Ger Brennan

Ger Brennan is an Irish Gaelic footballer who plays for St Vincents and, formerly, for the Dublin county team.

Ger Brennan
Personal information
Irish name Gearóid Ó Braonáin
Sport Gaelic Football
Position Centre Back
Born Dublin, Ireland
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Occupation Teacher
Club(s)
Years Club
 St Vincents
Club titles
Dublin titles 3
Leinster titles 3
All-Ireland Titles 2
Inter-county(ies)**
Years County Apps (scores)
2006-2015
 Dublin 27 (0-5)
Inter-county titles
Leinster titles 5
All-Irelands 2
NFL 1
All Stars 1
**Inter County team apps and scores correct as of 23 August 2014.

Early life

From a family of nine, he attended Belvedere College. At Belvedere he played rugby, soccer, hurling and Gaelic football.

Graduating from Maynooth College with undergraduate and master's degrees, he qualified as a school teacher and taught Irish and religion at St. Kevin's College, Ballygall Road, in Dublin 11. In November 2015 he was appointed Gaelic Games Executive at University College Dublin.[1]

Playing career

Club

Brennan won his first Dublin Senior Football Championship medal with St Vincents in 2007 in the final against St Brigids at Parnell Park. The team then went on to win the Leinster Senior Club Football Championship final against Tyrrellspass of Westmeath. Brennan was chosen as the Leinster club player of the year for his performances with St Vincents.

Brennan won the 2008 All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship with St Vincents in a hard fought game. He won the Dublin Senior Football Championship with St. Vincents, as captain, in 2013.[2]

Inter-county

Brennan made his national league debut for Dublin against Tyrone on 3 February 2007. He was a member of Dublin team that won the 2007 O'Byrne Cup, playing against Laois at O'Connor Park in Offaly. The game finished on a scoreline of 1-18 to 2-13.[3] He finished the tournament with a total of 0-04.

In 2008, he retired from Dublin's football panel, citing burnout and fatigue as his reasons. However, on 30 July 2008, he was named in Dublin's panel for the quarter-final and accepted a return. He was part of the victorious Dublin squad that won the 2011 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. He won an All-Ireland with Dublin for a second time in 2013, scoring two points in the final against Mayo.[4]

In October 2015, Brennan announced his retirement from Inter-county football but will continue to play club football.

On the 2nd of October 2023 he was appointed manager of the Louth county team .

Personal life

Brennan is a Catholic who has spoken about his faith in God. He has stated that while non-denominational schools may teach subjects such as science, Catholic schools "enable young students to have the skills to pray".[5]

Brennan was praised for his "nonchalant delivery" of thanks to the "girlfriends and boyfriends of the players" after St Vincent's defeated Castlebar Mitchels in the 2014 All-Ireland Club Championship Final at Croke Park (a speech delivered in front of a live television audience).[6] However just over a year later, Brennan wrote an op-ed for the Irish Independent arguing against the legalisation of same-sex marriage in that year's Marriage Equality referendum, which was ultimately carried in a 62% to 38% popular vote.[7] His stance was criticised by others, including fellow GAA star Conor Cusack.[8]

References
  1. Ger Brennan appointed Gaelic Games Executive at UCD www.ucd.ie, November 2015.
  2. "Diamond's late gem secures dramatic Dublin SFC title for St Vincent's". Archived from the original on 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  3. "Sport".
  4. "Dublin are All Ireland champions - Independent.ie".
  5. Duncan, Pamela (20 January 2014). "Ger Brennan says time for young people to learn more about faith: Catholic Schools Week 2014 begins next Sunday, January 26th". The Irish Times.
  6. "Ger Brennan's 'inclusive' speech praised by gay rights groups". BBC News. BBC. 19 March 2014. Retrieved 19 March 2014.
  7. Brennan, Ger (15 May 2015). "Dublin football star Ger Brennan: Why I'm voting No". Irish Independent.
  8. Cullen, Adam (14 May 2015). "Conor Cusack challenges Dubs star Ger Brennan on opposition to same-sex marriage". Evening Herald.
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