'It's all about mindset' — Roarty reveals how AFL move developed as he settles in Down Under
Finbarr roarty Collingwood
Finnbarr Roarty's first few days on the other side of the world have been "a big shock" but the latest big name to leave Gaelic football behind for the AFL is eager to get to grips with his new game.
The 2025 Young Footballer of the Year joined Melbourne giants Collingwood as a Category B rookie, rapidly following another of the game's hottest young talents, Kobe McDonald Down Under. While Roarty's departure sparked further heated debate and consternation among some leading GAA pundits — Pat Spillane labelling it 'frightening' — the man himself is getting on with it.
Roarty revealed that the Magpies first made contact with him in the early days of the inter-county season before picking things up again after Donegal made a surprisingly early exit from the Championship.
"It was a very warm process. It was the very start of the year," the 20-year-old told the Collingwood website on Thursday. "They were just talking, saying 'we might have an interest in you and there's other players we're looking at'. We just talked from there and they were like, 'You know what? We know you also have your football on and we don't want to be getting in the way of that. So if you're not interested, just let us know, or if you are, that's okay. We'll contact you after the county season, let you do your own thing. We'll be very catering to your own personal space because we don't want to be in the way'.
"Later on in the summer, they contact me again, and we got chatting on Zoom calls and everything. It was a very open relationship, and it was good contact."
Roarty was welcomed to the team's training base by a trio of Irish imports to Collingwood's WAFL side, Ellie Brady, Kellyann Hogan and veteran Sarah Rowe who has been with the Pies since 2019.
The newest addition admitted his first few days have opened his eyes to the status of the game in its heartland city.
"It'll be on TG4, so, you'd watch a few games and then know just to see it," said Roarty. "You know it's big in its own way, but then you just come out [here] and it was still, like, literally a culture shock, how massive it is over here and the passion.
"It's all about mindset. I know myself, there's people doing this since they're born and I'm only coming into this new. Shane [O'Bree, Collingwood's recruitment manager] was giving me wee tips and and now I've landed here, so we'll probably get out with the players. I'm looking forward to the learning process of like starting something new. I did kick a wee bit, but I was by myself. There's wee tips, they were saying my hands kind of go sideways when I kick the ball, so there's a few mental blocks, but, it's just wee small learnings as I go on."
O'Bree saluted Roarty's courage in swapping hemispheres in pursuit of a career as a pro athlete.
“Moving across the world to pursue an opportunity like this takes courage and we’re excited to be welcoming Finbarr and his family to the club," he said. "We look forward to seeing him embrace the program and continue to grow as a footballer.”
As far as handling homesickness, Roarty insists that his summer spent playing Gaelic football in the US has steeled him for the adjustments.
"This year we were knocked out a bit early and Padraig Pearse [in Chicago] had contacted me and so I spent about nearly a month and a half or two months with them and in the hot weather, so there's no kind of complaints in that area!" he added. "It was a wonderful experience and at the end of it we actually came up with a trophy. The whole experience was just, it was like nearly a settler for this. I think it's helped coming over here. I'm kind looking forward to meeting new people and new personalities and it's also a new culture so we'll get into that, the coffees of Melbourne and the sports.
"I'm just looking forward to the new mindset and it's a different game, so obviously there's different opinions about it. There's different cultures like how they train. In Ireland we all play football, but there's not much of a media aspect of it. So when I came out here, [the media] has been a big shock for me, so it's all about getting used to this and not saying the wrong things!"
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
