February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
By Mike Fitzpatrick
Three inches of snow proved to be of little significance to almost 30 of manager Frank Brady’s men on the 1999 New York football squad last weekend. Such is the astronomical level of hope, expectancy and enthusiasm among the players that the Arctic-like conditions failed to deter most of the panel from traveling to the Bronx for continuation of their training schedule. The training will inevitably lead to 15 of these players lining out versus Mayo in the first round of the Connaught championship in May.
Brady has admitted to being pleasantly surprised with this extraordinarily high level of commitment so early on in the training program. The reason for this contentment is that so many players showed up in such harsh conditions eager to impress selectors Frank Brady, Leslie McGettigan and Pat Scanlon, rather than lazily attempting to squeeze into the squad once the better weather arrives. The passion displayed by the panelists on this occasion must continue if they are to make any impact versus Mayo in summer. This was to be the second training session for the squad, and though the selectors are reasonably happy so far with the turnouts, they will not be completely satisfied until all 43 players show up at training.
As mentioned before in this column, the selectors have a long way to go before naming their final squad. Only those players whose form, attitude and regular presence at training remain at a positive level will be in with a chance of getting into the final squad. The selectors have stressed, however, that there is still room for more players to forge their way into the panel. For information, call Pat Scanlon at (718) 548-9530, Frank Brady at (914) 963-8729 or Leslie McGettigan at (914) 237-0917.
There’s a long and arduous road ahead, but with Frank Brady, Pat Scanlon and Leslie McGettigan at the helm, and a hectic training schedule involving two games versus the Irish Army side, let’s hope New York can work toward an upset versus Mayo.
The squad: Donegal, Donal Breslin, Kieran Keaveney, Gerry Kelly, Keith Murray, Eunan Doherty, Owen Cummins, Edmund Cleary, Stephen Cassidy; Cork, Noel Buckley, Patrick Mahoney, Eamonn McCarthy; Cavan, Aidan Connolly; Westput, Philip Connolly, Danny Leavy; Longford, Brendan Donoghue, Kevin Lilly; Offaly, David Reynolds, Colm Scanlon; Celtics, Danny O’Sullivan; Down, Collie Mathers.
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Also, Sligo, Enda Henry; Tyrone, Owen O’Loughlin, Sean Teague; Kerry, Paudie Mulvihill, William O’Donnell; Roscommon, Richie Maher, Ian Smith; Westmeath, John Markey, Tommy Moriarty, David Newman; Stamford, Keith Hennessy, Mike Martin, Justin O’Halloran, Ted Steede, Kieran Purcell; Monaghan, Bonnie Duffy, Eddie Murphy, Hughie O’Sullivan; Leitrim, Jim Donohue, John Donohue, Neville Dunne, Joe Madden, John "Cookie" Meehan.