Dingle chairman: Compensation won’t make up for Uosis loss

Dingle chairman Paul Geaney Snr says no money can compensate for losing a leading player to Australian Rules football.

Geaney was reacting to the news that Kerry’s 2017 All-Ireland winning minor goalkeeper Deividas Uosis has signed a rookie contract with the Brisbane Lions that will see him play with the Queensland AFL club from next year.

After Mark O’Connor joined Geelong Cats in 2016, Uosis is the second player to leave Dingle for an AFL club.

Incidentally, he is the second Dingle goalkeeper to head to Australia after another former Kerry minor Gavin Curran emigrated there last year.

The idea of compensation to GAA clubs of players recruited by AFL clubs has regularly been floated but Geaney, who extends his congratulations to Uosis, does not believe it would be suitable.

“We most certainly wish Deividas the best in his professional career and it’s any young fella’s dream to become a professional sportsman,” said Geaney, father of inter-county star Paul.

“Obviously, he’s a huge loss to our club. We’re losing a great player and one with huge potential and we hope he will do very well.

I don’t know if compensation would ever make up for losing players of the calibre we’ve lost. Mark O’Connor was an absolutely huge loss to the club.

"Our population wouldn’t be massive and in the county championship he (O’Connor) could possibly bring us over the line but we’ve two young fellas gone now. I can’t see what compensation would do for us.”

Geaney says local reaction to the news of Uosis’ move has been a mixture of delight for the player but also dejection at losing yet another of the club’s bright lights.

“Nobody is saying anything bad because he’s a young fella that you want to see do well. It’s just disappointing when you lose a player but you want to see him doing the business when he plays down there like the way Mark has. Mark is lifting and it’s great to see.”

Geaney points out that while Dingle are fine for numbers at senior level they have to amalgamate at under-age grades with other West Kerry clubs.

“We’re okay numbers-wise although at minor level we play with Lispole and Annascaul and our U16s play with Castlegregory. Our numbers have dwindled.

“The quality of players that we have is very good but getting those extra few players makes a huge difference. We can’t do anything about what’s happened now but wish him the best of luck and hope that he makes it.”

Lithuanian-born Uosis said he couldn’t turn down the chance having impressed at the AFL Combine before Christmas.

Everyone did interviews at the combine but Brisbane were the first to come back to me and when they did, I wasn’t going to miss that opportunity. It’s a dream to go down there and play professional sport.

Last June, O’Connor signed a new contract with Victoria club Geelong, which will see him remain at the club until the end of the 2022 season.

Na Gaeil man Stefan Okunbur is also on the books of the Cats.

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