Andrew and John return from transplant games with bronze medal

The sixteen Irish soccer players who travelled to Coventry for the British Transplant Games not only represented themselves and their country but also their donors and their families. And those sixteen players including Dundalk men John Brennan and Andrew Gallagher, represented their donors brilliantly as the Irish team finished third at their first major championships.

Ireland opened up their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Wales before drawing 0-0 with Leeds.

The boys in Green topped their group thanks to a 2-0 win over London in their final group game which saw Dundalk man Andrew Galagher sciore one of the goals of the tournament with a peach of a strike from outside the box. Their semi-final against Oxford was a tight affair but unfortunately for Ireland they were edged out 1-0 as their dreams of reaching the final were ended.

There was still however the chance to play for third place and a bronze medal and the Irish team lifted themselves up to record a nailbiting 3-2 penalty shootout victory over Leeds after the game had finished scoreless.

Dundalk native John Brennan, who is captain of the team, had a heart transplant in 2018 in The Mater hospital, Dublin, when he was 37. he helped start the Irish soccer team and last weekend was a proud moment for John as he led his team out on the pitch.

“It was a great weekend and a chance to celebrate life after a trans- plant and to remember our donors. There was a great atmosphere and great camaraderie between the teams and new friends were made over the weekend. The standard was high and it was very competitive on the pitch. When you have twelve men on a pitch and you throw in a ball all the transplant stuff gets thrown out the window and it gets competitive very quick- ly. We have a new coach called Matthew Dunne from the Carlow\Kilkenny Utd and he has been brilliant since he came in and taken us to the next level.

“We played well in all of our games and to come away with a bronze was just the icing on the cake. I was delighted for my fellow Dundalk man Andrew Gallagher who scored an absolutely class goal in the group game against London. The next big challenge for us is the Transplant World Cup which takes place in Italy next August and we are all looking forward to that.

“The main reason we do this is to raise positive awareness about life after a transplant and try and get rid of the stigma that your life is somehow reduced after you have that operation. We want to be out here representing our country and most importantly our donors and show people that maybe have a transplant coming down the line that life does go on and you can still do the things you love,” explained John.