GOING THE DISTANCE
Monaghan star Beggan well on course to land deal as a kicker in NFL
RORY BEGGAN being named as an AIB Club All-Star might yet turn out to be his parting gift from the GAA. The 31-year-old Scotstown man was named yesterday on the AIB club team of the year, which he can now put with the All-Star award he won in 2018, when he played such a pivotal as Monaghan reached the All-Ireland semi-final.
The possibility is that he may not get the chance to add to those awards after impressing in an NFL kicking combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday along with fellow inter-county goalkeepers Mark Jackson of Wicklow and Down’s Charlie Smyth.
Plans for the trio to return this week have been put on ice, extending their stay at their base in Florida for another three weeks with expectations that formal approaches from NFL franchises are in the pipeline.
It is understood that the trio — recruited by kicking specialist Tadhg Leader — all had 16 kicks from various distances at the posts. While all fluffed one early attempt, they converted from 55 yards but failed from 60 yards, a distance which would be considered a high percentage kick in a game where the average conversion was just 40 yards last season.
‘The boys held their own which is what I expected but also they had never done this before in a competitive environment so there was a huge amount of nerves,’ Leader told Morning Ireland yesterday.
‘We actually got off to a shaky enough start, the three lads missed a kick earlier than they would have expected to from a very kickable range but then they got a huge sense of rhythm and each of them went through a series of six out of six from between 30 and 50 yards. All 32 NFL teams were there and the general consensus was like “wow, you guys competed against the best of the best and did not look out of place”. ‘A couple of NFL teams came over to me afterwards and said that they were quite interested in our guys so initially the plan was to fly them back to Ireland tomorrow but as a result of all the interest we got we decided that we were going to keep them down in Florida for another three weeks. It’s a pretty mad thing to say but I think a couple of the lads are going to be getting signed to contracts in the next maybe two to six weeks.’ If that comes to pass, it would not just be careerchanging for Beggan, Jackson (left) and Smyth, it could also be life-changing. The minimum annual rookie contract for an NFL kicker is $860,000 (€790,000) and while that might still be a high bar to reach, they could also be drafted into practice teams which offer an average weekly salary of $5,000. But there is a long road to be travelled yet. The decision to return to their pre-combine Florida training base is, in part, to ensure that they are immediately accessible to any approaches from NFL franchises, but they also have a new date in their diaries.
On March 20, they will take part in what is termed a ‘pro day’ in California, in what amounts to a final audition for a shot at getting that contract.
Of the three, Beggan has to make the biggest sacrifice given that he is playing at the elite level in Gaelic football as a twotime Ulster Championship winner, while Jackson was resigned to playing lower tier football while Symth had yet to establish himself in the Down squad.
The one thing now certain is that Beggan will not play any part in Monaghan’s bid to avoid relegation to Division 2 of the Allianz League, but if he fails to get an offer, he could still be in the frame for the Farney men’s Ulster SFC first round clash with Cavan in less than five weeks.
For now, his mind will only be focussed on going where less than a handful of Irish athletes have gone before. While Gaelic footballers making the leap to Australian Rules has become common place and others pitching up in rugby and soccer, this is a road far less travelled. This season saw Daniel Whelan promoted to the Green Bay Packers kicking roster, but while born in Wicklow, he moved to the United States as a child.
Prior to that, Neil O’Donoghue, who won a Leinster MFC with Dublin, kicked for the Chicago Bears, St Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the 1980s.
The original trailblazer was Tom Furlong, brother of threetime All-Ireland winner Martin, who played for his native Offaly and New York, signed pro contracts with New York Giants and the Atlanta Falcons in the 1960s, but injury ended his career before he ever got to play.
Now, Beggan, Jackson and Smyth can make their own bit of history by playing at the elite level in national sports separated by the Atlantic.