Brendan and Aaron McCloskey

Brendan McCloskey

“I joined the club in 1986 – I previously played for Commedagh for a while, but when I went to La Salle were Bukey was my history teacher in 3^rd year. There was a fella called Danny McCabe as well- he was a smashing footballer- and Danny lived in Glencolin. All the Glencolin lads at that stage were playing for Lámh Dhearg. Bukey asked me if I fancied coming and moving across and I said yes no problem”.

“I got my transfer and moved up the Hill- I think it was at the end of my last year of U-14 season- in those days you could move in the middle of the season. It was mad because in those days I lived in St Meyrl- so you had to walk up the Glen Road and the odd time Shaker [McGarry] would collect you; when he was finished picking up all the head-cases from Lenadoon- he would collect you at the bottom of Hannahstown Hill and bring you up. A lot of the times you just had to walk up, I’d have walked from my Ma and Da’s house in St Meryl, up the Monagh bypass and up the Upper Springfield Road to get to training and matches. Kids now-a-days wouldn’t understand that you were doing that sort of stuff”.

“One thing that I always remember about Lamh Dhearg- it was the only club in the world that used to give you socks and shorts as well. It was always a real special thing because Tonto was mad about washing the rig and he’d arrive, and not only would he give you your top, but you also got your socks and shorts. We mightn’t have been the best U-16 football team, but we were probably the most well turned out football team”.

“My Da would have been a real GAA man- but he would have been a Sarsfields men. At that stage- they were up in Stewartstown when I was kid and I didn’t know too many people up there. My Da was Sarsfields man and him and his brothers would have played County hurling for Sarsfields. My great grandfather was a guy called ‘blink’ McCloskey. He was a bookmaker on the Colinview Road and because he was a bookmaker on the Colinview Road- they all played for Sarsfields because they played out of Dover Street. They had obviously moved up to Stewartstown- but at that stage they hadn’t really got a pitch but my Da was mad into the GAA”.

“Whenever I went to school- I went to St Teresa’s school and teacher was a guy there was called Paul Curran- who was a Rossa man. He taught us a lot of Gaelic football and a lot of hurling as well. I played for the primary school teams and when I went to La Salle, things were a bit more serious. Buke and Sean McGourty were the coaches at La Salle”.

U-16 and Minor:

“Coming to Lámh Dhearg was the best decision I ever made- our U-16 and Minor changing room was full of a lot of characters- a lot of guys that are still involved in the club today. The likes of big Gavin [Brown], Colm McCabe, Micky McGuigan, Stevie McFadden, Kevy Finnegan, Dee O’Connor, Micky Brady and Archie Boyd. There are boys that aren’t involved anymore but were good club men too- Davy McGarry jnr, Mark Mulligan and Gary Agnew. They all played in the U-16 and Minor team, we played Division Two and were never really a Division One team”.

“The real talented footballers were in the minor team the year below us with the likes of Paddy Tumelty and all those sort of boys. We’d a couple of good players- big Colm [McCabe] went onto play county and big Gavin Brown as well. Stevie McFadden was a very talented footballer as well in them days- but the year behind us was the coming together of the team that won the U-21 championship in 1992- there was a lot of talent”.

“Jim Agnew always said that the full-back line in our U-16 and minor team was one of the best full-back lines he’d ever seen. Gavin [Brown] played full-back, Stevie Vincent played in one corner and I played in the other corner. Stevie and I did the enforcing- if there was any rows that broke out it was me and Stevie that were doing the clipping and Gavin never wanted to get his hands dirty. Big Gavin was there to catch the ball, he didn’t want to get involved in any of the fisticuffs off the ball- I always remember that about him”.

“My mentors- mostly through U-14, U-16 and minor would have been Bukey, Jim Brady and Tonto would have been the three guys that stayed with us right through. The odd time Barney Herron would have been involved in it, but it was mostly the other three guys with the football. I don’t remember if we had an U-16 hurling team- I know we had a minor hurling team because we had the likes of Barry Armstrong, Tommy Mervyn, Gary Agnew and Micky McGuigan would have played minor hurling and Kieran Megraw would have taken them up until minor”.

“We never really won much, we always played Division Two – we would have won the odd scrap, but we didn’t really win many matches to be honest with you. Yet Bukey stuck at it and we were big into the training. In those days I remember minor training in the dark up in Lámh Dhearg pitch. There were no floodlights and it was just running laps and laps and laps. Everyone who played in those days would have remembered that you used to run in two lines, whenever Buke blew the whistle – the back two had to sprint to the front and we probably had to do that routine for three years. That was a different day and time as well- I always the remember the craic in the changing room was unbelievable afterwards, the craic in the team was unbelievable and it’s good to see so many of them guys are still involved in the club”. 

Venture into Rugby:

“When I 16 I also started to play rugby as well as Gaelic football and that maybe stretched my allegiances a wee bit. Danny Fulton brought us to a rugby competition for non-rugby playing schools. I’d always had a big interest in rugby because in St Teresa’s there was a teacher called Harry Glover- he was mad into rugby and we played that”.

“When I went to the tournament I played really well and Willy Anderson-who had played for Ireland and was the Ireland coach- had asked me to and play at that stage for Malone-up on the Cregagh Road. I played rugby and Gaelic football, but I was picked for the Ulster U-18 club team for rugby as well. It was a time were I had to split my sport. The good thing was that rugby was a winter sport and Gaelic football was a summer sport. I was given a lot of concentration at the time”.

“The conflict was still going on at that stage, at that stage I was getting the bus into town and a bus over to the Cregagh Road to play for Malone. At that time, I was the only one from West Belfast- there were a couple of boys from St Malachy’s had gone along but I was the only one from west Belfast. I know for a fact that when I played for the Ulster club team- I was the only person from a nationalist back round to play for that team. To be honest it was one of the reasons why I stopped playing rugby- I got threatened one day because people found out that I was a nationalist from west Belfast. I ended up jacking it in when I was 21/22, I returned to it much later in my life when I was in my mid-late 30s; I played for the 4^th team at Instonians. I got threatened over in the Cregagh Road one night and I decided it wasn’t worth it because people were getting shot dead at that stage”.

“The ethos around the rugby club is very different from the ethos around a Gaelic football club. The ethos around a rugby club is built around schools, whereas Gaelic football club is built around family and parish. You seemed much more of a member of your family at a GAA club that at rugby. Considering I didn’t go to any of those schools- they all stuck to their schools and they were friends forever and ever. Whereas with us, if you played for the club for became a family and a parish”.

“I found that any Gaelic footballers that played rugby- their handling skills were much better than the rugby boys. I played corner-back and wouldn’t have been the fastest, but I probably would have been tough enough and hard enough to get round. When you transferred that skill back to rugby- there would have been no place to hid in a game of rugby. Your handling skills and kicking skills are a hell of a lot better too- if you come from Gaelic out to rugby- your handling skills and kicking skills are a lot better than most of those guys. If you look at the skills that you would learn at rugby that you could use in Gaelic football – tackling, dispossessing and strength in the tackle would probably be skills that you could definitely bring back to Gaelic football”.

My brother Kevin:

‘Cluckers’ was an exceptional footballer, he came from St Agnes’ in his last year at U-12. Bukey poached him- I laughed when I read about Gilly and Tony Stanley- Roy McLarnon pulled Bukey about the same with our Kevin – maybe he has a history of poaching players. I remember Bukey coming to me at school one day- I’d have been maybe 6^th year at this stage- he said, ‘is that your younger brother?’ I said aye and he said, ‘whys he not playing for the club?’ I said his mates are playing are playing for St Agnes’ and he said to get him up. I don’t think Roy McLarnon spoke to Bukey for about two-years after it”.

“Kevin was probably playing for our senior team when he was 16 or 17 but he was also a school-boy International soccer player. He played U-16 and U-18 and would have played in the Centenary Shield. He was scouted to go across to England and decided not to England and instead went to America in 1998”.

“He went to America in 1998 on a soccer scholarship to the University of Rio Grande- that was him basically finished playing Gaelic football, but he had played on the Antrim minor team in 1998 that had got to the Ulster final. He was the only Lámh Dhearg on the team- at the time. John Finucane did nets for that team but was still at St Enda’s at that stage”.

“Kevin scored five-points against Cavan in the semi-final and a point against Tyrone in the final. But that Tyrone team if you look at it- ten of them went on to win at least two All-Ireland’s”.

“He played on the County minor team and was a super Gaelic footballer -he’s have played with Terry McCrudden. McCrudden always says to me- It’s a pity your brother went to America and you stayed here. He was a super footballer and after he finished his University he played professional soccer for 4 or 5 years. He is now an analyst and commentates for ESPN on MLS. He owns a soccer coaching club as well. He still has a great affiliation for the club- every time he’s home he comes up to the club. He still wants to play one last game of reserve football. He turns 40 this year- he’s still fit enough to it and wants to play one last game of reserve football”.

Highlight of career:

“The highlight of my footballing career at the club was winning the 1992 U-21 football Championship. It was a fantastic year for the club, I remember the match really well- the Johnnies thought they had the match won and arrogance was hanging out of them. If you look at that U-21 team; 10 of them went onto play senior football for the club. You’d Daryl Fegan, Pearse Rice, Donal O’Hara, Colm McCabe, Micky Gorman, Kevy Finnegan .Anto Finnegan and Beansy Elliott were class players as well and Stevie McFadden. Dee Braniff had transferred from St Johns the year before and they’d try to nobble him the whole game, but he knew how to put the ball in the back of the net. Bukey, Jim Brady, Dodger, Shanty and Tonto took the team as well”.

“There were some exceptional footballers there and with the minor team that were the year behind us- that was a golden generation for the club for a long time. They won the minor football Championship and we won the U-21 in the same year. The U-16s won and you’d some exceptional talent coming through- you’d the likes of Paddy Bleakley coming through at that stage as well- they were smashing footballers. I played in that team and my cousin- Micky McCloskey- played on it as well and there were some smashing footballers on that team”.

“I remember that night clearly back up at the club with Paddy Tumelty. There was a song that was big at the time from the Coca-Cola ad and Paddy made up the song ‘It’s the feeling you get when you beat the Johnnies’. Paddy hadn’t much sense in his head- god love him. I can remember that night- it went on long into the night. We had a formal night where we went up to the Ballymac and had another celebration as well that year. That was a thing that will live with me for the rest of my life and was a highlight”.

St Johns revenge in 1993 and senior reserve :

“I remember in 1993, played them in the semi-final of the U-21 Championship but at that stage- because of the age bracket we’d lost the likes of big Colm [McCabe] and Stevie McFadden- they were too old to play U-21. We played them up in our club in the semi-final. It was a keenly contested game. I remember Bukey taking me off before I got sent off in the second half. That was always bitter because I thought we could have won 2-in a row then and we just got narrowly beaten in 1993”.

“After that I would have played senior reserve- I never made the senior team, but I played senior reserve for the next three or four years. I remember playing a game Jim Herron- we used to play a friendly against Coalisland Na Fianna at the start of the season. You would have played two games- a senior game and a reserve game. I remember playing with Jim Herron, he was playing midfield and was still a great footballer”.

“There was some really good reserve players- like Marty McCartney, Ray McCarthy, Bugsy and guys that were decent footballers and decent reserve footballers. The craic was brilliant but at that stage I was working and hadn’t really got the time to put into what I was going to do. In 1997-98 I moved to Dublin for work. I became detached and didn’t play football down there. I lived in Dublin and was working for ESAT-Digifone- who sponsored Cork. I worked for them for about three or four years in Dublin and when I got married we lived in Carryduff”.

“Then we moved down to Kilclief in County Down, we moved down there and we started to have a family down there. I transferred to Kilclief Ben Dearg – a lot of people from west Belfast would have known their chairman. Their chairman was a man called Malachy Sharvin, he was the head bar in the Hunting Lodge for many, many years. He had an. affiliation with St Johns and a lot of boys from West Belfast would have known him”.

“I loved playing there- it was one of the most beautiful places to play a match on the shores of Strangford Lough. When I’d played football at University one of my friends was a guy called Ruairi Sharvin or ‘Chester’ – he’d played for Down in the 1994 All-Ireland and was on the panel. I’d have known him, and they made me feel very welcome. We stayed there until our three kids were all born and moved back to West Belfast”.

“I’d dropped away from the club- Aaron had started to play FUNdamentals down there in Kilclief but when we got back to west Belfast- he didn’t want to play anymore football at that stage. I was 35 or 36 and my playing days were over- I was still playing rugby for the 4ths at Instonians but that was about the height of it”.

Comeback to the club and coaching:

“How I got involved again- Aaron started playing. I was just a parent who went along to watch the matches and caught up with people like Kevin Murray- who I hadn’t seen in a long time. His son Ross was playing, and I’d have probably played with Kevy when we were younger in reserve football, before he got onto the senior team”.

“I knew Dodger and I knew Tony Stanley and big Joe [McNeill] anyway – all the guys that were taking the team. One night in a moment of weakness, I was at the Devenish at the Juvenile presentation night and Tony Stanley tapped me on the shoulder. It was nearly like someone coming to rob you or get you to join a religious cult and he said to me ‘Peter-Martin needs a bit of a hand with that U-14 team and I think you’d be the man’. I volunteered and within about four-weeks Peter-Martin had stopped taking the team”.

“At that I hadn’t done my coaching courses or anything, so Dee McLaughlin came into take the team. I didn’t know Dee, but Dee know has become one of my best friends. I didn’t know him because he was younger than me- he would have been U-14 and done nets when I was in my last year of minor. I didn’t know him that well, but I have to say- me and him have become really good friends since it”.

“We’ve had a couple of Feile campaigns- Dee and I took the U-14 team and played in the B Championship. It was brilliant because we then got to Feile, we qualified out of the Antrim Feile C and played in Monaghan in 2017. We stayed in Ballybay and at that stage Beansy was helping us with the team, but he couldn’t go because of work commitments”.

“I’m going to tell you the type of messers we had on the team and how much work it was looking after them and for the weekend. You’d the children of the McGarry’s, the children of the McGuigan’s and the children of the Tumelty’s. The only good thing was, all Maura Tubridy had to do on the bus was turn round and look at them and there wasn’t a workout of them. Thank the lord Jesus for Maura- she was the enforcer- she didn’t need to say anything she just needed to look at them. You could imagine looking after those ‘yahoos’ (only joking great kids 🙂 ) for the entire weekend down at the Féile”.

“I’m going to tell you- I have never had as good a weekend in our life, we played at Ballybay and somehow we got out of our group. We to Iniskeen- which is where Monaghan play some of their games in their centre of excellence. We played our first game and won it and that was us through the quarter-final – which we won easily enough”.

“We played in the semi-final and it was all square in the last minute. We’d a free and referee said it’s the last kick of the game, Fionn Mervyn put the ball over from the sideline out of his hands. He was like Maurice Fitzgerald- it was one of the best points ever- ask Frankie Wilson. It was one of the best points I’ve ever seen in my entire life for us to win the match and put us into the final”.

“Unfortunalty we were beaten by Tuam All-stars in the final- that was a hell of a rollercoaster between elation of getting to the final where no fancied us- to getting beat. I can remember those players faces and the tears in the changing rooms – big men like Eamonn McGarry were coming in with tears in his eyes too. Grown men were crying and the kids were just so disappointed, but it was a hell of a rollercoaster and something that will live with me for the rest of my life. Those kids will remember that forever and ever- some kids will never play senior county football; some kids will never go beyond U-18 but a lot of those kids- that was their All-Ireland final that day”.

“it was fantastic and Beansy and Carso – I learnt so much from those guys coming through and helping out with the teams. Last year being in with the U-21s, I learnt so much from Deaglan Bunting. Watching his training and watching what he was doing- Deaglan is a lot younger than me but his knowledge is unbelievable. Myself, Tony, Deaglan, Dodger and Stevie jnr took the U-21 team and we had a great run to the final of the B Championship. I was the assistant to the assistant – I learnt a hell of a lot from listening to Tony [not so much Dodger] and Deaglan. Deaglan’s training knowledge is unreal and we’re so lucky to have that talent within our club. So lucky. I was to learn from the master himself [Buke] and that’s a big disappointment that I’m not going to be learning from Bukey this year. We’d the put together of a good minor team and we will come again”

“It’s been fantastic to watch, and a lot of those kids are coming through and are in the minor team and becoming adults. My own son Aaron, Dan Murray, Fionn [Mervyn] and Niall [McGarry]. It’s class to see and you see them growing up from being boys to being men and you know you’ve had an influence on them enjoying their sports in life. You see them all mates with each other outside of playing matches and hanging around the pitch. That just makes me feel good, I get more out of the GAA than the GAA got out of me”.

Lock-in rather than lock-down:

“It was good for me and Dee as well- the guy that we were staying with also owned a pub. We got a couple of real good lock-ins and the Chairman Mr Kane got a couple of lock-ins until 3 or 4 in the morning without having to look after the kids cause the kids were all staying with peoples families”.

Second Pitch Committee and progress:

“The pitch is so well run- we get what we want but what we’re lacking is a second pitch. Dodger rang me and asked me one day- would I like to be involved in his sub-committee for raising the money for the second pitch. Probably because of my background for sales and the fact that I have a brass neck and would ask anyone for money. I was brought into a committee that already had three or four enforcers in it”.

“You had the enforcer wee Joe [Finnegan] who – I would never like to meet if he was in the Gestapo during the 40s. ou’d Shanty and Fitzy; so, there was no getting away and the quiet man – Sean McElhatton- who’s a bit more persuasive. We came into that committee and I felt really welcome. I knew Shanty- Shanty was famous, if you were playing a match all you’d hear was ‘away the hell that with you referee’ for the entire game. I didn’t know Sean McElhatton and it’s been good to meet him, and it was good to meet Colm McKenna and Jim [Ferguson]. Jim is unbelievable”.

“We’ve had a fantastic growth in ladies football in the club and camogie- the fact that we’re very much a dual club means that we have to have a second pitch. Our dream is to have the facilities that attract the youth but also to enable our senior teams to go further and stronger. We’re hoping for more progress in the pitch in the next year or so, but we need people to commit the money. The response that we’ve had so far has been absolutely fantastic- from all of our members. Our members realise that, that pitch won’t be built without all of their help and support and we’re really thankful for that. Anyone who hasn’t signed up- we’ll come and ask you as well – but to have the response that we have, shows how great a club we have and how our members think about the club”.

Mens Shed:

“The Sunday afternoon men shed is where we discuss all of the current political, socio-economic topics of the day, talk nonsense, look at slow horses and sort all the Gaelic football problems out for the day. A lot of those guys have now become really good friends. Tonto, Eamon [McGarry], Terry [McCrudden snr], Dee McLaughlin, Peter Kane and James Martin and all those boys. The craic we have is unbelievable”.

“If anyone wants the world’s issues to be rationalised out- you should bring it up there and we’ll sort it out and get back to them and get back to them with white paper on a Monday. There’s nothing we don’t know and there’s nothing we can’t’ cure [world scientists might be pleased to hear this]. You need to have a thick skin to go in there- you’re going to take some sledging any time you go in. I have to say that they’re all great clubmen, they’d be the first to do anything- Terry is still involved with senior footballers. All of those guys have their kids involved in the great club. There are so many father- family links. I feel genuinely blessed to have been with my son when we won the Senior Football Championship – a lot of people can’t say that. That means a hell of a lot to us- we had the bunting up outside the front of us for the whole week before to wind the neighbours up. A lot of people don’t realise how special that was. We’re really thankful for the club and it’s done everybody here so good and we’re just so proud to be a member of the family of it”.

Aaron McCloskey

Initial involvement:

“I lived in Kilclief up until I was about 8 and the only football I did until then was going to FUNdamentals. I didn’t really like it cause I was a nervous child- which I probably get from my Mum. We moved to Belfast and I didn’t play football at all until 2014 whenever I went into first year in La Salle. I played in the first year Gaelic team, the first time I played they put me in full-forward and I was head and shoulders above everyone else in terms of height – I easily 5’10 at that time. They had to put the ball in high and I was just getting it and giving it off”.

“I was spotted by Bukey and he said to my Da to bring me up to the club and we’ll see how it goes. He brought me up and first match was at the Falls Park. I started in midfield against St Brigid’s and I didn’t have a clue what to do- so I just kept running about trying to throw my weight about. It was a bit random like”.

“My first coaches on that team were Dodger, Tony Stanley and Joe McNeill- whenever I started Dodger tried to show me the basic skills and tried to get them locked in, because whether you’re a younger player or an older player- the basics are what you need to get locked down before you move onto anything else. If you do the basics well you’ll be a better player no matter what extent of football you play. So, he showed me all those basic skills”.

“Tony Stanley is still big into his fitness- he tried to make sure I was as fit as possible and I could do everything that I wanted and needed to do to try and get myself up to speed with all the other fellas- from being so late on in the game. Joe McNeill was a good water-boy – he was a cracking water-boy [Aaron McCloskey, 2020]”.

“Those three were a big, big help in my development as a player, they put a lot of faith into me and saw that I could have a lot of potential if I applied myself right. If you apply yourself right you can go so far in the game – I just saw it is a really big opportunity to do well at a sport I could enjoy”.

Regret at missing out on Féile and immediate success:

“I joined too late, the year I joined I was in with the older U-14 team and I was too old to play when my Dad was in with the U-14 team. I would have loved to have go to because it looked like good fun when he took the team. That older u-14 team that I was involved in had a serious amount of players- you’d players to try and bring me on like Jack Summersgill, Eoin Matassa, Ross Murray and Dan Murray. They were already so far ahead in their game that they had to help  to bring me along as well as being helped by the coaches”.

“I was part of the U-14 team that won All-county and South Antrim Championship. They were my first successes and we won the Double; I can’t remember playing in it too much, but I can just remember having a real connection with the rest of the team and it was good to get to know everyone and develop more as a team”.

“I was on the panel for the U-16 team in a final over at St Brigid’s – Decky Dunne was in the team and Jack Summersgill and all these great players. We were unlucky that was lost that day and I was part of the U-16 team that won a league and Championship double. We beat Ardoyne in the final but it’s just a shame that we didn’t do the clean sweep and win the All-County”.

U-16 League and Championship win:

“The St Paul’s semi-final was easily one of the best matches I’ve played in- it was end to end and on the edge of your seat type of game. It went from one end of the pitch to the other – what hyped it up was that you knew everyone. It was all local fellas that you know from schools and there was a big build-up for the match”.

“For the game to have played out the way it did- it was just brilliant and to make sure we were in the final and get it secured against a strong St Pauls team. We got a penalty near the end and Fay [Kieran Fay-Kelly] because he played soccer and was with the SBYL team- said I’d take it and he fumbled it and eventually it went in. That penalty from Fay put me on edge until he eventually scored”.

“There was an inquest after and the next training session we had a penalty challenge to see who would take it if we got a penalty in the final. I actually won it for the record – but Smickers [Conor Smyth] took a penalty in the final against Ardoyne and missed. To be fair, you’re never going to get a final that you’re going to walk all over them, and everyone is up for a final. The Championship and league is completely different”.

“We got one defeat in the league we’d had a stormer and everyone was just playing great football. Bukey, Paddy [Tumelty]and Kevin had it worked out what worked for the team and what way we could actually beat teams. It was good final to remember”.

County call-up:

“The season after that I was called up to the Antrim minor panel which was big highlight for me. To think to myself that at U-14 I had never played much before that and I starting in midfield against Dublin in one of the friendlies. It showed to me that I had done this for myself and with the help of the club I have made myself such a better player in a good amount of time just by going to training every time and trying to apply myself right”.

“It was hard obviously, but I thought it was a big, big help. I thought it was good for getting my skills better, fitness, getting to know more people and getting on a better squad that could bring you forward. I was the only one from the club and there were boys from Sarsfield’s- my mate Michael Ferris- who I had would play school football with. There was ones from Ballymena, Cargin, Portglenone and Ruairi Hagan- who I started to get to know, he was the captain. They were a good bunch of lads and were friendly, so it was a good environment to try and get something out of the team”.

Strength and Conditioning:

“The strength and conditioning has been going on for ages- I remember Aaron [McAufield]  taking our strength and conditioning since the first year of U-16. The boost that he has given for me to be able to compete and perform has been amazing. The amount of knowledge and detail that he gives out for us is really unbelievable. He always tries to drill the best type of ways and these routines and stretches and recoveries to try and make sure that you’re at your peak for whenever you’re trying to play -which is what you need. Especially when you’re getting it coached to you from such a young age that you can bring it onto a senior environment and try and bring it in to there- which is really important”.

“It’s such a shame that the season has been put on hold because of the coronavirus – I’d a good feeling that we could have done well this year in terms of league and Championship. The amount of effort that had been put in through Aaron and Seamus and their programme. They tried to make sure that our game plan was set-out well and were physically fit to go and compete at a high level”.

Identity of the club:

“The club has been a big part of my life ever since I’ve joined. With my Da taking the teams- it’s brought good bond together and brings a lot of good friendships and you feel a good strong connection with people. It’s almost like a family with your club mates and the amount of belonging that you have as a team – you feel like you’re all accepted. At this time when we’re not together because of the coronavirus – you really miss going out an training, being as a team, playing matches, having that sense of belonging to other people and just having a good time playing football and doing what you love. It’s just a big factor. The 2017 senior Championship win showed how much that the club meant to me- the feeling of winning and coming back to the club and seeing everyone there. Everyone was joined by one thing and playing for the same badge. Everyone has that real belonging”.

Ambitions and aspirations:

“My ambition since I’ve started is to be able to go on and play senior football and it’s still with me now. There is a serious want to go onto senior football and try and bring home another Championship. We were so unlucky last year with our senior run. We had such a great run and to get beaten in the replay of the final was heart breaking. To get beat in the U-21 as well”.

“I was just want to go on and make sure I become a starter in those teams and perform well to bring something to the team. To bring home a Championship would be a dream. It would be a big dream to go on and progress into County but to me club is more important than County. I’d rather win a club Championship. It would be a big dream to go on and show that I can perform at such a level and go on and play county – especially picking it up so late. But I just have to make sure I’m well prepared”.