Rory Michael Feely (born 3 January 1997) is an Irish professional footballer who plays for

EFL League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...

club

Barrow Barrow may refer to: Places England * Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria ** Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, local authority encompassing the wider area ** Barrow and Furness (UK Parliament constituency) * Barrow, Cheshire * Barrow, Gloucestershire * Barro ...

. He previously played for

Bohemians Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

after two spells at

St Patrick's Athletic St Patrick's Athletic Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Lúthchleas Phádraig Naofa) is a professional Irish association football club based in Inchicore, Dublin, that plays in the Irish Premier Division. Founded in May 1929, they played origin ...

where he started his professional career, having also previously spent 2 seasons at

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

Club career

Early career

Feely started playing football with Tramore AFC. He then played for Athy Town, where he represented the Kildare & District Underage League at the Kennedy Cup. His performances at the Kennedy Cup earned him a move to League of Ireland Champions

in 2014, where he started playing with the Under 19 side. His first season was a success with Pat's winning the Under 19 SSE Airtricity League with a 3–2 win over

Derry City Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

under 19's in the final at

Maginn Park Maginn Park is a football stadium located in Buncrana, County Donegal, Republic of Ireland. It is used by the amateur Inishowen Football League for staging cup finals and other important matches. During the 2017 League of Ireland season, the gro ...

, with Feely getting himself on the scoresheet. The team included several players that broke through to the Pat's first team and beyond in the League of Ireland and

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

s, including Jamie McGrath, Darragh Markey, Jack Bayly, Fuad Sule, Paul Rooney and JJ Lunney.

St Patrick's Athletic

2014–2015

Feely's first involvement with the first team at

came on 9 September 2014 when he came off the bench for the last 5 minutes of the 2014 Leinster Senior Cup Final, which saw his side win 2–1 to claim the trophy and Feely's first medal at senior level. His first senior league appearance came on 17 October 2014 when he replaced Killian Brennan in the 72nd minute of a 2–0 defeat to

Athlone Town Athlone Town Association Football Club () is an Irish football club from Athlone who are playing in the League of Ireland. The club is the oldest in the League as it was founded in 1887. First elected to the League of Ireland in 1922, they pl ...

at Richmond Park. He did not feature in the first team in 2015 due to his heavy involvement with the clubs Under 19's side and also Kildare GAA Minors.

2016 season

His next involvement with the first team came in pre-season 2016, when manager

Liam Buckley Liam Buckley (born 14 April 1960), is an Irish former professional footballer. He made two appearances for the Republic of Ireland national football team. He was most recently the manager of League of Ireland Premier Division club Sligo Rover ...

decided that he would convert Feely from a

right winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

to a centre back and his next appearance came in February 2016, coming off the bench in a 3–1 defeat away to

Bray Wanderers Bray Wanderers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fánaithe Bhré) are an Irish association football club playing in the League of Ireland First Division. The club in its present form was founded in 1942 in Bray, and was known until 2010 as ''B ...

in the Leinster Senior Cup. Feely's first career goal at senior level came on 18 April 2016, when he scored the winner in extra time away to

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...

in the League Cup. He was an unused substitute in the 2016 League of Ireland Cup Final as his side beat

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

4–1. The 2016 season saw Feely make 17 appearances across all competitions, scoring 1 goal.

2017 season

With Feely too old for the under 19's, the 2017 season was his first season solely with the first team. His first ever League of Ireland goal came in a 1–1 draw with

Galway United Galway United Football Club (Irish language, Irish: ''Cumann Peile Ghaillimh Aontaithe'') is an List of association football clubs in the Republic of Ireland, Irish association football club based in Galway. They play in the League of Ireland Fi ...

on 14 April 2017, when he powered home a header from a

Conan Byrne Conan Byrne (born 10 July 1985) is a retired Irish footballer who last played for NIFL Premiership club Glenavon, having spent six seasons with St Patrick's Athletic, three seasons with Sporting Fingal, three seasons with Shelbourne and thre ...

corner. Feely featured 23 times across the season in a young squad that was in a relegation battle right until the final day of the season, retaining their place in the division with a 1–1 draw against

Waterford

2018 season

Feely signed for newly promoted

on 3 January 2018. Having played a handful of games at

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

for

the previous season,

manager Alan Reynolds deemed it to be Feely's best position, making him his first choice in that position, as he made his debut on the opening night of the season in a 2–1 win over

at the

RSC RSC may refer to: Arts * Royal Shakespeare Company, a British theatre company * Reduced Shakespeare Company, a touring American acting troupe * Richmondshire Subscription Concerts, a music society in Richmond, North Yorkshire, England * Rock Ste ...

. Feely's first goal for

came on 18 May 2018, scoring in a 3–6 defeat at home to

. He followed that up by scoring the opening goal in a 4–0 win over

a week later. Along with his 2 goals, Feely made 34 appearances in all competitions for

in his debut season at the club, as they finished in 4th place. Feely was named the club's Young Player of the Year after an excellent first season with the club for the 21 year old. He signed a new 1 year contract with the club on 3 December 2018.

2019 season

Feely had to wait until 13 September for his first goal of the season, helping his side to a 2–1 win over

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known as D ...

. The season turned out to be a disappointment for the club as they finished in 6th place, but on a personal level it was a success for Feely as he featured in 40 games, scored 2 goals and was named as

's Player of the Year after another impressive year for the right back.

Return to St Patrick's Athletic

On 19 November 2019, it was announced that Feely had resigned for

under new manager Stephen O'Donnell. He made his second debut for the club on the opening night of the season against his old side

. He was sent off in a

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

derby on 28 February 2020 as his side lost 1–0 to rivals Shelbourne at Tolka Park. Feely scored his first goal since his return to the club on 26 September when he headed home a

Robbie Benson Robert Benson (born 7 May 1992) is an Irish people, Irish professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder, for Dundalk F.C., Dundalk in the League of Ireland Premier Division. He has also played for his hometown club, At ...

corner kick in a 2–0 win over Shelbourne at Richmond Park. Feely played in all but one of the club's league and cup games over the course of the shortened season due to the Coronavirus pandemic, as his side missed out on European football on the final day of the season, finishing in 6th place.

Bohemians

On 5 January 2021, it was announced that Feely had signed for one of his brother Kevin's former clubs,

, ahead of the 2021 season. Feely scored his first goal for the club in the

2021 FAI Cup Final The 2021 FAI Cup Final, known as the 2021 Extra.ie FAI Cup Final for sponsorship reasons, was the final match of the 2021 FAI Cup, the national association football cup of the Republic of Ireland. The match took place on Sunday 28 November at th ...

at the Aviva Stadium, as his side lost to his old club

Barrow

On 5 January 2023, Feely signed a one-and-a-half year contract with

club

Personal life

Feely was born in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

, with his family living there in the 1990s while his father had a job there. When he was three years old, the family moved back to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, living in

Tramore Tramore (; ) is a seaside town in County Waterford, on the southeast coast of Ireland. With humble origins as a small fishing village, the area saw rapid development upon the arrival of the railway from Waterford City in 1853. Initially, the to ...

County Waterford County Waterford ( ga, Contae Phort Láirge) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is part of the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region. It is named ...

. While living in

, Feely attended

matches and was also a ball boy on occasion. The family later moved to

Athy Athy ( ; ) is a market town at the meeting of the River Barrow and the Grand Canal in south-west County Kildare, Ireland, 72 kilometres southwest of Dublin. A population of 9,677 (as of the 2016 census) makes it the sixth largest town in Kild ...

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

. Feely played

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

growing up, progressing from

Athy GAA Athy GAA is a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) club in Athy, County Kildare, Ireland. The club has won seven county senior football championships. Gaelic Football On 9 October 2011 in St Conleths Park Newbridge Michael Foley captained a you ...

to county level with Kildare GAA at Minor level, all while playing for

at Under 19 level. He starred in the 2015 Leinster Minor Football Championship against

Longford GAA The Longford County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) ( ga, Cumann Lúthchleas Gael Coiste Chontae an Longfort) or Longford GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland, and is responsible for Gaelic games in County Lo ...

Croke Park Croke Park ( ga, Páirc an Chrócaigh, ) is a Gaelic games stadium in Dublin, Ireland. Named after Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is referred to as Croker by GAA fans and locals. It serves as both the principal national stadium of Ireland and he ...

, winning 2–15 to 1–9. Rory's brother Kevin Feely is a former professional footballer who played with

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They have played their home games at Brunton Par ...

AFC Wimbledon AFC Wimbledon is an English professional Association football, football club, based in London Borough of Merton, Merton, London, that plays in the EFL League Two, after being relegated from the EFL League One following the 2021–22 EFL Leagu ...

and Newport County, before retiring in 2015 to return to full time education as well as playing

with Kildare GAA. While playing

with Kildare GAA at Minor level, Feely was a teammate of future

Normal People ''Normal People'' is a 2018 novel by the Irish author Sally Rooney. ''Normal People'' is Rooney's second novel, published after ''Conversations with Friends'' (2017). It was first published by Faber & Faber on 30 August 2018. The book became a b ...

starring actor,

Paul Mescal Paul Mescal (; born 2 February 1996) is an Irish actor. Born in Maynooth, he studied acting at The Lir Academy and subsequently performed in plays in Dublin theatres. Mescal rose to fame with his role in the miniseries ''Normal People'' (2020), e ...

International career

Feely made one appearance for the Republic of Ireland U21s, playing in a friendly against Republic of Ireland Amateurs on 11 February 2017.

Career statistics

Honours

Club

* League of Ireland Cup: (1) **

—

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

* Leinster Senior Cup: (1) **

–

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Individual

Player of the Year: (1) **

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Young Player of the Year: (1) **

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Feely, Rory 1997 births Living people Footballers from Brussels St Patrick's Athletic F.C. players Waterford F.C. players Bohemian F.C. players Barrow A.F.C. players League of Ireland players Men's association football defenders Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's youth international footballers Republic of Ireland men's under-21 international footballers Gaelic footballers who switched code Athy Gaelic footballers