Red, white and green: Paris McCarthy's Sydney dream feels a lot like home
FITTING RIGHT IN: Paris McCarthy of the Swans warms up during the 2023 AFLW Round 03 match between the Brisbane Lions and the Sydney Swans at Brighton Homes Arena on September 17, 2023 in Ipswich, Australia. Pic: Russell Freeman/AFL Photos via Getty Images
Paris McCarthy makes the call home from Sydney to Kerry every day. She did something similar while playing Division One basketball with Tennessee. The 19-year-old and her parents make it work despite thousands of miles and time zones and all the other complications that come from disparate continents. Only one thing ever gets in the way.
“I ring home every day. I might miss them once in a blue moon because of mass,” she says with a smile. “My mam goes to mass at 11. I have to plan around that if we have an evening training. She goes to Castleisland; we are big fans of Fr Mossie Brick. I actually sent him a postcard back for him last month. An amazing priest!”
Sydney Swans is home now. An Irish abode. She sees and feels it all around her. McCarthy, who played for Kerry in the 2022 All-Ireland final prior to making the move, is one of four recent Irish AFLW recruits. Kerry team-mate Julie O’Sullivan signed at the same time and is her current house-mate. Roscommon’s Jennifer Higgins completed the set.
Donegal’s Tanya Kennedy emigrated to Australia in 2012 and came across the Swans’ radar while playing Gaelic football in Sydney, recently joining as a train-on player. Higgins' husband is former Roscommon footballer Cathal Shine, now the side’s property co-ordinator. Stephen Kelly is over S&C and Tipperary star Colin O’Riordan is assisting as a coach after he retired from AFL last year.
On Sunday, they play the West Coast Eagles at Henson Park in Round 4. The club have elected to make the home fixture a celebration of the Irish community in Sydney.
“There are just so many Irish over here, it makes you feel at home. We were in Brisbane last weekend and there was a Gaelic football awards night in the hotel while we were there. In the club there are so many of us. I didn’t have that in America. I’d no support really. Friends and family would check in but there wasn’t any there. It was so rural and no Irish. I missed that," she says.
“Here I haven’t got homesick at all. Having Julie here is great, we’ve the same mindset and work together. Jenny and Tanya have been amazing. Learning from Colin is second to none.”
She was bound to the Swans before she knew it. A few years back an Instagram jersey seller reached out with an offer of a free kit. Take your pick. She liked the look of a red and white style and opted for that. When the Swans made their pitch last October, she recognised the colours and decided to don them on the big stage.
The road for McCarthy and her new sport is long and often arduous. Her fellow Irish club-mates come together offering company and leadership. Each turn can bring a thrill or disappointment. Take the last seven days. AFLW continues to progress towards full-time professionalism with pay rises and increased games up to 2027 confirmed this week. It was also confirmed that Higgins suffered a cruel ACL blow last weekend, just as she was preparing for her debut. She has been ruled out for the season.
Helping McCarthy through it all is O’Riordan. He spent seven years in the AFL before he was forced to retire due to a hip injury.
“He is incredible,” McCarthy explains. “He sees things similar to me and that helps when he is explaining the game. He gives great advice; just a great coach but he is also so motivating and inspirational. He told us his story in Sydney, how hard he worked and how long he waited to play.
“Everyone loves him here. On the pitch now I can always hear him. I can hear him talking to me. One of my strong points thankfully is that I can hear everything on the field, I can hear him communicating to me.”
Growing up the dream was to play sport professionally. Any sport would do. Now she wants to play two. McCarthy is in talks with the Sydney Flames, the only professional women's basketball team in New South Wales. Her first few months in the country coincided with the Women’s World Cup. AFLW is a burgeoning competition in a progressing environment and she wants to star in it.
“After the World Cup, it made everyone want to get to that level," says McCarthy. "It is going in that direction. That is something I never expected to happen. We are blessed. It is huge, it is hard to fathom. Obviously, I want to make a huge career out of this, I want to be one of the best in the future. It is not about just being a good Irish player.
“Since I first touched a ball, (being a pro athlete) was something I wanted to do. I didn’t care what sport I had to play, I just wanted to do it. I always said I wanted to go the Olympics as well. That is still something I want to do. It won’t happen in basketball. So I’ve been like, Rugby Sevens, what do I need to do? Basketball is the plan now. There is only one other dual athlete that I know, Monique Conti for Richmond. I want to develop and become a good player before I do both, but I want to do both.
“The club encourage it and know how serious I am about my sport. How careful I would be. I don’t want to overburden myself either. Right now, the seasons don’t clash either. When it is full-time pro, I’ll have to deal with that but right now it is possible.” Dreaming of becoming a multi-sport pro star. Forging a route for others to follow.
“The footsteps are there now. I like the idea that the younger generation can see what is possible. You can take that path and not be afraid of having big aspirations.”
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
