Annascaul hails young soccer star Kennedy
ANNASCAUL’S 15-year-old international winger Seán Kennedy has enjoyed an astonishing week by anyone’s standards – but while he lost out to Troy Parrott in the contest to be named FAI ‘U15 Men’s International Player of the Year’, the soccer star’s long weekend did roll to the conclusion it deserved.
Seán, a third-year student at The Green [Tralee CBS], arrived home to a surprise celebration at The South Pole Inn having left Dublin just hours earlier in the company of his mother, Bride, and father, John. The talented Tralee Dynamos player represented the Republic of Ireland 13 times at under-15 level and has since graduated to the under-16 grade. Local parents this week decided an acknowledgement of his achievements was needed.
In being nominated alongside Parrott and Seamus Keogh, Sean was effectively named as one of the three best footballers in the country at his age level. With seven international goals to his name, he has previously lined out for Camp Juniors FC, and the multi-talented Annascaul man has also excelled for his local GAA club.
But his abilities on the soccer field have attracted attention from Premier League and Championship clubs such as Brighton, Everton, Middlesbrough, and Sunderland, and his recent trip to Dublin followed trials with London club West Ham United.
For all his sharpness on the field of play, however, he was none the wiser of the celebrations planned in his home village as he rolled back into Annascaul, such was the locals’ secrecy.
“It was pretty mad, yeah,” he said of the well-attended homecoming. “I was very surprised, really. My parents said nothing, but my friends were telling me ‘go on, come down to the South Pole [Inn]’, and I was like ‘okay, fair enough’.
“My aim is to have a strong season this season and then, hopefully, to get to an English club in the summer...It’s been a busy period – I’ll have to wait and see what happens.”
One of the event organisers, Aina Smith, said the parish was delighted to celebrate “a great ambassador for Annascaul”.
“It was to acknowledge him and welcome him back after being picked as one of the top three players in Ireland,” she said.
“He’s just back from West Ham, and he’s a great ambassador for Annascaul. He’s an international player and now he seems to be in the squad all the time.”