In an ongoing series we are highlighting the young players who are part of the JD Academy, the Irish Football Association’s elite development programme. Today Brayden McNally is in the spotlight…
Name: Brayden McNally
DOB: 19 January 2010
Position: Central Midfielder
Club: Glenavon
School: Campbell College, Belfast
Hometown: Carrickmore, Co Tyrone
Brayden McNally’s earliest football memory was playing in the garden with his cousins when he was four to five years old.
He has loved the game ever since, and he is enjoying being part of the residential academy.
While he has had to deal with an injury during his time there, McNally has had a mostly positive experience in the programme. The central midfielder is currently focusing on improving his explosiveness through pin squat drills.
There have been several academy graduates who have moved on to professional clubs and starred for the senior Northern Ireland team. That’s a huge inspiration to McNally as he follows the same path.
“It motivates you,” the product of Glenavon said. “You realise that you are in the same position they were in, and it gives you a feeling that you can be just as successful as them.”
There have been several memorable moments at the academy for the 15-year-old, who turns 16 next month. Among them is meeting members of the current Northern Ireland senior squad and the senior men’s team manager.
“Long after I leave I will remember getting the opportunity to meet Conor Bradley, Callum Marshall, Brodie Spencer and Michael O’Neill at the academy,” he explained.
Over the next year McNally hopes to balance continued improvement on the pitch with achieving academic success.
He says being part of the academy has been a great experience and he has advice for those who may get the opportunity to be part of the academy in the future: “It means a lot as the staff put so much time and effort into making you the best version of yourself. It is an opportunity of a lifetime, and you will better yourself as a person and a player.”
