. Pressure from other clubs?

 

[Governor]

Seams he has already had a trial....
http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/news/irish-are-running-hot/2008/11/12/1226318743800.html

 

[mish33]

Yeah I saw that. But that was with the Richmond list. And they didn't sign him. It just seems strange to me that they didn't bring him out to the GABBA for a taster first. It feels hasty to me.

But in Gubby we trust

 

[Hollow Knight]

Yeah I saw that. But that was with the Richmond list. And they didn't sign him. It just seems strange to me that they didn't bring him out to the GABBA for a taster first. It feels hasty to me.

But in Gubby we trust

Ricky Nixon has held pretty in-depth trials over there.

 

[Lace Out]

I like his name.

 

[Hollow Knight]

I like his name.

Yeah, it has great verb potential.

"Franklin got absolutey McKeevered last night".

"Fev, you've been aNIALLated son".

 

[bears2lions]

BBC SPORT

McKeever signs for Brisbane Lions

Niall McKeever started his first Championship game against Donegal

Antrim footballer Niall McKeever has signed a professional contract with AFL outfit Brisbane Lions and will fly to Australia in November.

The 20-year-old was offered a contract last month after impressing in two trials and put pen to paper in his Portglenone home this week.

McKeever has joined the Lions on a two-year international rookie contract.

The Saffrons midfielder is expected to play an important role in this Saturday's Ulster SFC game with Cavan.

 

[BigCat2]

Wonder why we passed on Conor Meredith last year then, if we haven't given up on the Irish experiment. He was a pretty good prospect going by reports.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Wonder why we passed on Conor Meredith last year then, if we haven't given up on the Irish experiment. He was a pretty good prospect going by reports.

He was just another mid-sized running type IIRC. Vossy maybe thought we had enough of that sort.

 

[POBT]

He was just another mid-sized running type IIRC. Vossy maybe thought we had enough of that sort.

Then there are all of the unknowns - attitude, injury history, whether his arms were unnaturally short.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Link

Brisbane Lions earn reputation as caring club with Irish recruits

Andrew Hamilton in Belfast
June 27, 2009 12:00am

BLOOD, sweat, but no tears.

That's what it takes to recruit a footballer from Ireland.

The one about the Aussie who walks into town waving a chequebook and waltzes out with a GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) superstar is, quite simply, a bad Irish joke.

If you believe that, you might want to check the bottom of your garden for leprechauns.

Sure, some clubs have sneaked in incognito like cashed-up kidnappers on snatch and grab missions, and these practices have made for tense relationships between the AFL and the GAA.

Brisbane does it differently. Over the years football manager Graeme "Gubby" Allan has developed a wide network across the country, he wears his Lions gear and makes an effort to get to know the locals.

I joined Allan on the recent recruiting trip to sign Antrim speedster Niall McKeever and witnessed first hand the amount of networking and constant zigzagging across the country it takes to find footballers.

The blood came when we dropped by the Belfast parish of St Brigids at the request of former Gaelic footy star and TV and newspaper columnist Joe Brolly to donate a pint for one of the church's charities.

Giving blood is hardly martyrdom, but when it is done on the first full day in the country after a 26-hour trek across the world and a long day of driving, it can take its toll. On the two-hour drive through the Irish countryside late that evening to our next destination we were exhausted.

The sweat was given in Cavan, a small midlands County that is home to former Melbourne Demon Nick Walsh.

Nick is now Cavan's most senior player and a GAA employee. He is also a friend of the Lions, having visited Brisbane on educational trips to study their training practices.

The Cavan boys decided to stage a bid for entry into the Guinness Book of Records ... the money raised would be split between the town hospital and the local junior clubs.

They wanted to break the record of 1675 participants a charity group in England had gathered to run a continuous 100m relay over a 12-hour period.

Every able body in town took part - a bride and groom clad in their matrimonial attire interrupted their nuptials to take the baton. And finally a couple of ring-ins, an AFL football manager and a journo from Australia, who can now proudly add Guinness world record-holder to their resumes.

Again, a 100m run is not a lot of sweat to give, but it meant a few more hours in the car to support the GAA in a tiny county that is unlikely to provide too many AFL footballers.

It is simple acts like these that have earned "Gubby" the respect and in many cases the deep friendship of many in Ireland's footy industry.

The Irish see the Lions as a club that cares, that looks after their players and understands their culture - that is more comforting to any parent than the size of a contract.

That is why there are no tears.

 

[Hollow Knight]

Interesting to see that Brendan Murphy is leaving the Swans and going back home.

For those that don't remember, we nearly had him signed, sealed and delivered till Kennelly got in his ear.

Was considered by many to be the most promising Irish prospect yet.

 

[whatboutbob]

Lions among 5 clubs wanting to trial Gaelic football player of the year

County Donegal star Murphy is wanted for trial by the Brisbane Lions, Geelong, North Melbourne, Richmond and St Kilda. St Kilda cut another Irishman, Colm Begley, from its list yesterday.

 

[Grimreepah]

Donegal’s Michael Murphy with his award for Young Footballer of the Year

 

[Grimreepah]

AFL interest in Irish to end if latest exports fail -- Nixon
By Donnchadh Boyle
Saturday October 23 2010

"If they don't make it, then no one will waste their time or money going to Ireland I don't think. It's just too hard," says Nixon. "A good player from Ireland is probably going to get anywhere up to AUD$50,000 (salary) more than an Australian kid and on top of that comes relocation costs, the expense of flying him out here and flights for the parents and cars, you name it.

"What the AFL have done, in a roundabout way, is say to clubs 'you make the choice between an Aussie kids who could cost as little as AUD$33,000 or an untried Irish kid who could cost AUD$120,000."

The change in rules means that Irish imports are no longer considered overseas players and but are given 'project player' status, meaning they're competing against Australian youngsters for one of the eight spots in the rookie list each club holds. Previously, an Irish player could be held outside that list.

 

[Grimreepah]

Ricky Nixon

"My view is that the 'Irish experiment' could be dead within 12 months. We still have clients who want to have a look, but I'd have to say most of the clubs are dropping away pretty quickly."