HISTORY will be made on Friday night when Shane O’Neill’s, Glenarm become the first visiting club from Ireland to play at New York’s famous Gaelic Park.
And the red carpet will be rolled out for their arrival when they head Stateside on Thursday - the realisation of a dream that started with a conversation between former Shane O’Neill’s chairman Pat Hamill and New York-based Kevin McKay in Hamill’s Halfway House bar over a year ago.
McKay hurled with the Glenarm club, captaining the Antrim U21s to an Ulster title in 1998 and playing as Shane O’Neill’s claimed the county intermediate crown the same year.
However, a summer spent playing for the Kilkenny club in the Bronx would eventually lead to McKay laying down roots in New York. Home, though, will always be where his heart is.
And it is through McKay’s endeavour, and his club Rockland, that this trip has come to fruition.
“We were just chatting in the bar one day and Kevin mentioned about coming over and playing in Rockland,” says Hamill.
“We were well up for that, but I said there’s only one condition – we want to play in Gaelic Park. It’s like if you were a soccer man going to England, you’d want to play at Wembley, and Gaelic Park holds that kind of importance for Gaels on both sides of the Atlantic.
“Fair play to Kevin, he went and sorted it out.”
As a result, 36 Shane O’Neill’s members will fly from Dublin on Thursday before taking on a New York junior select under floodlights on at 8pm on Friday. Among the playing panel will be Pat Hamill’s two sons, Barry and former Antrim ace Darren.
Special jerseys, sponsored by the Anglesea Pub in north Wildwood, which is run by the McMullan brothers Sean and Conn, who are cousins of Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers.
GAA president Jarlath Burns has already sent his best wishes before the trip to the Big Apple, hailing the “incredible project”, while ESPN commentator – and Louth native – Tommy Smith has been drafted in to commentate on Friday’s game.
“It will be a real one-off,” said Hamill.
“Fair play to the boys, they have really bought into it from the start, and it’s a massive thing for the club. It’s something they all wanted to do when it was first talked about, and now it’s here.
“This is something they will all remember for the rest of their lives.”
And the action doesn’t end at Gaelic Park either, with Shane O’Neill’s taking on Rockland on their home patch on Sunday, with Saturday seeing the group enjoy a tour of the sights of New York.
“It’s very exciting to be able to host the Shane O’Neill’s and I’ll feel very proud to watch my boyhood club represent themselves and Antrim hurling at Gaelic Park, while also playing a game against my current club Rockland GAA a few days later,” said McKay.
“This is a clear example of how unique and important the Gaelic culture is when living abroad.”
“Hopefully we’ll come home with lots of memories made,” added Hamill.
Friday night’s game in Gaelic Park will be live-streamed by New Logical Sports on YouTube.
