The Brisbane Lions are set to add another Irishman to their playing list, after committing to Cian Hanley, the younger brother of Pearce, as an International Rookie.
The 18-year-old, who has been a star for County Mayo captaining his side to the All-Ireland Minor Semi-Final last month, will relocate to Australia later this year.
Much like his brother Pearce, Hanley impressed the Lions with his elite agility and endurance.
Hanley caught the eye of the Lions early in his gaelic career, with Recruiting Manager, Steve Conole, taking a detour via Ireland earlier this year to meet with the family and deliver an Australian Rules football to the teenager.
Steve said Hanley had impressed the Club with both his talent and his attitude:
“Cian is a focused, diligent young man whose has impressed us all with his professional attitude and drive to improve.
“As Captain of his Mayo team, Cian has similarly impressed with his leadership and strong work ethic.
“His form for Mayo this season had been outstanding and no doubt he is now regarded as one of the brightest young talents in Ireland.”
Older brother Pearce, who is now 25, has been with the Club for seven years now and is contracted for a further four.
Hanley said he was excited by the opportunity to follow in his brother’s footsteps:
“It’s an amazing opportunity and something I’ve thought about for a while hoping to follow in my brother’s footsteps.
“I’m delighted to get the opportunity to play AFL and being able to have my brother already there makes the transition much easier.
“Both my older brothers played with Ireland in the International Rules series so I had an interest in the game from that. Once Pearce was out there we watched as much AFL as we could.
“The family subscribe to watch the AFL games so we watch as many of Pearce’s games live as we can.
“I was in Australia in 2010, I loved everything about it, especially the great weather.
“I've been practising a good bit with the ball, Pearce left one or two at home so every now and again I would practice the odd bounce!”
Unfortunately it wasn’t all good news last week for the newly signed Hanley, with scans confirming he ruptured his ACL in County Mayo’s Semi-Final loss last Month.
Hanley will continue his rehabilitation program with the Club once he lands on Australian soil.
Lions General Manager, Football Operations, Dean Warren, said:
“It’s tough adjusting to a new game and a different shaped ball, but we are confident that with the a lot of hard work and a few helpful tips from his older brother, Cian can develop into a really exciting player for us.
“Obviously suffering an ACL injury was hugely disappointing for Cian, but from our perspective it didn’t change much. We were always taking a long term view with Cian and it now provides him with some time to settle in and study our game.”
