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Long Island’s Michele O’Brien proves a lucky find

February 16, 2011

By Staff Reporter

Long Island’s Lady Riders were playing their last game of the season. Dolores Deasley and Elaine O’Connor, two Div. I Hofstra University students, were penciled in as players to watch for the Irish. However, Michele O’Brien caught Kelly’s eye and after the game he approached her to see if she might be eligible to play for Ireland. Now, two years later, O’Brien is proud to wear the Irish jersey and she is proud of her ancestry. She announced: “My grandma was from County Kerry and my grandfather was from Waterford.”
Kelly was on to something because after that initial contact with O’Brien, the Lady Rider was off to Arsenal for a trial. She went on to play for the Gunners’ first team, the most successful in the UK. She competed in the European Cup, a Nigerian tournament, the F.A. Cup and the league cup. Upon her arrival in London, O’Brien followed through on her Irish calling. She put together all the required paperwork, obtained a passport, then flew from London to Dublin for a trial with the Irish national squads.
“We trained and scrimmaged the under-19 Irish team,” recalled O’Brien. “I did well and was selected to go with the team to the Algarve Cup in Portugal.” Two full games against Wales and Portugal in the tournament and “OB,” as her Irish teammates now call her, has not looked back. Her most recent call up, via an email from Ireland’s head coach, Noel King, perks OB up in her seat as she explains: “It was great to get the travel itinerary from my coach.”
King said: “Michele O’Brien is one hell of a girl, never mind an excellent soccer player. Her history tells you all you really need to know about her. She is unquestionably a descendant of the fighting Irish. When her best does not seem good enough, she does better. She is quick with an eye for goal and possesses a desire so strong and infectious that her teammates cannot help but to be inspired by her. It has been my honor to have worked with such a modest and unbreakable person.”
The upcoming games are two friendly matches: the first is away to Holland on March 10 and the second at home to Sweden’s under-21s on March 13 in Dublin. They are preparation games for the second round of a European Championship series. If the Republic top the group, they will play off for promotion to the first division. No stranger to crunch games, O’Brien has been involved in past European qualifiers against Bosnia in Dublin and away to Croatia. But this time around she is back from surgery so she is absolutely thrilled to get the call from King. “I’m really happy to get out there and test my strength,” she said recently. “I’m doing OK for the Riders as I get stronger. Although to continue playing for Ireland against top international players is a dream. I remember when I stood beside Mia Hamm. I couldn’t believe it. She is not that big. She has inspired me a lot.”
That inspiration has carried through for the pocket-sized attacking O’Brien, who has gone from standing beside the best to competing against the best. “Playing at the international level is helping me become a better player,” she said. “It’s a great experience. It has also given me the chance to meet the best in the world. It was awesome when I stood beside Patrick Vieira. He is so tall.
“At Arsenal it was unbelievable to be around so many amazing players. Thierry Henry is incredibly gifted and he knows it. Robert Pires is really good too.”
The much-traveled O’Brien seems to be happy living back on Long Island where she grew up. That’s when word got out on her ability at high-school level. She captained St. Anthony’s High School in South Huntington, N.Y. She led her SAHS to its 13th consecutive league title and 11th straight state championship. Besides an all-league team nomination and MVP in 1997, O’Brien also could score goals, hitting 15 in 1996 for example.
Then her travel adventure started when she decided to attend Florida International University in Miami, where she excelled as a student athlete. Besides her Presidential Academic Athletic Award, making the dean’s list was a constant throughout her college career. She was the Sunbelt Conference player of the Year; she made first team all conference and All-Southeast region team; she broke the school record with 54 goals, hitting 14 in her freshman year, another school record. And in 2000 she captained the team to the Sunbelt Conference Championship while making the top 20 goal scorers in the country.
Now as she networks in seeking coaching experience, her bachelor of science in elementary education stands by her. She has coached with Plainview Old Bethpage High School, Port Washington Soccer Club, Columbia University Soccer Camp and Lady Riders Soccer Camp. O’Brien has also found time to teach in East Meadows, N.Y., and Broward County, Fla. “I hope to get a coaching position to further my professional growth,” O’Brien said. The Lady Riders have been her bread and butter and the springboard for her current ambitions. The Riders are a very successful W League franchise and O’Brien continues to produce the goods on the field. She has been a top goal scorer for the Riders, MVP and contributed to winning their division. Ireland’s coach, King, concluded: “OB is as the initials suggest — Only Brilliant.”

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