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About Me...
I’m an Irishman, from Dublin, but lived in Oklahoma City, USA for 10 years. I've been back in Ireland now since the summer of 2008 and I'm enjoying being at home with my family and pals, once again. I've also made some great friends from all over the world, as far away as Jamaica, Italy, New Zealand and Kenya, whom, I mostly met over there in the US.
I’m a bit of an all-rounder when it comes to sports. I started competing when I was a youngster, as a Gaelic Footballer and Hurler initially and I was selected for Dublin at both sports, at the underage level. I then turned my focus to soccer, which I played for most of my life.
In 1998, at the age of 24, I was offered a full-soccer scholarship to the University of Science of Arts of Oklahoma (USAO). I graduated in 2002 and received the All-American Scholar-Athlete award a couple of times and the All-Star Regional Team Selection in 2000/01.
Academically, I did well too, before graduating with a BSc (Hons), in Physical Education and concentrations in both Political Science and Journalism. I was awarded with the 'Young Alumni of the Year' award in 2006 from my alma mater, which was a fantastic honour. In my spare-time, which I have little of nowadays, I'm slowly but surely, writing a book of short stories, but that’s going to take a little while yet.
After I graduated from college, I went through quite a rough time trying to find a job, but eventually, after many adventures and much prayer, I was offered employment as a PE teacher at Columbus Elementary; a school in downtown OKC, which was comprised of a disadvantaged, predominantly Hispanic, student-body, which I found a very rewarding and enjoyable job. I have to say that I really miss my kids and co-workers at Columbus since returning home, but I am hoping to visit them all soon.
Just before I started teaching in the US, I started my career as a professional boxer. It's a long story on how I actually became a professional boxer, since I had a relatively 'non-existent' amateur career, but, to cut a long-story, short; I only really started boxing on a serious level, to earn a few dollars to pay for a plane-fare home to Dublin. Then, against all-odds, I won my first professional fight and furthermore, I was offered the interview for the job as a schoolteacher just twenty minutes later in the same fight venue, from Phil Cunningham, who was the principal of Columbus Elementary, who had come to watch me fight. It just so happened that one of his regular PE teacher's had only left in her notice to leave; so, on learning of my qualifications, he offered me the interview. I'm sure you'll agree it was a rather bizarre turn of events, but as they say, "God works in mysterious ways" ...and the rest is history.
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Title Fights:
Oklahoma
State Lightweight Champion
(2005)
*
Irish
Light-Welterweight Champion
(2006)
*
USBA
Lightweight
Challenger
(2007)
*
WBA
International
Lightweight
Challenger
(2008)
*
IBF
International
Super-Featherweight
Challenger
(2009)
*
Irish
Lightweight
Challenger
(2010)
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