Heard about the Irish international Shinty player from Cavan? Read on. Conor Rabbitt admits that he didn't know what lay ahead of him when word came to him that the Irish Shinty chiefs wanted him to help his country beat the Scottish last October. But the trip to Fort William last October proved to be a roaring success for the Cavan Gaels clubman personally and for Ireland as the host country were handed a two point defeat in a double bill international fixture which was covered by BBC Scotland. "I didn't know much about the game or about an upcoming match until a got a letter offering me a trial in Dublin," Conor explains. The letter of invitation received by Conor also arrived at the doorstep of the home of Mullahoran brothers Paul and Darren Sheridan. Along with a selection of players from a string of other so-called 'weaker counties' such as Laois, Dublin, Derry, Carlow and Armagh, the three Cavan lads took part in a trial match between triallists for the senior Ireland team and those hoping to make the under 21 squad at the home of crack Dublin club Ballymun Kickhams. Sadly for the Sheridan brothers, there was to be no gravitation onto the Irish panel. It was a different story for 20-year old Rabbitt though. "I think I did alright in the first trial game and then got a call back for a second trial game and then got another call after that even though ground hurling wouldn't be the strongest part of my game." Even so, Conor showed a good enough touch with the sliotar on the ground to sufficiently impress team-mentors Paudie Butler of Laois and Tipperary fame and Galway's John Hardyman. Having come through the national trials with flying colours, Conor delighted in flying out with the rest of the players on the Irish under 21 and senior panels on Friday, October 24th last - after a squad training session - to the north of Scotland to lock horns with the Scots in Inverness. Ensconced in a top-class hotel, the players awoke early the next morning to have a training session before proceeding later on in the afternoon to ease past the challenge of the fired-up Scots by two points. Among the thirteen players that started for Ireland the athletic Rabbitt felt pretty content with his display from a wing-back berth. "It was hard to get into my stride and to adapt to the game at first but then after the first fifteen minutes, I settled in and got used to playing with the large stick. Things went fairly well for me after that. It was the first competitive shinty match I'd ever taken part in and it was a great experience." And as for the game itself, Conor suggests that the hybrid game is no place for someone keen on wearing wing mirrors: "It was a pretty physical game. They weren't afraid to pull across you and it was advisable to get rid of the ball as soon as you got possession. It's definitely a bit more physical than hurling but the Scots didn't use any dirty tactics at any stage and it seemed to be a good game. A few people who saw both the under 21 and senior matches said the under 21 game was much better. I think we deserved to win. Our ability to get goals at vital times made a big difference plus we were that bit fitter too. Playing in front of a couple of thousand supporters was a good experience too." Fulsome in his praise for the skills demonstrated in Scotland by Ireland's Michael McEvoy (Laois) at centre-back and Westmeath's John Shaw on the half-forward line, Conor says that the fact that the Irish team was composed of players who don't normally figure in the public eye in the claustrophobic world of hurling made Ireland's win over Scotland all the more praiseworthy. "That was their first team, their best side that we beat and I know that the result went down really well with Croke Park who may be thinking about selecting a senior team of players from the weaker counties too. I know the fellas who played against Scotland last October aren't household names but there are some of them who would get their place on practically every senior county team. Players such as Derek Hardyman of Galway and Eddie Walsh in Kilkenny are top players and showed their class against Scotland. " A second cousin of former Galway All-Star Joe Rabbitt from the famed Athenry club, Conor says that playing alongside some of the country's best young hurlers was really special and was a fair reminder of the times he 'crossed swords' with his cousins and their friends when holidaying in the Athenry area. On that point, the Cavan Gaels dual star was fortunate enough to appear on the playing field as Athenry superstar Eugene Cloonan. "I played against Eugene in a challenge match when he was playing for Galway/Mayo Institute of Technology and I was playing for Maynooth. He was one end of the field and I was at the other end but I could still see that he was a class act. " Not surprisingly given his elevation to the international ranks, Conor's commitment to the small ball game over the years brooks no debate. From the time the likes of Peter Kelly and later Tom Walsh took the vibrant Rabbitt under their wing at underage level, Conor has improved and developed his game consistently, season after season. According to arguably Cavan's finest young hurling talent, the game of hurling in Cavan, per se, has improved too in recent times. "The introduction in 2003 of the nine-a-side senior league competition was a great help to helping the game develop in the county. Having ourselves (Cavan Gaels) compete against Mullahoran, Gowna and Drumgoon is what hurling needs in the county if we are to build up a strong panel at county level. It was eight years since such a league was organised. It's good for the county that the league is back on track and hopefully it will go from strength to strength in the next few years. " Conor is not naieve enough though to think that hurling will soon outgun Gaelic football as the favoured sport of the mass ranks of GAA enthusiasts across the Breffni county. Conor himself as collected a handful of medals with his beloved Cavan Gaels in the big ball game but insists that hurling is his first love. "I would love to see hurling take off in Cavan but it will take decades though to build up the sort of hurling tradition here that will mean that Cavan hurling can take its place alongside the likes of Antrim, Laois and Dublin. Hurling is making some strides in Cavan but they're small ones at the present time," adds Conor who is in his final year studying Finance at Maynooth University. Significantly, Conor is adamant that the Cavan GAA County Board is doing everything in its power to improve the lot of hurling in the football-mad county. "We get the same treatment as the county footballers. There's no way anyone involved in the game of hurling in Cavan could point any fingers at the county board. George Cartwright is at every game and gives all the hurling teams great support and no expense is spared in helping us prepare. " Now on the cusp of taking part in his fourth National Hurling League campaign with the Breffni Blues, Conor is looking forward to the season ahead and aims to work hard at improving some of the weaker aspects of his game. In the hope, perhaps, of winning a place on the Ireland Under 21 Shinty team next time around? "Definitely. I want to do well with my club and with Cavan and if I can play well enough to get selected to play against Scotland again, I'll be delighted. It's a great honour to play for Ireland; we got a lovely medal, were all well treated and the prospect of maybe playing for my country in Croke Park is a great incentive for anyone playing the game in the weaker counties." Tweet

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