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+---- Thread: The farmers son from Ireland (/showthread.php?tid=590)
The farmers son from Ireland - Ltsmashie - 05-26-2017
With all eyes on the upcoming USFL draft on this side of the pond, on the other the nation of Ireland has their collective eyes set on one man, and one man alone.
Luke Tiernan grew up in the small market town of Tullow, in the county of Carlow in the country of Ireland. A population of just 3,972, time has seemingly passed this town by, even the local railway station closing back in 1959.
The journey from a small town in Ireland to a top NSFL draft prospect is certainly the road less travelled and while the term “home bird” has been often used to describe the man affectionately known as “The Tullow Tank”, Tiernan has never been afraid to spread his wings beyond his native townland – and certainly nobody would begrudge him doing so.
By 15, Tiernan had already made a name for himself in the circles of Leinster Junior rugby, as a result he moved out of home to accept a rugby scholarship with a top private school in Dublin. The son of a dairy farmer, the move to a posh private school would have been daunting for most, but far from an introverted country kid a long way from home, his teammates recall that he settled in easily, his work ethic coming to the fore and earning him the respect and admiration of his new schoolmates.
“His home, his farm, and Tullow is a big part of his life, but we like to think that he made a telling contribution to the school also. He came in, he got on with it and he was serious about it, he wasn’t the joker – he didn’t like lad’s messing around either, he’d be quick to tell someone else if he felt they weren’t doing their job.” Said his former school principal.
“Luke is very powerful, very strong, it’s abundantly evident, but what always impressed us was that he didn’t rely on that, he could have done nothing and still been the best player in the school, but that wasn’t enough for him, he just wanted to be the best player that he could be. He always had a great attitude, he was so determined to be the best that he could be, constantly staying late after training to practice on his skills or to do those few extra sprints that he thought would give him an edge of his compatriots – even at 16 it was clear that we had someone special, it’s not just his innate god given talent, it’s his top six inches that separates him.”
And indeed, it is, the thing often overlooked about the man who looks like he has been cast from solid granite, is that he is an incredibly intelligent person – during his time at school he represented the school in debating and was an accomplished mathlete also.
When first selected for his provincial side (equivalent of a conference team in the U.S.A) it was evident that even at this much-improved level, he was head and shoulders above the rest. His remarkable strength when carrying the ball marked him out as different, is ability to go through or around defenders with equal ease meant that he was a valuable commodity and he quickly became a fixture for his provincial side and soon enough for his country.
“But he always worked on his game” said former Irish coach, Buck Stevens, “he was constantly asking questions of his coaches, should I be doing this, should I be doing that, he takes things in, he listens to them, and he wants to be better all of the time. He had all the qualities you needed for several the positions on the rugby pitch, he was your archetypal farm strong, big country boy, he lived for the physical confrontations, loved the bone shuddering contact.”
“It was a shock alright” remembers Irish rugby international Pat O’Shea, “you’d swear somebody had died the way people were going on, but that is honestly how it felt”
When Tiernan turned his back on his burgeoning rugby career to accept an academic scholarship to Notre Dame it caused a mixture of emotions in his homeland. All seven stages of grief some might say.
First came the shock and denial, the fact that the announcement came on April fools day only heightened this fact. There was anger, first at the Irish rugby governing body for possibly not doing enough to keep Tiernan, and then later at Tiernan himself, with some calling him a traitor for turning his back on his country.
“It was tough alright” according to his mother, “the social media were in uproar, calling him every name under his son, he only did what he thought was right for him, rugby could come and go, but he always knew how important his education was, he just couldn’t turn down the offer of such a great education.”
But eventually, the anger passed, and now it would be fair to say that one would find it very hard to find a man, woman or child who has a bad word to say about Tiernan.
The questions are still posed – if he doesn’t get drafted, will he return to the game of his childhood? Will he come back to play for one of the powerhouses of European rugby and for his Country, there have been persistent rumours that he is being offered big money to join un with a franchise for the new U.S, based professional rugby league due to start in 2018, although his representatives have long stated that they are nothing more than just that, rumours.
“So why American Football”, I ask him when I finally get a chance to meet him, his size only more evident when he steps out of his amusingly small car.
“I got bored, I missed it you know” Tiernan said in his soft Irish accent, “I missed the comradery, I missed the dressing room fun, the slagging after a game, the energy of being in battle with the man beside you working as hard as you can to make their life that little bit easier. I missed the friendship”
It was cliché, but I believed him…
“But that doesn’t answer my question – why football? Notre Dame has one of the best rugby programs in the nation, surely they were beating down the door asking you to play.”
“It’s not true actually, I mean, yes, I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t approached (to play rugby), but I was on an academic scholarship here, and it seems by all accounts it’s heavily frowned upon for the sports programs to recruit academic scholars. But why football over rugby? Well to be honest, I wanted the challenge.”
He didn’t want to say it, but he didn’t have to. Tiernan would have been instantly the star of the rugby team, he would have been the best player in the league by far.
“But you had no experience in Football.”
“Well I played a lot of madden” he said with a wide grin on his face. “I always liked the game, I feel like a lot of the skills are transferrable, and to be honest I always felt that if it didn’t work out there’s probably something I could take out of playing American Football that would have helped me with my rugby if I had chosen to return to that.”
But it looks now that Tiernan won’t be returning to the rugby field any time soon, latest rumours that he has been approached by the Yellowknife Wraiths ahead of the draft.
“I mean there has been discussions, but it’s part of the process, I’d be disappointing if I didn’t have more teams reaching out for a chat, that’s just the way it works over here.”
With one RB already on the roster it remains to be seen if the Wraiths would have another RB high on the board.
“So, tough question now Luke, where do you see yourself being drafted”
“Honestly, I don’t have a clue, there is so much talent out there, I feel like it’s hard to set yourself apart from the pack, there are only six teams, only six starting running backs.”
But on tape he certainly has set himself apart, you only have to search youtube for “Tullow tank” to see fan compilations of Tiernan dominating defenders both on the Rugby field and the gridiron.
As our coffees are finished, and my time with Luke Tiernan comes to a close, I’ve grown to like him, a young man, a long way from home, polite, curtious and saying all the right things – effortlessly, nothing rehearsed. Honest.
“And what if it doesn’t work out, you’ve skipped your final year in college, an unfinished degree, a top-level career in rugby waiting for you if you decide to take it.”
He doesn’t answer, he’s smiling, but he doesn’t answer, he shakes my hand, thanks me for my time and returns to his tiny car, where he struggles to squeeze his mammoth frame in.
I thought a lot about it, sometimes the silence speaks volumes. For Tiernan, he has yet to fail, he seems a man that accomplishes anything he puts his mind to.
He’s now a long way from his family farm in the mall market town of Tullow, in the county of Carlow in the country of Ireland. A population of just 3,972, time has seemingly passed this town by with even the local railway station closing back in 1959, but one thing that has changed since 1959 - I doubt there were kids throwing pigskin’s in the street, wearing Notre Dame American football jerseys with their favourite player’s name on the back.
On draft day, in his corner of Ireland, they'll rejoice that their own prized asset will be living his dream and representing them proudly.
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