THE JORDANS OF Eglish were never the sort to look down the throat of a gift horse.
When the Irish basketball boom hit in the ‘80s, it took root in unusual places – often out of nowhere.
It sprouted in Dungannon, however. And just down the road in Eglish, Patsy Jordan spotted an opportunity. He became the first person in the north that you could buy high-top basketball boots from.
For some people now in their late 40s and 50s, he’s still known as Mr Converse.
Patsy’s wife, Anne, was a record holder of camogie championship medals with Eglish.
And when their grandson Ethan came along, Patsy took him to every game.
Patsy is now sadly passed, and he missed out on the rest of the world waking up to the special talent that contributed a hefty tally in his intercounty debut at the ripe age of 25.
Ethan Jordan scored 1-9 in his senior league debut for Tyrone against Kildare and picked up the Man of the Match award in the draw. Sure, it’s only one round gone, but he is the leading scorer in the country right now.
Those close to the club have always appreciated his talent, but it has really come to the fore in the last couple of seasons.
Prior to that, he was playing soccer in the second tier of the Irish League, the Northern Ireland Football League Championship, for Armagh City.
His position was centre-half, a strong header of the ball but also highly gifted in the technical stakes.
As pointed out by Tyrone county board lifer and statistics guru Eunan Lindsay, his 1-9 was the joint third highest of all Tyrone scoring tallies, behind the 23 points that Frankie Donnelly hit against Fermanagh in 1956, Stephen O’Neill’s 2-7 against Monaghan in the 2007 All-Ireland qualifier and joint with Owen Mulligan (2-6 against Louth in the 2006 qualifiers) and Martin Penrose’s 3-3 in the 2010 Dr McKenna Cup against Donegal.
What really showcased his talents was the first round of the Intermediate championship in Tyrone last year on the first weekend of September.
Up against Coalisland, two clubs that came down from senior, it was for many the de facto final and Jordan helped himself to 0-17 in Eglish’s 0-25 to 1-19 win.
He can get a shot away from nothing and has a serious burst of pace. One particular wonder score against Coalisland in the championship showed that.
He’s also a reliable freetaker off the ground or from the hands, something Tyrone have struggled with in the recent past.
Talk to those around the club and they will say that he fell out of love with Gaelic football and the systems used to stymie forwards such as himself. He’s far from the only player to have had a new lease of life with the new rules.
It’s something that didn’t bother him at underage level, where the emphasis on tactics is less profound. In that environment, he was alongside Darragh Canavan in attack when they won an All-Ireland U17 in 2017, and the U20 equivalent three years later when they reached the semi-final and were beaten by Dublin.
Jordan, second right, being congratulated as a minor by Cormac Quinn. Ryan Byrne / INPHO
Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO
After his weekend debut he told reporters in Omagh, “It’s probably something I have documented a lot. I fell out of love with football after leaving the U20s. It’s just the way the game was, it wasn’t a forwards’ game and all the rest. But now, you get a real chance to express yourself.
“Malachy and the coaching staff are very good. They give you the freedom to really believe in yourself.”
What stands out for those that know him is his huge enthusiasm for football and his analytical football brain. A level-headed individual, he thinks deeply about the game.
Even given his run of form with Eglish last year, he was still managing a number of injuries and wasn’t operating at full fitness.
Despite that, he had already made the decision that he wasn’t going back to soccer. He had recruited the services of Colm MacRory, a Dromore club footballer and owner of iPerform Sports Physiotherapy and Performance in Omagh, to get a full body assessment and embarked upon a winter of rehab and conditioning.
When he was called into the Tyrone set-up, he then went under their guidance.
What happens next, for the player and a team that need something different in attack, will be intriguing.
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Almost lost to Gaelic football, Tyrone's Ethan Jordan is on everyone's radar now
THE JORDANS OF Eglish were never the sort to look down the throat of a gift horse.
When the Irish basketball boom hit in the ‘80s, it took root in unusual places – often out of nowhere.
It sprouted in Dungannon, however. And just down the road in Eglish, Patsy Jordan spotted an opportunity. He became the first person in the north that you could buy high-top basketball boots from.
For some people now in their late 40s and 50s, he’s still known as Mr Converse.
Patsy’s wife, Anne, was a record holder of camogie championship medals with Eglish.
And when their grandson Ethan came along, Patsy took him to every game.
Patsy is now sadly passed, and he missed out on the rest of the world waking up to the special talent that contributed a hefty tally in his intercounty debut at the ripe age of 25.
Ethan Jordan scored 1-9 in his senior league debut for Tyrone against Kildare and picked up the Man of the Match award in the draw. Sure, it’s only one round gone, but he is the leading scorer in the country right now.
Those close to the club have always appreciated his talent, but it has really come to the fore in the last couple of seasons.
Prior to that, he was playing soccer in the second tier of the Irish League, the Northern Ireland Football League Championship, for Armagh City.
His position was centre-half, a strong header of the ball but also highly gifted in the technical stakes.
As pointed out by Tyrone county board lifer and statistics guru Eunan Lindsay, his 1-9 was the joint third highest of all Tyrone scoring tallies, behind the 23 points that Frankie Donnelly hit against Fermanagh in 1956, Stephen O’Neill’s 2-7 against Monaghan in the 2007 All-Ireland qualifier and joint with Owen Mulligan (2-6 against Louth in the 2006 qualifiers) and Martin Penrose’s 3-3 in the 2010 Dr McKenna Cup against Donegal.
What really showcased his talents was the first round of the Intermediate championship in Tyrone last year on the first weekend of September.
He can get a shot away from nothing and has a serious burst of pace. One particular wonder score against Coalisland in the championship showed that.
He’s also a reliable freetaker off the ground or from the hands, something Tyrone have struggled with in the recent past.
Talk to those around the club and they will say that he fell out of love with Gaelic football and the systems used to stymie forwards such as himself. He’s far from the only player to have had a new lease of life with the new rules.
It’s something that didn’t bother him at underage level, where the emphasis on tactics is less profound. In that environment, he was alongside Darragh Canavan in attack when they won an All-Ireland U17 in 2017, and the U20 equivalent three years later when they reached the semi-final and were beaten by Dublin.
After his weekend debut he told reporters in Omagh, “It’s probably something I have documented a lot. I fell out of love with football after leaving the U20s. It’s just the way the game was, it wasn’t a forwards’ game and all the rest. But now, you get a real chance to express yourself.
“Malachy and the coaching staff are very good. They give you the freedom to really believe in yourself.”
What stands out for those that know him is his huge enthusiasm for football and his analytical football brain. A level-headed individual, he thinks deeply about the game.
Even given his run of form with Eglish last year, he was still managing a number of injuries and wasn’t operating at full fitness.
Despite that, he had already made the decision that he wasn’t going back to soccer. He had recruited the services of Colm MacRory, a Dromore club footballer and owner of iPerform Sports Physiotherapy and Performance in Omagh, to get a full body assessment and embarked upon a winter of rehab and conditioning.
When he was called into the Tyrone set-up, he then went under their guidance.
What happens next, for the player and a team that need something different in attack, will be intriguing.
Check out the latest episode of The42′s GAA Weekly podcast here
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Division 2 eglish GAA Gaelic Football JORDANS THE SHOOTERS