Mayo footballer Austin O'Malley has revealed the decisions for his switch from his local club Louisburgh to All-Ireland Champions St. Vincent's as being down to travelling commitments. All speculation about the move was confirmed last weekend when O'Malley played in a league match for the Dublin side against Raheny, and the 27-year-old teacher admitted that the decision to move to a different club was difficult from him. "It was a very difficult decision and it broke my heart in a lot of respects to leave Louisburgh," explained O'Malley. "But I made the decision purely from a practical point of view." "I'm teaching in Dublin now and the travelling up and down was beginning to become a problem. In the modern game rest is vital and a six or seven hour car journey every weekend takes its toll. "I was starting to get a few niggles and knocks and it was becoming harder to stay fresh. You have to be right nowadays if you want to play good football." Surprisingly, O'Malley's move was well received by the Louisburgh contingent, who understood the player's decisions for leaving the club. Now the Mayo ace is looking forward to a new challenge with one of the county's most historic clubs sides "I'd see joining a club like Vincent's as a major challenge. It's going to be a hard team to make and there's a lot of quality here. I'll have to work hard and trying to get on this team will keep me on my toes. The club here is built on a great history and it's a tremendous challenge to go out and try and emulate whet they did in the past." Tweet

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