MAKE NO BONES ABOUT

Sport is all about enjoyment for Feely

- PAT NOLAN

RUPTURING his Achilles tendon and turning 30 last August may have allowed some time for Kevin Feely to reflect on his career choices.

It was seven years since he had quit playing professional soccer after spells at Bohemians, Charlton and Newport County among others, favouring Gaelic football with Athy and Kildare (inset) instead.

It hasn't exactly been a glory-laden period since despite the promise that Kildare have shown at various stages over the years with a step forward often followed swiftly by two in the opposite direction.

A career in the lower leagues in England or the League of Ireland, similar to that of his younger brother, Rory - currently on the books of Barrow AFC would surely have been accessible to Feely, but he measures his choices in terms of enjoyment, not medals and contracts.

Moreover, with some help from the GPA, he's established his own business, Kevin Feely Athletic Therapy, while also lecturing in that field in DCU.

"I've never looked back and regretted that decision regardless of how well things have gone personally or collectively in GAA," he says.