Feely to stick with soccer

Per the below link it looks like kevin Feely will be sticking with soccer for next year anyway, pity because he is a very talented footballer.

http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=160181

Plenty of time to come back to football later on though and he will be playing with the 21s.

yeah McGeeney said that in his interview with KFM after last sundays match!!

Could have been the most likely of the u21 to have a real impact this year along with Dowling. Pity!

The year is young yet. It's unlikely but he may well reconsider later on in the season.

Signed up with Bohs for the coming season.

Would have been a serious addition to the panel, and would have liked to see him get a run out in the O'Byrne Cup or league.

Maybe next year he'll get his chance with the seniors.

The lad has a very good chance of making a good living from soccer so its hard to blame him really.

Is he still going to line out for U21's?
Heard he played well in there challenge game against Laoise on Sunday.

Yeah he's still with the U21's.

Nice interview here on the Boh's website for anybody who's interested;

Feely Stands High in Fields of Athy.html

Feely stands high in fields of Athy @bfcdublin

If a ball had hopped differently, Kevin Feely might now be preparing for Kildare's opening match next Sunday (17 June) in the Leinster football championship.

Instead, he will be joining other members of the Bohemian squad in a training match after the mid-season break.

Six months ago, the Athy GFC midfielder was invited to join the Kildare senior panel and had to debate with the Bohemian FC defender which would prevail.

Pat Fenlon had left Bohemians and the club's future looked uncertain. But Owen Heary invited Feely and others of last season's amateurs to help form the core of a new Bohemian squad and the 19-year-old reckoned that he had to take this chance to see what he could achieve in soccer.

"I thought there was plenty of time left, if the soccer didn't work out, to go back to Gaelic football. It would have been a lot harder to do it the other way around," Feely told bohemians.ie.

"It was a big honour to be asked to join Kildare because they had a strong team. It was always a dream of mine to play in Croke Park in the Leinster championship.

"There was no way I could decide on the basis of which I preferred. It had to be some logical reasoning behind it because I love both of them."

Feely has represented Kildare at minor and under-21 levels and was widely seen as a future county star. He continues to turn out for Athy, whom he helped last year to their first county title in 27 years and a Leinster club semi-final with a group of players who won under-age county titles.

He also played this spring for the Kildare under-21s up to their early exit from the championship.

Also representing DCU in soccer, Feely for some time was playing or training every day, commuting twice a week between his student residence in Dublin and his family home in Athy.

As if all that wasn't enough time on the pitches, Feely's studies in athletic therapy mean he is also frequently on the sidelines as a trainee physio with college teams. But he has also benefited personally from his studies.

"A lot of the stuff has been about health and fitness, preparation for matches and preventing injury. It was an eye-opener really for how you should prepare and what you should do outside of matches."

He faces an even more demanding juggling act between training, matches and studies as the practical work intensifies in the third and fourth years of his degree programme. In his final year he will have the option between working with a college team in the US or finding suitable work experience here.

Having opted for Bohemians with low expectations of what the team might achieve this season, Feely is pleased with the record so far, in particular with the defence.

"Our league position doesn't reflect how we have been playing. If we keep playing the way we are and defending the way we are, and hopefully get a few more goals, realistically we could be finishing just outside the top four.

"None of the goals we have conceded have been from open play where teams have torn us apart. Our defence has been solid so far. We haven't conceded more than two goals in any game."

He had to wait some time to become a regular starter. Now, with six successive league starts up to the break, he will be "looking to stay in the team for the rest of the season".

When the league campaign resumes with an away match on 22 June against St Patrick's Athletic, Feely will have more than the usual responsibility resting on his young shoulders: ex-Pat's man Evan McMillan will be missing through suspension.

He has been Feely's constant companion in the centre of defence and a mentor - along with Owen Heary - whose support he appreciates deeply.

Looking a few weeks further ahead, Feely "can't wait" for the Europa League matches in July, having had a "brilliant experience" when he travelled to Ljubljana for the Champions League qualifier last year.

He also has his own personal piece of continental European experience, having spent the first seven years of his life in Brussels where his father was working in Kerry Foods' Belgian operations.

Young Kevin and his sister - also a DCU student - had some of their early schooling through French.

When the family returned to Ireland, it was to Tramore, Co. Waterford, and to hurling and soccer up to the age of 16, rather than two football codes.

Standing 6 foot 3 inches, Feely has occasionally been pushed forward as a target when Bohemians are chasing a late goal. Fenlon tried it last year and Aaron Callaghan has done it several times.

"I don't mind it but I don't see myself starting there. I get called Gary Doherty. I don't know whether that's a compliment or not."

See rumours circulating on twitter this evening that he may be on his way to everton . Best of luck if true . Another great prospect for us gone though if true

It is only a matter of time before he is picked up by a premiership club, very sad for athy and Kildare IMO the next Dermot early .

Absolutely no way you can say he's next Dermot Earley. But good luck to him with the soccer. He's far better off out of this country. And the GAA!

I agree Bta he is better off leaving this country, he is a lovely unassuming young man, with great talent but humble with it, he is a great fielder of a ball great work rate and can take a score off either foot , has great potential, but if he is going to prem ship good luck to him, he has a younger brother who will be as good as him one day.

wouldnt say its a loss to kildare gaa if the chap is going playing premiership football.....theres not even a comparison!!hope he makes the move and best of luck to him

The next Niall buckley!! Well its his choice and you cant take that away from the chap. Of course it would be nice to have such a talented player on the kildare team, but its and amateur v professional sport, and whatever happens to him best of luck.

heard he has trials with oldham coming up

'wouldnt say its a loss to kildare gaa if the chap is going playing premiership football.....theres not even a comparison!!hope he makes the move and best of luck to him...'

Of course it would be a loss! As is Paul Cribben but at least with AFL, they usually come back.
Seems like a nice chap, great sportsman, wish him all the best if it was to happen.

centreback wrote:

heard he has trials with oldham coming up

no no, he is on trial in oldham

Haha classic. thats a father dougal one right there!!!

Goodluck to him. Hope he makes it.

congrats mr .feeley on being offered a contract by 2 championship teams , well done

Whod he get the offers from lolly?

Peterborough and Charlton i think?

Twitter has it everton and stoke ciry are top of list