Conor Glass Continues to impress down under

I came upon this article recently on social media and was delighted but not surprised. It referred to Maghera’s Conor Glass who graced our Gaelic fields and drew rave reviews for most of his young life before moving to Australia’s AFL and joining Hawthorn.

Quite a number of former Gaelic players have made the journey over the years in search of a lucrative career in Aussie rules football but not all have succeeded. That Conor Glass has made a significant step to making a mark and already receiving rave reviews doesn’t surprise me one bit.

I’ve had the pleasure of watching the red haired talent since he was about 14 playing for St. Patrick’s Maghera and it was obvious even then that we had a precarious talent and a boy who was destined to be much more than ordinary.

He went on to represent his school, his club Watty Graham’s and his county with distinction but it was at the Bank of Ireland-Paddy McLarnon tournament in Creggan that I last got a close up of Conor when his club won the prestigious Ulster U21 tournament three years in a row.

Even in a team laced with some excellent talent, Conor Glass stood head and shoulders above the rest and made a massive contribution to his side’s success. Conor’s mother of course hails from Loughgiel. Claire McIlhatton comes from a family steeped in hurling tradition so the genes were strong on both sides of the Derry-Antrim side.

Well done to Conor Glass. We at the Saffron Gael wish him every success in his future career and judging by what I have seen and read in the past year the final chapter of this young man’s career in the AFL has not yet been written.

Conor Glass in action at the Creggan tournament and enjoying a celebration with some of his fans