Rory O’Carroll – Dublin
O’CARROLL ANNOUNCED his decision to walk away from the Dublin panel in January with the intention of spending time travelling before searching for employment in New Zealand. It appears he’ll be playing football for the summer in Chicago though. The three-time All-Ireland winner was sanctioned to play with the John McBrides club in the Windy City five days ago.
Several Dublin players played with McBrides last summer, including Paul Mannion, a clubmate of O’Carroll’s at Kilmacud Crokes.
Ger Brennan – Dublin
St. Vincent’s defender Ger Brennan, who won four senior All-Ireland’s with club and county, announced his retirement from inter-county football last October. Brennan will represent the Donegal club in Boston.
Tomas O Connor – Kildare
O’Connor quit the Kildare panel in April 2015, and he hasn’t been back since. The powerful forward from Clane will line out for Wolfe Tones in Boston.
Danny Neville – Limerick
After four years on the inter-county scene, Neville emerged as a regular in the Limerick attack over the last 12 months. The Ballysteen man kicked two points in Limerick’s Munster quarter-final defeat to Clare before departing to Boston, where he’ll star for Christophers.
Ronan Daly – Roscommon
Roscommon were rocked at the beginning of June by the departures of Ronan Daly and his brother Conor to the States. Ronan was a regular in the Roscommon team this year and has featured at Tadhg Kennelly’s AFL combine trials in the past. Things won’t change too much for the 21-year-old. He switches Padraig Pearses in Roscommon for Chicago’s Padraig Pearses.
Conor Daly – Roscommon
Conor enjoyed a good campaign with DCU in the Sigerson Cup, before making several appearances for Roscommon in their Division 1 league campaign. While his brother is bound for Chicago, Conor is off to Boston where he’ll play with Aidan McAnespies.
Liam Casey – Tipperary
Casey was a star with Tipperary’s minors and U21s before he made the jump to senior in 2015. The young Cahir star won a Munster U21 medal in 2015 and played in the All-Ireland final defeat to Tyrone 14 months ago. He joins Ronan Daly at Padraig Pearses in Chicago.
Jason Lonergan & Kevin Fahey – Tipperary
Lonergan and Fahey also informed Liam Kearns of their decision to opt out of the Tipperary squad back in May. The Clonmel Commercials duo were county and Munster senior club medallists last year and Casey won a Sigerson Cup medal with UCD in February. They are in Philadelphia for the summer to play with St Patrick’s Donegal.
Michael Lundy & Ian Burke – Galway
Lundy and Burke are two of the most talented forwards to come out of Galway in some time. They helped club side Corofin annex the club All-Ireland in 2015 and both moved to New York this year. Lundy will spend the summer playing for Donegal, while Burke will represent Mayo.
Donal O Hare – Down
O’Hare carried the brunt of Down’s scoring threat in 2016, kicking 2-9 as their season ended with a qualifier defeat to Longford last month. He finished as Down’s top scorer in the league with 30% of their tally. He’s going to spend the summer in New York with the club Monaghan.
Tom Cunniffe – Mayo
Cunniffe revealed in March that he had turned down Stephen Rochford’s invitation to rejoin the county squad. Cunniffe played a key role in Castlebar’s run to the All-Ireland club final in 2016 where they fell to Dublin side Ballyboden St. Enda’s. He last featured for Mayo in their All-Ireland quarter-final win over Donegal last August. Cunniffe joins a long list of players heading to New York, where he’ll represent Westmeath.
Kevin Nolan – Dublin
The man who kicked the equalising point for Dublin in the 2011 All-Ireland final is off to New York for the summer. The Kilmacud Crokes defender, who won six Leinster titles and two All-Irelands with Dublin, as well as a Sigerson Cup with DCU, will switch allegiances to the Longford club.
Paddy Keenan - Louth
Louth’s only All-Star has represented his club, county, province and country with distinction in the past. He retired from inter-county football at the young age of 29, having helped the Wee County to a Division 3 crown in 2011. He’s also picked up seven club titles in the county with St. Patrick’s. Keenan is off to play with Wolfe Tones in Boston.
The42 is on Snapchat! Tap the button below on your phone to add!
