Gerard O'Brien (born 2 July 1984) is an Irish former
professional footballer
Association football is the world's most popular sport and is worth US$600 billion worldwide. By the end of the 20th century it was played by over 250 million players in over 200 countries. Around the world, the sport is played at a professi ...
who played in the
League of Ireland
The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...
as a
defender. He is the current Director of Football of
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 origina ...
, who he spent 5 seasons playing with. His former clubs also include
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 ...
,
Kildare County,
Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
,
Derry City,
Sporting Fingal
Sporting Fingal Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fine Gall Spórtúil) was an Irish association football club based in Fingal. Between 2008 and 2010, the club played three seasons in the League of Ireland. During their first two seasons they pl ...
,
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, origi ...
.
Club career
Early career
Ger O'Brien was signed by Eric Hannigan before the start of the 2004 season from
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 ...
. He was the first player to represent the Republic of Ireland at any level while playing with
Kildare County. He represented the Eircom League International squad in Aberdeen for the quadrangular tournament with England, Scotland and Wales in 2004. Ger O' Brien made 39 appearances for
Kildare County in the 2005 season and was also awarded the club's player of the season award.
Shamrock Rovers
Ger left
Kildare County for
Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
to become one of the country's best full backs. He missed most of the pre-season campaign in his first year with
Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
but once the season began he became a first team regular pretty quickly. He revealed himself to be a tough and uncompromising
defender and although he suffered an injury setback in early June he made a quick recovery and picked up where he left off.
On 11 November 2007 Ger was voted Shamrock Rovers Player of the Year for the 2007 season and on the 13th he also represented his country in an Under 23 international against Slovakia in Dalymount Park.
Derry City
Signed for Derry City on three-year full-time deal in February 2009.
Played in Derry's four
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
games in July and August 2009.
Sporting Fingal
Following Derry's financial struggles in 2009, he opted to join
Sporting Fingal
Sporting Fingal Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fine Gall Spórtúil) was an Irish association football club based in Fingal. Between 2008 and 2010, the club played three seasons in the League of Ireland. During their first two seasons they pl ...
for the 2010 season.
.
Bohemians
After
Sporting Fingal
Sporting Fingal Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Fine Gall Spórtúil) was an Irish association football club based in Fingal. Between 2008 and 2010, the club played three seasons in the League of Ireland. During their first two seasons they pl ...
ceased trading, O'Brien's contract was cancelled. On the 15, February 2011
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, origi ...
announced the signing of 9 players including O'Brien. He made his league debut for his new club against
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 ...
on 4 March at the
Carlisle Grounds
The Carlisle Grounds is a football stadium in Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland. Situated directly behind the Bray D.A.R.T. station, it is home to Bray Wanderers A.F.C.
History
The Carlisle Grounds can claim to be the Football Association of I ...
.
St Patrick's Athletic
O'Brien signed for the club he supported as a boy,
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 origina ...
for the
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
season. He is the club's vice captain and he skippered the side against
Cliftonville
Cliftonville is a coastal area of the town of Margate, situated to the east of the main town, in the Thanet district of Kent, South East England, United Kingdom. It also contains the area known as Palm Bay.
The original Palm Bay estate was ...
in the Setanta Cup due to the absence of captain
Conor Kenna. O'Brien started the season off well and after eight league games the Saints defence earned five clean sheets and only conceded three goals. In the
2013–14 UEFA Europa League
The 2013–14 UEFA Europa League was the 43rd season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the fifth season under its current title.
The 2014 UEFA Europa League Final was played between Sevilla and Benfica at th ...
first qualifying round, O'Brien scored his first goal for the Saints on his 70th appearance when he scored the equaliser in the first leg against
VMFD Žalgiris to make it 2–2 in the
LFF Stadium
LFF Stadium (Lithuanian Football Federation stadium, ), formerly known as Vėtra Stadium, is a football stadium in Vilnius, Lithuania. The stadium has a capacity of 5,067 people and was home of the Lithuanian national football team between 2012 ...
in
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional u ...
, Lithuania.
International career
O'Brien represented the
Republic of Ireland U23s in the
2007–09 International Challenge Trophy, playing in all three games. He won his first cap against Slovakia on 13 November 2007 and then earned a second cap in May 2008 against
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. North ...
. He scored on his third appearance against Belgium. Ireland went on to lose the match 2–1.
Coaching career
O'Brien dipped his toe into coaching while still a player 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 origina ...
. With Pat's teammate
Brendan Clarke
Brendan Clarke (born 17 September 1985 in Dublin) is an Irish football player who plays for Galway United in the League of Ireland First Division.
Club career
St Patrick's Athletic
Clarke is a goalkeeper and played schoolboy football for ...
as his assistant, he coached
NUI Maynooth
The National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM; ga, Ollscoil na hÉireann Mhá Nuad), commonly known as Maynooth University (MU), is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. It w ...
to
Collingwood Cup
The Collingwood Cup is an association football cup competition featuring university teams from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is organised by the Irish Universities Football Union, and is the oldest surviving all Ireland assoc ...
glory for the first time in their history in 2014 by defeating
NUI Galway
The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...
in the final.
In 2014, O'Brien was appointed as Director of Football for the schoolboys section at
St Francis. The club won two All Ireland trophies in his time and 7 players were transferred to the UK.
In November 2016, O'Brien progressed to being appointed as Director of Football for the underage teams 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 origina ...
, he would also take up the role of assistant manager of the first team while continuing to play. He remained in this role until August 2019 when manager
Harry Kenny
Harry Kenny (born 13 April 1962) is an Irish footballer who last managed at St Patrick's Athletic before resigning in August 2019. During his playing career he spent 13 seasons playing for Shamrock Rovers.
Harry, or 'H' as his friends nicknam ...
left the club, with O'Brien remaining Director of Football as new manager
Stephen O'Donnell bringing his former teammate
Pat Cregg as assistant manager.
Following
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 Rovers ...
's resignation as manager of the
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 origina ...
first team in September 2018, O'Brien took over as interim manager for the club's final 5 games of the season.
Since taking over the role as Director of Coaching, St Patrick's Athletic have had unprecedented success at academy level. In 2019 the club won 6 trophies in total with doubles at U13 & U15s age groups respectively. Not only has success come in the form of trophies its also come with players representing Ireland across all underage levels. Over 25 players have been capped since O'Brien took the role.
In 2020 St Pats U19s won their 1st League Championship in 5 years. Four more Academy players signed their 1st professional contracts with the club whilst two Academy players made the move across to the UK to play with
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foo ...
and
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa P ...
respectively.
2020 also saw O'Brien graduate with the highest possible honour to complete his
UEFA Pro Licence
UEFA, the governing body for football in Europe, mandates several coaching licences for professional managers, each valid for coaching at a certain level. These include the UEFA Pro Licence, the UEFA A Licence, and the UEFA B Licence. They are is ...
course.
Honours
Club
;Shamrock Rovers
*
League of Ireland First Division
The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. ...
(1):
2006
;St Patrick's Athletic
*
League of Ireland Premier Division
The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland ...
(1):
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
*
President's Cup
The Presidents Cup is a series of men's golf matches between a team representing the United States and an International Team representing the rest of the world minus Europe. Europe competes against the United States in a similar but considerably ...
(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 ...
*
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 ...
*
FAI Cup
The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Extra.ie FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as Derry ...
(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 ...
*
League of Ireland Cup
The League of Ireland Cup ( ga, Corn Sraithe na hÉireann), also referred to in Ireland as the 'League Cup', is an annual knockout competition in men's football in the Republic of Ireland. It is contested by League of Ireland clubs and invite ...
(2):
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...
,
2016
;Maynooth University (As manager)
*
Collingwood Cup
The Collingwood Cup is an association football cup competition featuring university teams from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is organised by the Irish Universities Football Union, and is the oldest surviving all Ireland assoc ...
(1): 2014
Individual
*
Kildare County Player of the Year (1):
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris (dwarf planet), Er ...
*
Shamrock Rovers Player of the Year (1):
2007
File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...
*
PFAI Team of the Year
The Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland Team of the Year (often called the PFAI Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to the group of eleven players voted by their fellow players as having perform ...
(2):
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
,
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
*
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 origina ...
Goal of the Season (1):
**
2013
File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...
(vs
Cork City
Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the c ...
)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, Ger
1984 births
Living people
Association footballers from Dublin (city)
Republic of Ireland men's association footballers
Athlone Town A.F.C. players
Kildare County F.C. players
Shamrock Rovers F.C. players
Derry City F.C. players
Sporting Fingal F.C. players
League of Ireland players
Bohemian F.C. players
St Patrick's Athletic F.C. players
St Patrick's Athletic F.C. managers
League of Ireland XI players
Republic of Ireland men's under-23 international footballers
Men's association football defenders
Cherry Orchard F.C. players
Republic of Ireland association football managers