Eagles’ Irish experiment

Looking down at the strangely shaped ball he had in his hands, West Coast’s first Irish experiment Paddy Brophy chose to hide his training sessions away from his mates as he began learning a game that was in many ways a world away.

“It was just weird,” Brophy said.

“I didn’t know what to do with it or how to handle it ... or how to handball it or kick it. We’d just kick around the corner at home the whole time and dropping it straight on to your foot was just so weird, I was thinking, ‘How am I going to change into an AFL player here? I’m going nowhere’.

“I tried to plan around so no one could really see me doing it.”

In his first extensive interview since being drafted by the Eagles last October as an international rookie, Brophy revealed he was a long-time friend of his Fremantle counterpart Sean Hurley and had recently been forced to weather a serious bout of homesickness following a trip home to Ireland for Christmas.

The solidly built 21-year-old, who has added nearly 5kg since joining West Coast, said he knew little about the AFL or Australia until he came home one day to be told he had missed a call from Sydney premiership great Tadhg Kennelly.

An invitation to AFL trials in Dublin in early 2013 followed and his sporting transformation started when he recorded the best beep test.

Essendon, who hired a personal trainer for Brophy and subsequent Bombers recruit Conor McKenna, were initially the strongest suitors. West Coast, Geelong and the Western Bulldogs also showed a keen interest. Brophy then encouraged further possibility with solid performances against visiting Australian junior teams in 2013 and again in 2014.

Once he had claimed the best “clean hands” result at the annual AFL combine late last year, the choice was his for an AFL home and heading to the Eagles took his fancy.

“Before the combine, we’d spent four days in Perth with West Coast and they just made it real welcoming — they were the nicest people,” Brophy said.

“Everyone there made you feel like you were at home and everyone there made a conscious effort to support us and help us along the way.”

Kennelly was a hero and role model and remains a confidant, as does West Coast development staffer, former player Mark Nicoski.

Brophy was just five when he started playing Gaelic football and dreams of representing his County Kildare home at senior level were almost immediately ignited.

“Back then, I never thought I’d be in Australia playing Australian Rules,” he laughed, also revealing his lack of respect for the Australian summer’s weather also delivered him sunburnt shoulders during the pre-season. “It’s been a big transition, but a really enjoyable one so far.”

When he was just 18, Brophy realised his Kildare dream and made his debut in a win under lights at a roaring Croke Park in front of about 40,000 fans.

He and Hurley, who is two years older, graduated as junior teammates through to the senior team. Almost unbelievably, and now some 15,000km away, they are now building on a new dream of playing in the AFL, albeit this time as rivals.

While it will not happen when West Coast meet Fremantle at Domain Stadium this Sunday, Brophy hopes the pair will soon square off as western derby rivals.

“That would really be something to enjoy,” Brophy said.

“The two of us wouldn’t talk a lot about tactics or anything like that, but we’ve learnt a lot about the rivalry. Even in the NAB Challenge game, you’d realise how much it means to fans and players and it makes your aspirations even higher just seeing it.

“It helps a lot having someone here that knows your background and knows who you are. I know him and he knows me and we’re kind of going through the exact same thing, so you always have him there.”

But while Brophy has put studies for a commerce degree on hold, he admits it has not been as easy to forget his home.

“A lot of the Irish players have suffered homesickness and I’m not going to lie by saying I haven’t, because I have at times,” he said.

“When I came back from Christmas, you’re tired from the journey and you’ve been with all your family and friends at a huge time back home. When you leave you know you won’t see them all again for at least a couple of months, some of them for a year.

“It took me almost a month to get properly settled back in thinking about how everyone is getting on back home. It’s kind of a surreal experience, but the club helped me a lot and you know this opportunity doesn’t come around too often so you have to make the most of it.”

Brophy’s father John, mother Carmel and sister Aisling have eased back the call of home during the past fortnight with their first visit to Perth. John said he was vastly more comfortable having a couple of pints at a Perth Irish pub last week than he was watching his son play a WAFL game live for the first time the previous weekend.

Aisling, who returned to Ireland on Saturday, said she “nearly” understood what she was watching. Their parents are heading back to Ireland this Thursday.

Brophy said the tactical overload of playing AFL was the biggest contrast from his previous sporting life.

“With structures, stoppages and in-game tactics, there is so much to learn,” he said.

“You can’t just go out and run up and back, up and back. The role for me back home was to use your talent, get the ball, make things happen and score. Now you’re going from being one of the best to being one of the worst. This is a whole new game and a whole new lifestyle, a huge wake-up call.”

But living alongside teammate Malcolm Karpany in City Beach with their host family Richard and Judy Smirk, Brophy showed palpable improvement in his third appearance for East Perth.

West Coast player services manager Ian Miller said the Irishman was still coming to terms with reading the play in the AFL, but was steadily improving.

“He’s been playing some good footy for East Perth,” Miller said.

“You’d see this year as finding his way and learning, but if you watch him play across the half-back line, he really understands the game plan and the structures and he’s showing leadership. His running ability is great and so is his use of handball, his awareness and vision. It’s just reading the ball coming in.

“But he’s a great character, who works really hard and the great thing about him is that he’s not trying too hard with the group, he’s just being himself.”