Two Irish players to trial with Richmond

[one-eyed]

Kerry Face Losing Another Top Prospect As All-Ireland Winner Heads For AFL Trial

By Seán McGoey
Balls.ie
Sep 12, 2026

Kerry could be facing another departure to Australian Rules, with All-Ireland U20 winner Evan Boyle set to travel to Melbourne for a trial with Richmond.

The Ballyduff midfielder’s trip was first reported by Murt Murphy in the Irish Examiner, with no contract agreed at this stage.

Boyle attended a scouting combine in Athlone in mid-August alongside his Kerry midfield partner Daniel Kirby of Austin Stacks. Dublin duo Charlie McMorrow and Tim Deering, along with Leitrim’s Barry McNulty, were also among those assessed.

Boyle is understood to be the only Kerry player making the trip to Australia. One other, unnamed Irish player is also believed to be travelling to Richmond.

It comes after a memorable summer for Boyle, who was man of the match as Kerry beat Tyrone in the All-Ireland U20 final at Croke Park. His midfield display helped Tomás Ó Sé’s side recover from eight points down to win by eight, securing the county’s first All-Ireland at U20 or U21 level since 2008.

The prospect of losing players from that team was something Tomás Ó Sé addressed forcefully on the Indo Sport podcast recently.

Describing the player drain as “sickening”, the Kerry U20 manager argued that the departures were already hurting the county’s chances of winning senior titles.

I think it’s costing Kerry All-Irelands and I’d make no bones about that.

Ó Sé also questioned how AFL recruitment was being conducted, highlighting direct approaches to teenage players and the lack of a contribution to the communities that had developed them.

He made clear, however, that he would wish Boyle and Kirby well if they pursued the opportunity. He understood that a player could regret turning down the chance to try professional sport.

Ó Sé also challenged Kerry to examine its own support for young footballers, including how they are looked after in training and helped with school or college commitments.

If Boyle is successful he could join fellow Kerry players Mark O’Connor, Cillian Burke, Rob Monahan and Ben Murphy in the AFL.

https://www.balls.ie/gaa/evan-boyle-richmond-afl-trial-kerry-tomas-o-se-663016

[ajGreen]

Sounds like hbf / wing type

 

[Andyy]

Good to see us checking this option out after some discussion about CatB's

[ajGreen]

Like I said. Would be very happy to be proven wrong.

Sounds like a proper good prospect so it's a good start.

[camboon]

At least we are giving it a crack, a lot of other sides have picked up good players  though Irish recruitment

[the claw]

At the end of the day its a cat B its a free shot, I really hope they are gunna look elsewhere for a winger or two though.I really hope they dont think oh we have a cat b wing the list is in good shape. Did i say they are long shots.

[one-eyed]

Daniel Kirby is the other Irish player going by the Irish media back in August.

Kerry’s U20 All-Ireland winning midfielders Evan Boyle and Daniel Kirby are close to being offered a contract by an AFL club, the Irish Examiner understands.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/sport/gaa/arid-41898586.html

[tdy]

Yeah I dont mind if they try it but a lot of Irish players are not body contact ready and never will be.  It seems to be an instinct that some people have got and others don't and you can look a million dollars at Croke park but 50c at the MCG.

[one-eyed]

Irish AFL prospects to trial with Tigers

Two potential Category B Rookie signings from Ireland will join Richmond’s pre-season training.

By Richmond Media
Sep 25, 2026

Two potential Category B Rookie signings from Ireland will join Richmond’s pre-season training in November, as the Tigers’ global search for talent heats up.

Richmond’s National Recruiting Manager, Rhy Gieschen, travelled to Ireland at the end of the U18 National Championships, where the Club put 25 Irish athletes, between the ages of 18-23, through their paces with AFL Draft Combine testing.

The testing included a combination of athletic measurements, including 2k time trials, 20m sprints, jumps and more, while football training sessions were part of the rigorous program implemented by the Tigers. Gieschen also spent time with the families of the prospects, conducting home interviews across Ireland.

The athletes came from a variety of sporting backgrounds, including Gaelic football and hurling.

Gieschen explained how the Club is excited to build a strong connection with a country steeped in AFL history.

“We want to leave no stone unturned in our search and pursuit of talent, and expanding our footprint in Ireland is an important part of that plan,” Gieschen said.

“Our goal is to build a long-term relationship in Ireland and plant our flag in the ground there. It’s no secret that Irish players have been successful in transitioning over to our game, and we have been planning this over the last 12 or so months. We felt the timing was right, with a Category B spot available at season's end, to commence this process in our men's program.

"It has been great to see Aoibhin Cleary and Ana Mulholland in our AFLW program come in and have an instant impact both on and off the field.

“Through our comprehensive testing we have identified some Irish athletes who we believe have the potential to become impactful AFL players.

“We are excited to welcome some of them to Australia throughout our pre-season, where they will be embedded into all aspects of our AFL program in the hopes of securing a Category B Rookie list spot.”

https://www.richmondfc.com.au/news/2138809/irish-afl-prospects-to-trial-with-tigers

[one-eyed]

Gieschen recently returned from Ireland, with two Irish players to join Richmond’s pre-season to trial for the vacant Category B Rookie list spot.

“It was a great trip. We ran a combine and got to know quite a few of the players, did a few home visits,” he said.

“We've got a couple [players] coming out and they'll join in with our one-to-four year boys and we've only got one Cat B spot. Essentially, they'll be trialling for that last Cat B spot on our list, and we are really excited about that.

“Both players can really run, they've got speed, they're high-end characters. They're a little bit older, we're excited to see what they can bring to the table in their trial.

“The boys know there's no guarantees and they're coming over here to trial for it, but we're pretty invested in Ireland, and we wouldn't be bringing them over if we didn't think they could really contribute to the Club.

“The plan will be to offer a spot at the end of it, but they know that there's no guarantees. You're always looking at different options with the Cat B but I'm really hopeful that we can offer one of them a spot at the end of that trial.”

Source: RFC website[\url]

[MintOnLamb]

Two boys, free holiday to Oz, hopefully they are overage ex basket ballers, Fair go why do we have to go to Ireland to find players??
There are plenty available in Russia …..

[Andyy]

Unsure if you're being sarcastic MOL?

There is a long-standing relationship between Australia and Ireland, with over forty years of international rules history, as well as several Irish players making a successful transition to AFL with the skill set and athletic profile seeming to be one of the more suitable for crossing codes.

If we have CatB rookie slots specifically for players in this situation, I am very glad we are looking at Ireland, instead of just basketballers.

[camboon]

Well said Andy, most other clubs have had success with Irish boys.

[taztiger4]

so if they are trialling for the last Cat B spot, it means OHB is gone

[ajGreen]

so if they are trialling for the last Cat B spot, it means OHB is gone

Ohb cannot be cat b again either way