TWO Ulster county goalkeepers took part in an NFL international combine in England to showcase their kicking skills to scouts last week.
Tyrone's Niall Morgan and Down's Charlie Smyth, along with Wicklow's Mark Jackson and another unnamed Gaelic footballer, took part in the event to find talent for the International Player Pathway programme.
Former Connacht rugby player, and ex-pro-American football kicker, Tadhg Leader, had 10 days to find four players to take part in the trials alongside British professionals in other sports.
Leader said: “NFL owners wanted to expand their reach, and the game's spread globally, so they voted to expand the programme.
“They needed to expand the positions available to satisfy the potential player demand, so they opened the pathway up to kickers and punters.
“I suppose what we’ve been doing at Leader Kicking over the last year or two has caught the right people's attention.”
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Changing the game!
— Tadhg Leader (@TadhgLeader) October 12, 2023
All Stars, All Ireland winners and elite athletes took part in an NFL international combine yesterday ✈️
An opportunity of a lifetime with the world biggest league
I’m still looking for elite kicking talent. Who else is out there?#nfl #leaderkicking pic.twitter.com/854utXgoFs
The International Player Pathway could see the Irish players potentially being added to practice squads or NFL rosters and maybe being offered a professional contract.
“We targeted gaelic football goalkeepers and professional rugby players,” said Tadhg, who played in Major League Rugby and the Aviators in the XFL, a professional spring American football league.
“The lads were out through a traditional NFL workout, similar to what they would experience at the end of February in Indianapolis for the NFL combine, which we will be attending.”
The players were put through their paces in different kicking drills by the scouts and the Irish contingent seemed to impress.
“We had an elimination at the end and all four Irish players that went over made it through, along with an English international rugby player.”
Tyrone’s number one, Niall Morgan, was one of the attendees, but he sees this avenue as an opportunity and nothing more at this stage.
The Edendork and Swifts keeper said: “We met in Belfast one Monday evening, and I tried kicking the American football.
“I don't know what the next steps are, it’s simply that I'm in the offseason at the minute, so I'm just keeping my options open and see what comes next.”
After 10 years between the sticks for Tyrone’s senior side, Morgan has confirmed that does not intend to retire from Tyrone any time soon.
“Obviously, I still have Tyrone. I'm not retired and I don't intend to retire.
“So I'm just waiting to see what happens next and then the biggest part is, I've also got two young kids and a wife to think about if that did happen, and obviously there needs to be massive discussions as to what's what's best for our family.”
Niall and his fellow Gaelic footballers only had two training sessions with Tadhg to get their kicking style up to the scouts’ standards and make the most of this chance to impress.
“I'm a big believer in taking any opportunities that come your way.
“I spoke to someone I have a lot of respect for recently and he said that I should always take every opportunity because the worst that can happen is learn something.”
Charlie Smyth, of Down, Mayobridge and St Mary’s College was the other Ulster participant in the combine.
As a fan of the NFL before the trial, he was aware of the opportunity he had in front of him.
“It was a good experience and something hard to turn down but obviously I still have massive aspirations for football.
“It all started at one of Tadhg’s kicking events in Dublin and after that, he invited me up to an event in Banbridge, learning the different steps and processes for NFL kicks.
“I am a fan of watching any sort of free-takers or placekickers, I find the different techniques and routines interesting.”
Smyth featured for Down in last year’s edition of the Tailteann Cup but he isn’t completely shutting the door on his inter-county prospects for this opportunity.
The under-20 Ulster championship winner said: “It’s a long way away but I am just going with the flow on this and we’ll see what happens with it.
“We had an early exit from the championship with the club and then a week later was the event in Banbridge.
“I didn’t have the best year of my football career, I wasn’t playing all the time with Down and even with my club.
“I was playing some league games but I wasn’t guaranteed a spot so I decided to take this opportunity as it was the offseason."
“If this opportunity was to work out, it would be a very difficult decision, but I haven’t even thought that far yet, I’m taking it session by session.”
Tadhg is still on the lookout for more Irish kicking talent to show to the NFL scouts when they make their way back to Ireland later in the year.
He said: “I put out a call to action for athletes ahead of the Dublin event with the NFL and my social media inbox blew up with all-star Gaelic footballers, All-Ireland winners and AFL players, there are some big, big names in there.
“It doesn’t have to be the biggest names, I just need the best strikers of a ball.”