In 2003, young Ballinagh footballer Padraic O'Reilly embellished his growing reputation as one of the Breffni County's most prodigious talents. The gifted defender had a wonderful season with club, college, county and country! As Gerry Robinson reports, Padraic is no longer one for the future ... he's very much a player of the present era too! For a young man, Padraic O'Reilly has already had quite an eventful gaelic games career. His 2003 season was as amazing as it was busy, with the Ballinagh youngster excelling on a number of fronts, all of which is chronicled below. Perhaps the most incredible statistic of all, however, is the fact that he'll be minor again in '04... Padraic O'Reilly is undoubtedly a rising star, with a glittering career ahead of him. Indeed, he already has a glittering career behind him too! How many 17-year-olds can say that? Two-thousand-and-three was a decidedly busy year for the St Pat's of Cavan student, and he didn't let anybody down. He helped the saffrons reach a total of FIVE finals (two minor, two intermediate and one U21); made history as full back on the Pats side that played in Leinster for the first time; lined out for the Cavan minor team that took Tyrone to an Ulster semi-final replay; AND represented Ireland in the U17 International Rules series in April (collecting the Man of the Match award in the first test). All in all, it was an exceptional year for the Ballinagh prodigy. And the fact that he's still not the finished article must be a frightening prospect for the rest of the clubs in the county. If he continues to work hard and progress (and there's every reason to believe he will), imagine how good Padraic - and Ballinagh! - could be in five years... Mind you, no point getting ahead of ourselves. He's a pretty good footballer as it is! One of the highlights of Ballinagh's year was winning the minor B football championship - a remarkable achievement as it was the club's third successive U18 crown. Ballinagh had never won three minor championships in a row before, and Padraic O'Reilly is one of approximately eight players to have featured on all three of those history-creating sides. Reflecting on the '03 success, the county minor notes: "We were one of the favourites at the start of the year as we'd won it in 2001 and 2002, but Ballyhaise became favourites once they beat us in the league final. We played four games to win the championship, beating St Finbarrs twice, Mullahoran and then Templeport [for the second year in a row] in the final." Padraic will be on the Ballinagh minor team bidding to make it a whopping four championships on the trot in 2004. He has also been drafted into the Cavan minor panel for a second successive year, having featured at wing back for the county under 18s in 2003. Last year was also his debut year with the Ballinagh first team and what a rollercoaster ride it was! The saffron contenders reached the finals of the intermediate league and championship, only to be beaten in both deciders by double-winning Denn. Alas, lucklessly, they failed to secure promotion to senior ranks for the forthcoming term. However, spurred by a sequence of encouraging underage results, the Longford Road lads are knocking loudly on the door to senior football and, if they persevere in a similar vein, that door will surely open out before them sooner rather than later. With Denn out of the equation, they could fancy their chances of advancing to Cavan football's top table in '04. It's a young side. In 2003, there were two minors and nine U21s on the Ballinagh intermediate team. Thus, the transition period is clearly coming to an end, with an exciting new combination beginning to emerge. Tony Brady called Padraic into the Cavan minor team in 2003 and - as detailed elsewhere in this publication - the Breffni lads enjoyed a commendable innings, which could have ended more gloriously had Lady Luck smiled favourably upon them. They came face to face with Tyrone at the semi-final stage of the provincial championship and almost toppled the fancied O'Neill County lads. That contest went to a replay before Tyrone came out on top. Cavan appeared to have one foot in the Ulster final first time out only for Tyrone to force the replay with an injury-time equaliser. It was a disappointing end to their campaign, but Padraic is hopeful that Cavan can produce another decent minor side in '04, when an Ulster title will definitely be on the agenda. Says the Ballinagh back: "Four of the six defenders from the 2003 team will be underage again next year, as are another five or six lads from the panel, so we're keeping our fingers crossed that we'll have a good run in that. Donal Keoghan is in charge of the team and we're determined to give a good account of ourselves." '03 was an historic year for St Pat's of Cavan, who participated in the Leinster Colleges league for the first time, losing to St Pat's, Navan at the semi-final stage. Padraic was full back on that groundbreaking team. There was so much going on in Padraic O'Reilly's football world in '03 that it's hard to know where to begin or end! Certainly, Easter Week 2003 is one he won't forget in a hurry. He was the only Cavan man on the Ireland U17 team that played Australia in three International Rules tests here in Ireland, with the Irish representatives coming out on top by two tests to one. Padraic lined out corner back and was honoured with the Man of the Match award for his performance in the first test in Pearse Stadium, Galway. The second test took place in Croke Park, while the third was in Pairc Ui Chaoimh. As all three games were staged ahead of national league matches, there were large crowds in attendance. It was a truly wonderful experience for any young player. "It was very enjoyable," the Ballinagh, Cavan and Ireland player confirms. "It was like being a professional footballer for a week and I enjoyed every minute of it. It was interesting to test ourselves against the Australians, who are practically semi-pro." It's hardly a major surprise that Padraic O'Reilly cites his Man of the Match award as the personal highlight of a thoroughly successful year. Looking ahead to 2004, what does he hope to achieve? "First of all, with the club, we'll be going all out for promotion to senior football. We want to be Cavan intermediate football champions next year and there's no reason why we can't achieve that. We still have most of last year's team and we're all a year older and wiser. Denn only beat us by two points in the 2003 final, so hopefully we can go a step further. "With the county minors, I think we have good enough footballers to win an Ulster championship - and the club will probably be looking for more minor silverware as well!" Padraic's brothers Martin (18) and Niall (15, a county U16 in 2003) also represent Ballinagh, as did their father Declan. It's a great Cavan name and a proud family tradition that's set to run for quite some time. Rest assured the next time Ballinagh capture an intermediate championship the name O'Reilly will feature on the winning team. Tweet

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