Tony McNamee has revealed the reasons behind his departure from Finn Harps last month.
Harps fans were sad to see McNamee depart and were even hopeful of a U-turn at one stage, but the player has signed with Swilly Rovers and is expected to feature against Cockhill Celtic on Sunday.
The Ramelton native – who is a nephew of Finn Harps legend Con McLaughlin – talks about the frustrations with an increasing amount of time on the bench.
Work commitments at Michael Murphy Sports & Leisure and a course which he is set to begin in the coming weeks contributed to his decision but, ultimately, the decreased number of minutes was the decisive factor.
“As the season went on, I was getting frustrated at the lack of game time and it got the better of me,” he says.
“Over time, work commitments came into it too. It was the easy option for me, really.
“People sometimes don’t realise what players in the League of Ireland have to do. To be fair, Michael and Martin in the shop were very helpful to me. Even getting off for training, never mind matches, was never a problem.
“Sometimes, though, after matches, I was coming back from Wexford or Cork at half five in the morning and was clocking in for work again at nine.
“We played away to Galway one Monday night and we were in Cork on the Friday. I took a week’s holidays that week to get recover in between the games. That’s a week I couldn’t get back.
“You’re taking hours off, so you’re getting paid less. Some days you’re coming in late or leaving early. I was lucky in comparison to some players who had struggles to get off for games.
“I did a lot of thinking during the last part of the season. I was actually thinking about pulling the pin back in September, but I stuck it out.”
McNamee is also starting a course, from which he hopes to obtain a qualification to work as a Special Needs Assistant, something that will also eat into his time.
Football has always been number one for McNamee.
The day before his Leaving Certificate exams started, McNamee broke nuckles in a game and needed someone to write for him during the exams.
“This is now the first time I’ve thought outside of football properly,” he says.
“I’m starting the course now soon. It’s something hopefully with a long-term plan there.”
McNamee is hoping to help Swilly Rovers turn the corner in the coming weeks having returned to his hometown club.
The 23-year-old is back at Swilly Park having decided to sever ties with Finn Harps in early December.
USL action resumes this Sunday following the Christmas break and McNamee will be included in the Swilly squad that takes on League leaders and defending champions Cockhill Celtic at the Charlie O’Donnell Sports Grounds.
Swilly are without a League win so far this season, but McNamee – back after making 40 appearances in two seasons with Harps – is aiming to change the Lennonsiders’ luck.
“It’s been a while since I played and I’m really looking forward to getting back out on the pitch again,” McNamee says.
“I was just looking in the last couple of weeks there; my last full 90 minutes was back in June away to Longford Town.
“I haven’t seen too much of Swilly but from what I’ve seen even in training, I believe we’d give most teams a game if we have our full side out.
“It’s always nice to pull on the Swilly shirt. I’ve always played for Swilly, from schoolboys level. There was one season where I played Under-16, Reserve and senior before I moved into Derry.
“It’ll be enjoyable again, going back in and playing with boys that I grew up with. It’ll be nice to get back playing with Swilly again.
“It’s a results-based business and we need to start getting results. There are no ‘big-time’ players here at Swilly and no-one gets a penny for what they do. There’s no point in that anymore.
“At the start of the season, Swilly had boys out from Derry, but still weren’t getting the results.
“Gerry (Crossan) has taken over and a lot of young players have come in. There is a lot to be positive about. There is a great underage set-up here at the club. A lot of players have moved onto Derry for instance.
“Playing in the USL is great for players. Myself and Barry both benefitted greatly from it. You’re playing against men in proper, physical games.
“It’s one reason I disagree with the Under-15 League of Ireland – it will hurt underage teams and development at schoolboys teams like Swilly, but hopefully not too much.”
McNamee previously played in the USL with Swilly, lining out under Danny McConnell and Kieran Boyle before he was signed by Derry City.
He was given a first team debut by Roddy Collins, then manager at Brandywell, before a move to Glenavon didn’t yield success and he was signed by Harps boss Ollie Horgan ahead of the 2015 campaign.
Sunday, January 8, 2pm
Derry City Reserves v Finn Harps Reserves
Letterkenny Rovers v Fanad United (to be played at Aura Centre)
Cockhill Celtic v Swilly Rovers
| USL | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | PTS |
| Cockhill Celtic | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 6 | 19 | 19 |
| Fanad United | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 11 |
| Letterkenny Rovers | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 14 | 13 | 1 | 10 |
| Bonagee United | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 14 | -7 | 10 |
| Derry City Reserves | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 14 | 5 | 9 |
| Finn Harps Reserves | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 19 | -10 | 4 |
| Swilly Rovers | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 20 | -13 | 3 |
TOP GOALSCORERS (League only)
Cathal Farren (Derry City Reserves) 8
Darren McElwaine (Letterkenny Rovers) 6
Mark Moran (Cockhill Celtic) 6
Aaron McCready (Finn Harps Reserves) 4
Stephen Duffy (Derry City Reserves) 3
Aidan McLaughlin (Bonagee United) 3
Gerard McLaughlin (Cockhill Celtic) 3
Max Karner (Derry City Reserves) 3
William O’Connor (Cockhill Celtic) 3
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