Ireland captain teases GAA return ahead of World Cup play-offs
The Republic of Ireland arguably has its biggest game in a decade in just over a week when they face Czechia in Prague.
It will be the first of potentially two games in which, if Heimir Hallgrimsson’s men can win both, they’ll qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 2002.
It’s been a long drought for Ireland, and all the players must be on form heading into Prague, including Ireland captain Nathan Collins.
Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
Collins was enjoying a decent season at Brentford as the club’s captain, but experienced a spell on the sidelines as he was dropped to the bench for a few games.
However, he’s returned to the starting lineup in the last two matches as The Bees are enjoying their best season in the Premier League under the tutelage of Dubliner Keith Andrews.
Collins has been one of the highest-profile Irish players in the current squad, being captain since 2024, but it could’ve been very different for him.
Pic: Izzy Poles – AMA/Getty Images
Speaking in an interview with the BBC, Collins admitted that as a kid he played a lot of Gaelic football as a kid growing up in Leixlip, Kildare.
‘I played a lot of Gaelic football as a kid.’ Collins said in the interview. ‘ I would have trained football twice with my team during the week, then I would have trained twice with my Gaelic team, then I would have had a football match on the weekend and then a Gaelic match on the weekend.
‘So my parents would drive me to my match, watch that match, finish that match, go home, eat something really quick, straight back out the door for another match, and then they’d go to the pub and relax.
Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
‘They were finished with me then, they were happy!’
When asked, could he have gone down the path of the Lillywhites, Collins downplayed his ability but admitted he was still fond of the game and wished to return in the future.
‘I was alright… I was not bad. When I was that age, I was bigger than everyone. I’d have been able to run over everyone, so I had that advantage. I’d love to go back and play one day, or when I finish football. I really enjoy it.’
