MARK KEANE FELT the timing was right to pursue a hurling career with Cork after his decision last month to bring his time in the AFL to a close.<\/p>\n
\n Source: Seb Daly\/SPORTSFILE<\/p>\n
The 21-year-old departed his Aussie Rules club Collingwood after being based with the Melbourne side since 2018.<\/p>\n
His sporting focus has returned to his GAA roots in Ireland but despite starring for Cork football underage sides and famously scoring the goal for the senior team that secured a dramatic win over Kerry in November 2020, he has linked up with Kieran Kingston\u2019s hurling squad for the year ahead.<\/p>\n
\n Mark Keane is focused on Cork hurlers in 2022.<\/p>\n
Source: Laszlo Geczo\/INPHO<\/p>\n
\u201cFootball was always kind of my love, I played hurling all the way up as well,\u201d says Keane.<\/p>\n
\u201cI played minor and U20 at football level, would\u2019ve played both if I could have. I just thought it was the right time to give hurling a go. It\u2019s a dream for everyone really to play both codes, play Cork hurling and football. Since I\u2019ve done the football, I just wanted to give hurling a go. I just feel like it\u2019s the right time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been working closely with the selectors above in Cork senior hurling. They\u2019ve been great and very supportive, trying to get the best out of me.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very young crop of good players coming through, training sessions are very high intensity and very enjoyable. That\u2019s all thanks I suppose to Kieran with Noel Furlong and Pat Mulcahy, they\u2019ve been super. Even the training sessions are a great buzz, going up and meeting all the lads.\u201d<\/p>\n
Keane has a strong underage hurling track record and will link up with some colleagues from those teams now on the senior stage with Cork.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve a Munster medal and All-Ireland medal in hurling from U15 and U16 under John Meyler. Winning with the likes of Darragh Connery, Tommy O\u2019Connell, Sean Twomey, and seeing them playing with Cork senior hurling. Seeing the Cork footballers win the U20 final (in 2019), my fellow clubmate Cathal O\u2019Mahony win the U20 title as well. That was devastating for me as well, and I felt I could have been a part of it, if I was at home.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cork\u2019s league campaign may be commencing on Saturday against Clare but Keane has a more significant assignment. His form for his club Ballygiblin has rekindled his interest in hurling, a series of powerful displays have helped propel them into the AIB All-Ireland junior final against Kilkenny\u2019s Mooncoin.<\/p>\n
He may have played at the MCG in Australia but this will be his first time gracing the Croke Park stage.<\/p>\n
\n Mark Keane in action for Collingwood.<\/p>\n
Source: AAP\/PA Images<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s everyone\u2019s dream to be in Croke Park with your club, definitely (didn\u2019t think I would) with Ballygiblin. It\u2019s an unbelievable buzz in fairness, it\u2019s only a small country club outside of Mitchelstown. I couldn\u2019t speak highly enough of Brian Molan and Liam Doc (O\u2019Doherty), our chairman and secretary, they\u2019ve been unreal. They\u2019re just great characters and you just want to play and win for them any day of the week.\u201d<\/p>\n
After opting to close out his AFL days, Keane has no regrets at the end of a sporting chapter that saw him make five appearances for Collingwood.<\/p>\n
\u201cI went back over for five or six weeks for a pre-season (at the end of 2021). When I came home I just wasn\u2019t ready to go back. Just in my own head, I\u2019ve always went back without a bother but this time just felt it wasn\u2019t the same and wasn\u2019t ready to go back and commit to it.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suppose I always wanted to come home and play for Cork in either hurling or football. I just felt like it was the right time to come home.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s always a tough decision when you\u2019re leaving the AFL. I just had to ring the head coach and general manager and had a few conversations with them and they were very supportive of it as well, looked after me very well with my transition back to home.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was over there I was always invested in it, whenever I was training, I trained to the best of my ability and stuff like that, but in the back of my mind GAA was always there. I\u2019ve tried loads of times to ignore the GAA back here at home, but unfortunately I couldn\u2019t get it out of my head.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n Mark Keane.<\/p>\n
Source: AAP\/PA Images<\/p>\n
The restrictions enforced by Covid-19 made life difficult off the pitch over the past couple of years.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI wasn\u2019t able to get my parents and girlfriend over for my AFL debut. There were special moments like that you weren\u2019t able to do. You weren\u2019t able to come home as easy as you were.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were restrictions put on the AFL boys, even though there weren\u2019t in Melbourne \u2013 you weren\u2019t ablet to go to restaurants and stuff like, just to keep the AFL season up and running.<\/p>\n
\u201cAFL PA, and the Gaelic Players Association, have been super with helping me. AFL PA, even though you are retired, they\u2019ll still help you for three years post-retirement, which is very good.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe transiton has been good. It\u2019s definitely been easier with there being a good buzz around the place, around Mitchelstown and Ballygiblin.\u201d<\/p>\n
When living in Australia, hurling was initially parked in Keane\u2019s list of priorities. He then availed of an O\u2019Neills depot in Adelaide to get himself a hurley so he could puck around with his housemate, Meath\u2019s Cian McBride, and took in the odd training session with Melbourne club Garryowen.<\/p>\n
Since last autumn he has become immersed in the sport again, only missing one of Ballygiblin\u2019s matches when they played a Munster semi-final. He\u2019s keeping an eye on Cork\u2019s league trip to Tullamore on Sunday week against Offaly and gearing himself up for an All-Ireland club final.<\/p>\n
The aim is achieve more than just that memorable goal for Cork in P\u00e1irc U\u00ed Chaoimh in 2020.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s always good when you\u2019re knocking Kerry out of championship \u2013 you can\u2019t beat them enough. I was just glad that we got to the Munster final, but we didn\u2019t finish it off when we should have. I don\u2019t want to be remembered just for that.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to be remembered for other things: Playing with Cork hurling this year, aiding and helping Ballygiblin to get to an All-Ireland final, being around Mitchelstown in county finals, playing in the AFL as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
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