DERRY talents Callum Brown and Anton Tohill will pack their bags for Australia and potential careers in the Australian Football League at the end of their county’s All-Ireland U20 campaign.
The talented Oak Leaf duo have been earmarked as Aussie Rules stars of the future and it is understood that Swatragh clubman Tohill will be monitored by scouts from a number of clubs at a training camp ‘Down Under’ while Limavady Wolfhounds midfielder Brown has already been offered a deal by Queensland outfit Gold Coast.
Should Tohill decide that his future lies in the AFL he will follow in the footsteps of his All-Ireland winning dad Anthony who had a spell with the Melbourne Demons in the early 1990s before returning home to concentrate on GAA.
Tohill was on the bench in Clones last Sunday while Brown – also a talented soccer player who was on the books of Linfield - was a key figure in Derry’s win over Armagh in the Ulster U20 Championship final.
Derry are now looking ahead to an All-Ireland semi-final against Connacht champions Mayo on July 14/15 and manager Mickey Donnelly says Tohill and Brown will be available for that game and the final should Derry get there.
“It’s no secret that the lads have both been involved in AFL trials,” said Donnelly.
“They’ll not be going to Australia until after our All-Ireland campaign is over.
“If we are fortunate enough to beat Mayo we’ll be in an All-Ireland final in the first weekend in August, so we’re not talking months here – we’re only talking a matter of weeks.
“The lads are very committed to the programme and the Derry system at the minute and I would imagine what will happen is they’ll be brought over to Australia to let the clubs get a bit more of a look at them – I don’t necessarily think they will be offered contracts at this stage because they’re still young.
“They might be told: ‘Go back and play Gaelic for another year and we’ll tap in with you over the next 12 months’. I think that would be good practice.”
Former Derry and Maghera star Conor Glass is currently playing with Melbourne’s Hawthorn while Oak Leaf captain Chrissy McKaigue is one of a number of current inter-county stars who have sampled life in the AFL and returned to their GAA roots including Down’s Caolan Mooney (Collingwood), Antrim’s Niall McKeever (Brisbane Lions) and Armagh’s Kevin Dyas (Collingwood).
“How could I stand in the way of a lad who has an opportunity to go to the other side of the world and pursue a professional sports career?” said Donnelly, who helped steer St Ronan’s College, Lurgan to MacRory Cup glory this year.
“I was lucky enough to work with Conor McKenna (former Tyrone minor star now playing in Essendon) and he is making a career for himself and a great living for himself in Australia now.
“If it was a youngster of my own, I’d be patting him on the back and wishing him all the best and that’s the same thing I’ll be doing for Anton and Callum. I want them to stay in Ireland and play for Derry but I realise that this is a massive opportunity for them.”
Donnelly’s hope is that Brown and Tohill will enjoy their time in Australia, but return to the GAA to enhance their county and their clubs.
“Look at Cian Hanley coming back to Mayo this year. Look at Brophy and Flynn for Kildare… I don’t see them going as a negative,” he said.
“A lot of lads go, experience the professional lifestyle and understand where the bar is at if you want to be successful in sport.
“I don’t see it as negative if they were to go for a couple of years and sample living the life of a professional athlete and have two years of professional strength and conditioning – imagine the athletes they’d be when they came back to their county and their clubs.”
