Derry football star McEvoy and Irish U-20 rugby prospect Colbert ...
Two exciting Irish talents will be making their way to Australia for next month's AFL Combine after Derry football star Eoin McEvoy and Irish U-20 rugby international David Colbert, a former Dublin minor footballer, impressed at recent Dublin-based trials.
Eighteen different GAA players participated in three training sessions over the last three weeks in the ALSAA (Aer Lingus Social and Athletics Association) complex beside Dublin Airport with McEvoy and Colbert shining brightest of a talented cohort.
McEvoy and Colbert excelled in a range of tests including 20metre sprints, a 2km time trial and a host of other drills and skills and they will fly Down Under later this month in preparation for the Australian Combine on the first weekend in October.
McEvoy is no stranger to football fans having excelled for Derry in recent seasons, earning an All-Star nomination in 2023 as well as also being pipped for Young Footballer of the Year by his Derry colleague Ethan Doherty.
The Magherafelt clubman, 21, has quickly become an automatic selection in defence for Derry and he scored two cracking goals in this year's Division 1 League final as the Oak Leafers eventually pipped Dublin following a penalty shoot-out.
His potential loss to the AFL would be sorely felt in Derry, currently without a manager after Mickey Harte resigned two months ago, whereas Colbert would be far from a household name in the capital.
He is a multi-talented sportsman, however, having played in three of Ireland's four games in this year's U-20 Rugby World Cup in South Africa.
Colbert is understood to have come on the AFL radar after excelling in defence for the Dublin minors on their run to the 2021 Leinster MFC final before he spent recent years trying to forge a career in rugby.
The Kilmacud Crokes clubman looks set to try his hand with a different oval ball, however, and while no contracts are currently on the table for either of the pair, Colbert and McEvoy are expected to attract plenty of Australian attention.
