The Celtic Classic

PREVIEW

John Carroll University v Ireland
Sunday 30th May 2004

Venue: Greystones Rugby Club, Greystones, Co. Wicklow.
Kick-Off: 2pm.

Ireland will be playing U.S. college football side, John Carroll University of Ohio at Greystones Rugby Club on Sunday 30th May in the Celtic Classic American football game. This will be the first visit of a U.S. college football team to Ireland since Notre Dame played Navy in the Shamrock Classic in 1996. There have been 6 competitive games in Ireland involving visiting U.S. college teams since Boston College and Army played in the first Emerald Isle Classic in the 1980s. However, unlike the previous games, the Celtic Classic will be the first time that the visitors have played against an Ireland team entirely composed of players playing domestically in the Irish American Football League (IAFL). The game is being organised by the IAFL in conjunction with the Global Football organisation.

John Carroll Univ. (JCU) Blue Streaks:
The John Carroll Blue Streaks, who are based near Cleveland, Ohio will be travelling to Ireland with a squad of 45 players and 23 coaches and support staff. They are one of the top small colleges in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) having posted winning records in the past 16 years – they were National Championship semi-finalists 2002. The Head Coach of the Blue Streaks is Regis Scafe who has coached the squad since 1999. The most famous player to play for John Carroll in recent years is current NFL linebacker London Fletcher; who made that famous game saving tackle on the goal line as time expired to win the 2000 Superbowl for the St. Louis Rams against the Tennessee Titans.

John Carroll will be spending a week in Ireland, basing themselves in the west of Ireland for most of the week, before travelling to Dublin the day before the game.

Who to watch on the JCU team:
JCU will be bringing a squad of 45 players to play in the Celtic Classic. The players to watch on offence include linemen # 78 Aaron Taylor, #69 Victor DeBoer and #52 James Gluss. Taylor was All-Confernece in 2003. Also included in the squad are tight ends #8 Rob Pratus and #25 Bryan Beigie. #21 Nick Cerni will probably start at running back. #10 Stephen Spence and #18 Paul Troy are in a battle for the starting quarterbacks job and both are expected to play in the game. On defense, the players to watch are linemen #6 McPat McCoyne, #15 Jim Fink and #48 Mark Warren; linebacker #35 Joe Motley who was JCU’s leading tackler in 2003; and cornerbacks #93 Nick Nardini and #17 Anthony Fanelli. Fanelli can also return kicks.

Click Here for John Carroll Roster.

Ireland:
This game will be the first for Ireland under new Head Coach Phil DeMonte. DeMonte, a New York native, recently moved to Ireland after having coached in the UK with Oxford University and serving as Executive Director for the Great Britain Bulldogs in recent years. DeMonte played in the U.S. Armed Forces Leagues before taking up coaching. The Ireland squad will be entirely composed of players who play in the Irish American Football League (IAFL). The IAFL is composed of six teams – Belfast Bulls, Carrickfergus Knights, Cork Admirals, Dublin Dragons, Dublin Rebels and Univ. of Limerick Vikings and has been on the rise in recent years. Membership has nearly doubled over the past 2 years to over 300 players and there are plans to add more teams in 2005 (Galway, Killarney and Craigavon are possible locations). The vast majority of the players in the IAFL are born and bred in Ireland, however, at present there are players from 19 different nationalities playing the league, some of whom will be on show in the Celtic Classic. The IAFL season runs from February to August and the Championship game is called the Shamrock Bowl.

Who to watch on the Ireland team:
The starting line-up for the Ireland team will not be named until after the team’s final training session on Saturday 29th, however, there are a number of players who are expected to make significant contributions to the game. This will be the first game that the Ireland team has played since the reformation of the Irish National Program earlier this year.

Kevin Downs of the Belfast Bulls will probably start at quarterback. The 6ft 5in 23 year old Downs is one of the rising stars of the IAFL and has loads of potential. However, this will be his first ever start in a big game. Downs will have some good receivers to throw to including Paul McKillop of the Carrickfergus Knights, the leagues top receiver over the past two years. McKillop scored 10 touchdowns in 2003. Wide receiver Andreas Farnedi of the Dublin Dragons is also in the squad. The running back position is undecided at present due to the unavailability of last years Shamrock Bowl MVP, Brian Dennehy of the Dublin Rebels. A number of players, including Dave Wheeler of the Dublin Dragons will probably carry the ball for Ireland on Sunday. Two Dublin Rebels – veteran Fearghal O’Donnchu and 22 year old Simon Mackey will share time at tight end. The offensive line is expected to include Dubliner Eoghan Murphy (6-6, 20 stone) who now plays for the Belfast Bulls, Robert Smith of the Cork Admirals and Tobias Hansson of the Dublin Rebels. UL Vikings player, Adam Culvertey will see action at fullback.

The strength of the Ireland team is undoubtedly at linebacker. Alan O’Carroll of the Cork Admirals will start at middle linebacker. O’Carroll is currently attracting attention from at least one US college side. Sean Shanahan of the Dublin Rebels, who won the Most Valuable Player award in the Charleroi International Tournament last season, will start in one of the outside linebacker positions. The defensive line will feature a rotation of players including Simon Connellan of the Dublin Rebels, John Collins of the Dublin Dragons, Erin Wagner of the Belfast Bulls and upcoming rookie, Kieran Stack of the UL Vikings. The secondary will be anchored by experienced cornerback Steve Archibald of the Dublin Rebels and Finnish born Jari Kinnunen of the Cork Admirals who’s also played at college level in the US. Patrick Ryan of the UL Vikings will be the kicker.

Click Here for Provisional Ireland Roster.

Training Sessions open to the public:

THURSDAY 27th MAY - UL Sports Grounds, Limerick:

12:00 to 15:00 - John Carroll University.

SATURDAY 29th MAY - Greystones RFC:

13:00 to 16:00 - Ireland.

19:00 to 21:00 - John Carroll University.