Donegal League stalwart Gerard McBrearty still getting his kicks at Letterbarrow

It’s such a busy time at the minute for Gerard McBrearty, that one would wonder where he gets the chance to catch his breath. 

Now 43, and with family, work life, and the Donegal GAA Masters team, the Kilcar native is now juggling all that with his new role as joint manager with Chris Burke of Letterbarrow Celtic FC. 

Following the club’s relegation from the First Division league last season, where they managed just three points from 18 matches, the long-standing club servant decided it was time to offer his services on the sideline for the senior squad and hopes to bring the same energy and passion that he brought as a player. 

It might be a new task unfamiliar to him, but one he felt he was going to grasp with both hands. For McBrearty, the time was right, but he knows the challenges he could face early doors. 

“We only started back the last few weeks in pre-season, and at the moment we’re just training one night a week,” said McBrearty, who has also starred for both St Catherine's and Dunkineely Celtic in the past.

“I suppose what we wanted to do from the start was to take in boys that weren’t involved in the GAA into our club because we know lads are going to be tied up with the Donegal championship at the minute. 

“We have a few lads who are involved with Four Masters, St Naul’s, or Kilcar, or whoever, we decided to leave them alone so they can focus on the GAA for the next while before coming back to us. So, that’s where we are at the minute.” 

Having played with St Catherine’s and Dunkineely Celtic throughout the 90s and 2000s, where he won several leagues with the latter, McBrearty eventually settled in Donegal Town where he got involved in the Letterbarrow club, and after 10 years as a player, he feels it’s time to give something back as a coach.  

“I’m coming to the end of my playing career now, I’ve actually been playing for Letterbarrow for 10 years now, and for the last few seasons it went from a social aspect for me, to something I really loved getting involved in,” he said.  

“As the years passed, I became one of the more senior players in the squad, but recently I’ve seen a lot of boys leaving the squad, so, I just thought that if I got involved and we had everyone together, and if we could get a nucleus of young players along with senior and older lads on the team, then we could have a really solid side.” 

Coming down from the First Division last season, McBrearty saw first-hand the gap between his club and some of the sides he played last year, including Bonagee United and Letterkenny Rovers, two clubs tipped to compete for the Premier Division this season. 

It may have been a year to forget but the new manager is now focused on the 2024/25 season, bringing young players back into the club, and giving their respective league a good go. 

“Last year was unfortunate because we were playing in a league against teams of really high standard,” he said.  

“Bonagee were in the league as well as Letterkenny Rovers, two sides that had come down from the Ulster Senior League, and they were a level above the majority of teams in Donegal, nevermind us. 

“It was good to play against those teams to know the standard we’re up against, and I think we learned pretty quickly we just weren’t at their standard, and the gap between us and them was just massive.” 

Alongside, this busy schedule, the Kilcar native still has one more game this year on the GAA front with the Donegal Masters as they face London in the All-Ireland Plate final in two weeks’ time. 

It’s a schedule of sport that would frustrate most people, but McBrearty, although he doesn’t know how many years left he’ll do it for, looks to be involved for as long as he’s enjoying it. 

“It’s hard to know how many years I have left with the Masters team,” he said. “This is now my fourth year with the Masters' side and since then there’s been a massive change in players coming in and players going out, so I don’t know where I’ll be with it next season, but when you’re enjoying it and you stay injury free, it makes it even better.”