My journey to the street leagues and playing for Ireland at the Street Soccer Homeless World Cup in Oslo, Norway, began in 2018 when I went into residential treatment in Coolmine Treatment centre.
I had struggled for years in my addiction, and it followed me all over the world...
Growing up in Tallaght, I loved sports, and I would play any sport me and my mates did that day , from GAA , basketball, and football.
Then, in my teenage years, I found alcohol and drugs. This is where life turned upside down , not straight away but slow at first, then a rapid decline in my life ..... sport and my family took a back seat while drugs and alcohol took a hold and controlled my life.
After years of drug abuse I thought I could move overseas and start a new life fresh. I moved to Australia this sounded great in my head, I tried to control my drinking and drug use , but it became 100 times worse over there, sunny days and working on building sites meant one thing, pubs and parties nearly everyday.
This is when I took an overdose and was hospitalized for 3 weeks, 2 of which I was in a coma. My family had to fly over wondering whether they were going see their son alive or dead when they arrived...... my guilt over this will be with me for the rest of my life.
Someone above had plans for me and I pulled through and made it home to Ireland, but I struggled for the next 5 years in addiction until I made it to Coolmine treatment centre in 2018, and while there after 4 weeks in the first phase I was able to go out on Saturday mornings and play football in Pearse street, this is where I met Graham Tucker from Street League for the first time, I've had a brilliant relationship with him since then, even though I didn't stay clean after my first visit to Coolmine, Graham never judged and always when I came back after a spree or relapse I was welcomed with a smile and a few home truths about what I had done, or in recovery terms what I had not been doing to stay clean.
Coolmine and the Street leagues in Pearse street combined , showed me I had a life to live for again , after 2018 to 2019 in Coolmine, my 5 months was up in the centre, I look back and I did not do enough back then to stay sober and within a month I was flat out in addiction once more, I did get selected to represent Ireland when they played in Wales but I could not turn up to training, the drugs and alcohol was back in control of my life, for 4 more years I was at the lowest point of my using and I was physically and mentally destroyed this time.
Fortunately I made it back to Coolmine in 2023 and I have not looked back, 6 months in treatment and 6 months aftercare in Coolmine , I am so grateful they accepted me back a second time and with that I was linked back in with the Street leagues.
I try my best to give back to the community I took so much from over the years.
I had to change everything this time around to keep my sobriety, I’m on a program with great people surrounding me. They are there for me on good days and always there on the bad days.
I’m coming up to 2 years clean and sober this September, and I completed 2 years in Sallynoggin higher education for sport and fitness, sports coaching and sports massage.
In this time, I set up a running club, which to my amazement is flying at the moment.... the positive Pacers running club ....... the club members we have blow me away by their courage and strength to go out and change their lives through fitness, I try my best to give back to the community I took so much from over the years.
At 43 years of age I was chosen by the Street leagues to represent Ireland at the Homeless World Cup in Oslo Norway, I was proud excited and very nervous. I was carrying a knock before we even left, so my head was going a million miles an hour, first thinking that's it I can’t go, I'm out injured, and I would not be able to give 100 percent to the team over there, then secondly I thought I would get badly injured if I played and then my running journey with my running club would be over.......
But thank God someone was looking after me and I made it to the team hotel on the Thursday and due to fly out on the Friday morning. This gave the two teams time to bond before we headed to Oslo and looking back this was a great idea by the Street leagues they have been through this before, all us players had not, I got to talk to my teammates that first night and it put me at ease, listening to the lads and girl's story's on how they had made it on the teams .... it was very inspiring stuff and as I said the bond of the two teams formed that first night
The experience is way more than football
When we arrived in Oslo I did not know what to expect, we headed to the team hotel and this was where all the football teams were staying, it's crazy to think at the start we did not know anyone then come 9 days later, all the players from every country at the hotel were eating in the mornings together and chatting late in the evening, I met some amazing people from all over the globe an experience I did not imagine could happen in such a short space of time, I've met new friends from far away that I will be staying in contact with and that's down to the street leagues for providing this outlet for people like myself to go and see things and meet people I would never if got the chance to on my own.
On the football side of things , we all enjoyed highs and lows throughout the tournament, men's and women's team, the bond was so strong in our camp, the support both teams showed each other was amazing, we brought chanting and singing to every game and the other teams enjoyed our spirit... from the first day opening ceremony to the last day of the finals , this truly was a moment in my long life I will never forget and I will speak about for years to come.
I really thought my chance to go represent my country had gone by for me, but things in life happen for a reason and I was meant to go play for Ireland this year, with this great bunch of players and coaches, the excitement of games , the wins and hard losses we all experienced together, we celebrated with other countries at the end of the day with music and dancing, this showed me and others like me , that we can enjoy life with strangers and for me not to be afraid of trying new things no matter what your age is your never too old or it's never too late, on the pitch I got to play against great nations in the football world , Brazil , Portugal, England, Germany, Spain and the world cup winners Egypt, we might not have won against them but I know we all gave one hundred percent for our country when we got on that pitch, and for me a big highlight came when I got to lead the team out as captain vs the home nation Norway a game we won, this gave me so much pride and I know all my family and friends are proud of what I achieved over there.
43 years of age and I’m still trying to better myself every day and to achieve things I took for granted in my twenties, life is for living and for many years I threw my life away with the constant drinking and drug use, them days are finally gone and I will be celebrating 3 years clean and sober on the 14th of September, another massive achievement for a person that struggled for years to get 1 week sober. I am so grateful to the Street leagues for selecting me to play in the Homeless World Cup, but I have to say the experience is way more than football and the only way of explaining how it made me feel, is by someone going and experiencing it for themselves. A ball can truly change a life
Thank you Street leagues Ireland for giving me a new lease of life
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