Irwin hopeful of green light to join top riders at Belfast Arenacross
GLENN Irwin is hoping to get the all-clear next week to take his place in the home round of Arenacross at the SSE Arena next month.
Irwin sustained a nasty injury in the final round of the MXGP series in Italy back in October, forcing him out of the Irish Motocross de Nations team at the last moment.
The Carrickfergus rider, who returns to the World Motocross championship in 2019 with Crossgar business man Roger Magee’s KTM UK team said yesterday: “I have an appointment with my doctor on Thursday next week and hopefully I’ll get the all-clear to resume riding again.
“That gives me five weeks to prepare for the Arenacross.
“I will only do the home round as I have a packed schedule in 2019 with the World and British championships and a couple of internationals.
“The atmosphere in the SSE Arena is amazing and I know the fans will be fully behind all the local riders. It is testament to Matt Bates and his team that they keep returning to Belfast to put on such a dynamic show.”
Fellow east Antrim rider Martin Barr intends taking in all six rounds of the series on his new Crescent Yamaha YZ250f and relishes the opportunity to return to Belfast for the first time since 2013.
“I was always contracted to teams that didn’t have an interest in doing the Arenacross series,” said the Ballyclare man. “But Crescent are more than happy to have me on the grid.
“I know it’s not going to be easy in the Pro Lites class and I’m already working on an intensity programme as, after the start gate drops, you need to be prepared and I’m not there to make up the numbers.”
Local opposition to Barr in Pro Lites comes from 21-year-old Dundonald rider James Mackrel, also Yamaha mounted, and Larne Husqvarna rider Glenn McCormick, the 2018 Ulster MX2 champion.
Youth plays an important role at Arenacross and a new Team Green Supermini Cup will see a dozen selected riders do battle on similar 85cc Kawasakis, with one of those selected from almost 100 entries being 14-yearold Waringstown rider Drew McCreanor.
A first for Arenacross is that 10-year-old twins Robbie and Cole McCullough will contest the youngest category, the Youth 65cc series.
The boys are the sons of former Irish and Ulster MX champion Philip McCullough, who is also Ireland’s Motocross des Nations team-boss.
Series organiser Matt Bates said: “It was 2001 when we started in Belfast and I remember Gordon Crockard winning on the first night when the local crowd nearly lifted the roof off what was then the Odyssey. Local spectators like to see local riders beating the imported stars.”
An All-Ireland Arenacross Cup will see 24 of Ireland’s best 450cc and 250cc riders go head-to-head through qualifying heats and a final to determine the winner.
Bates continued: “We will also invite around 100 schoolchildren, in a collaboration with W5, to come to the SSE Arena on the Wednesday (January 16), first of all to W5 and then to see everything that goes on behind the scenes to set-up a world class event, and then bring them back on Friday evening to sample the event in action first hand.
“We want this to be educational, but fun.”
Tickets for Arenacross, to be held on Janaury 18-19, can be obtained through the usual Ticketmaster outlets or at www.arenacrossuk.com.
Q ATake us back to when you first got into football. What are your earliest memories? My earliest football memory would probably be playing for Brooklands Primary School, around P6, and I remember my mum and dad coming to watch me, in a match we won 2-1. They were standing with a group of other parents and watched as I completely nailed this lad who had the ball in a tackle, and I remember my mum screaming because she thought I had broken his leg. She’s actually never been back since, it scarred her so badly.
Q ADoes that upset you, to know your mum is not watching you from the stands? Not really. My dad is fairly selective about which games he comes to as well, having attended often in the early days but only coming to big ones now. My girlfriend Amy comes to lots of them. Dad would go to Linfield games, he’s from the Shore Road so would have been a Crusaders fan growing up, and enjoys those. I’m just happy enough to get on with it. It’s nice to know Amy is at the important games.
Q ADid Amy have an interest in football before you got together?
No, she hadn’t a clue! Still doesn’t really, but she knows it makes me happy so she’ll come to as many games as she can.
QCan you sum up the importance of Glentoran in your life, having joined at such a young age?
Very important, I’ve been there since I was about 10, and I’m the youngest player to come from the lowest rung of the academy, through to the first team and win something when we won the Irish Cup. I got into the first team in 2013 but overall I’ve been there quite a while. I just want to win, I’m a winner, and playing for the team you support is really good. There have been arguments in the dressing room let’s just say, over the past couple of years. Whenever the Glens were successful, there were a lot of supporters in the team, and I think that’s important, to have that Glentoran blood in the dressing room.
AQHow do you balance working full-time with such an unwavering commitment to football?
ASometimes the enthusiasm for football dips, when the winter starts to set in and training is always in the dark, but it’s a real passion. I work full-time for Ulster Bank, which is helpful because I have fixed hours but there are lots of things changing in my life. Amy and I just bought a house at the end of July, and even though it was fit to move straight into, I reckon we’ll get our teeth stuck into a project in the future. She had everything bought for the house before we even got the keys, she’s mustard but organised. We’re in Killinchy now, out in the country which is taking a little bit of getting used to, but it’s quiet and pretty. A big difference to growing up in Ballybeen!
Q AWhat are your memories of your childhood?
I suppose it toughened me up a bit — mind you, I’ve only one yellow card so far this season so I must be mellowing as I had about seven by this stage last year. I was born and bred in Ballybeen and I had many good memories of growing up there, but it was also pretty terrifying at times as a young lad.
Back when we were younger… well, you think about the things you saw as a kid and it’s quite shocking. I remember one time, I had just got back from a family holiday in Florida and I had taken a walk to go and see my friend. I heard a man screaming, or kind of squealing loudly, and thought ‘what on earth is that?’ Then I saw this guy crawling out from an alleyway with blood streaming behind him and I realised he’d been shot in the knees. I ran into my friend’s house and his mum called the ambulance, I was only about 10.
But you know, I wouldn’t change it for the world, I really loved being there. I think growing up in more deprived areas gives you two avenues, you can either take the wrong one or you develop this resilience and strong work ethic, because nothing has been handed to you. I work 40 hours at least every week, plus stay committed to football, and it’s great for me. I could have fallen into the trap of an estate society, I saw so many others do so.
QWho do you credit for steering your life in such a positive direction, or were you always the sensible one? I think I only started to become sensible when I met Amy. I was a bit of a rascal growing up but I suppose I had to turn a corner at some stage.
AQ AHow did you meet?
I met her in Belfast on a night out, like so many who do these interviews! She will argue I messaged her first, but I am pretty sure she messaged me, and she’s too busy with work to be here and defend herself now. That was about six years ago now, so she’s pausing every time we walk past a jeweller’s to put me under a bit of pressure. But I couldn’t be happier, I love her to bits.
She knows me, she can read my emotions and knows how to treat me after a match, if it’s not gone our way she may have to cancel our plans for that Saturday night, because I’ve gone for a couple of pints in the social club after and then I’m just no longer in the mood to go out.
She is a cardiac physiologist and is very hard-working, very talented and I hugely admire what she does.
QLet’s talk about those unforgettable Irish Cup wins for the Glens in 2013 and 2015. What was the atmosphere at the club like at that time?
I missed out on the 2013 one because I had only just broken into the first team, when Scott Young signed me but I went out on loan to Lisburn Distillery for the first round of the Irish Cup, so I was cup-tied and couldn’t play.
I came back at the end of the season and the Glens were in the final, so I was along supporting them in the stands. I may have been suited and booted, but I didn’t feel part of it at all. I had
Abeen out on loan for six months and was thoroughly detached from the win, I could only be happy for them and not really celebrate it personally.
That’s why the 2015 win means so much to me, because I can say I played a part. For the club, of course, both mean a huge amount. It was the closest the club came to pulling the shutters down, given the financial troubles we had.
Q AI am just glad playing football and to have a new management structure in place. Ronnie [McFall] is in, plus Smicker [Gary Smyth] and Leeper [Paul Leeman] coming in has meant there’s a feel-good factor here. The numbers are up every week and we’re starting to get results. It all comes down to where you are at the end of the season, they’re a demanding bunch, so everything hinges on where you finish. You wouldn’t want it any other way, but we’ll see come the end of the season.
QAnd how about now, what’s it like at the Oval?
Anyone following your career will know of the trouble two cruciate injuries in your knee caused for you. How do you feel about that time,