Published: Wednesday, 30th December, 2009 6:01pm

Colleges All Star for Reilly

Kingscourt's talented teenager Barry Reilly added to his growing reputation recently when he picked up his second Ulster Colleges All-Star award.

The captain of last year's county minor team is currently repeating his Leaving-Cert in Patrician HS, Carrickmacross, Co. Monaghan and his performances at school level have once again been noted as he got selected on this prestigious team for the second consecutive year.

The selection process involved competing in trial games with the best players in Ulster from well respected MacRory Cup teams and Reilly's abilities on the football field clearly caught the selectors attention.

"It's a great honour to get it two years in a row. School football isn't as tough as inter-county standard but its still very competitive and the award is a nice thing to have on the CV," he said.

The talented footballer also hit form on the club scene this year and was a vital cog in the Kingscourt machine that cruised out of Division Two under the guidance of Dudley Farrell.

It is well known that Reilly's talents have caught the eye of AFL scout Ricky Nixon in the past and during the summer he travelled to Australia to go on trial with the North Melbourne Kangaroos.

Speaking to the Anglo-Celt, Reilly said there was an offer on the table for him to go 'Down Under' again next summer to the same club and it is an opportunity he won't turn down.

"I got a phone call asking me to go back over next summer and I'm happy to do that. Last time I was only over there for a week and it wasn't long enough. It took me four days to get used to kicking the ball and by that stage it was nearly time to go home again. So I think it will be a longer trial this time."

"They gave me stuff to do myself and I've practised a lot since I came home and my kicking has definitely improved. The aim is obviously to try and win a contract and I'm looking forward to going back out there and trying the life of a professional sportsman again. No matter what happens it will be a good experience and I'll just try and enjoy it," he added.

For now though, Reilly insists he is not thinking about any of that and plans to keep his feet on the ground and focus on achieving a solid Leaving-Cert before worrying about anything else.

"I know I need to get a good-leaving first and that is my main priority at the minute. I want to get enough points so I can become a physio. We'll just have to wait and see what happens in the summer," said the Kingscourt club man.