Martin O'Connor and the German Model: ‘I never thought I'd play for Wexford from Frankfurt’
IN THE THICK OF THINGS: Martin O'Connor, far left with Wexford teammates Liam O'Connor, Anthony Masterson, Darragh Brooks, Paraic Hughes, Seán Nolan and Niall Hughes. Pic: INPHO/Tommy Grealy
It was a gloriously sunny day last Sunday in Frankfurt. Martin O’Connor logged a 90-minute running session, grabbed some lunch, and headed home to listen to his Wexford teammates take down Longford on South East Radio. This was his respite.
The former Wexford captain rejoined John Hegarty’s panel this year despite the fact that he is working as a project engineer for an Irish company in Germany. How can anyone operate as an intercounty player from abroad? Start with his own sessions.
“I wasn’t back home for two weeks,” O’Connor explains. “Typically, I fly home on a Thursday, train, play a game, and head back on the Monday. But we’d already qualified, and I could take advantage of that last week by staying out.
“I do my own training over there. Tuesday was light enough; we call it high-speed top-up. A few 100-metre sprints. 16 seconds on, 44 seconds off. It is three sets by eight. Friday was 100 metres, 200, 400 and back down. Build up the distance with a slower pace but higher volume. Sunday is max sprints.
“The lads sent me over a GPS. I hit my top speed at the weekend, actually—the third time I hit it over in Germany. They are convinced I’m on a bike or running downhill with a wind behind me. But to come into the weekend with top speed is great.
“I think it was around 9km total at the weekend on my own. Usually, I would prefer to have lads with me. It is not ideal, but I never thought I would be playing for Wexford from Germany.”
The Half Way House-Bunclody clubman has returned home to play club championship in recent years, but he hadn’t played for Wexford since 2022. Hegarty came calling in the winter, and O’Connor declared he was open to a discussion. That was enough. Wexford wouldn’t rest until they had their man.
“I saw John Hegarty, the politician, anyway. A very persistent person who is hard to say no to,” he laughs. “First, he got in touch and floated the idea. I didn’t give a definite no.
“I remember when he called again, at the time I had stuff going on in my personal life, stuff in my career, I said, ‘I don’t know if it is achievable.’ He said, ‘For f*** sake, I am after putting a whole plan in place.’ I thought about it a good bit, and when he laid out the plan, I saw it was possible. He is a very reasonable guy.”
O'Connor was always willing to do anything to be a Wexford player. Even if that meant everything. It was UCD selector Paul Rouse who opened O’Connor’s eyes to the world outside of football. They had a conversation about his plans post-university, and he eventually took the opportunity to work abroad.
All the pieces matter; this year, most of them fell into place to make the intercounty dream a reality once more. He got a promotion. The necessary trust in his workplace had been developed. There was an S&C coach available for daily check-ins. A dietitian provided detailed plans. If O’Connor doesn’t pay attention to his consumption, weight drops quickly. It takes 3,000 calories to maintain his 81kg frame. He spent the first few weeks tracking them to understand what that looks like.
“I was playing a lot of soccer in Germany; they were happy to let me continue doing that. That was good for mobility, actually, a bit of physicality; they had the GPS on me for it too.
"Basically, it was three blocks. I did a six-week phase there, with my own high-speed running on top of it and a few 1.4km tests before I joined back in. The second block was coming home at Christmas. I was quite apprehensive about how the team would react to me, but to be honest, it was like I never left. I had a great relationship with them anyway.
“The third block was National League. He always left the door open if I was overwhelmed I could step away. But once I met the lads, I loved the setup and knew I’d be all in. The one thing that would bring me back was football. I came back three of the four weeks in January. The third block started with our first game against London.”
His local GAA club is Frankfurt Sarsfields. They have been an invaluable aid. After training, a cohort of players often join him for the top-up runs. Those skill sessions keep him sharp. O’Connor kicked five points in their recent victory over Tipperary. He lined out as a corner-back. Whatever they are doing, it is clearly working.
The reward is a first-ever outing in Croke Park. Wexford are the only side across four divisions to have won every game. This is not what he came back for, though. Not exactly. There is more. They can do more. Part of the allure was the fact they finally had consistency of management.
“One thing that made things difficult for us: we had management change every two years. That made progression really difficult. You are always starting from scratch. New management means a big turnover of players. Rebuilding again every two years. Once I saw John in his third year, I said, ‘This is brilliant. This is what Wexford need.’
“Now, this weekend is huge for the players, but it is bigger for Wexford football people. That they are back up, a few busloads are going to Croke Park on Sunday. They haven’t had the chance to do that in a long time. What I find important is that this team go up and use this as a platform, to promote Wexford football and to drive it on.
“Croke Park first, championship then. But we have to drive on in Division 3 next year too. This should be the beginning of something.”
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