Waterford FC is delighted to announce that the club has secured the signature of the highly regarded Rory Feely. The versatile youngster, who celebrates his 21st birthday today (Wednesday) joins the club from fellow SSE Airtricty League Premier Division side St. Patrick’s Athletic.
A native of Tramore, Feely played with the Graun Park club until his family moved to Kildare where he went onto play with Athy Town. He represented the Kildare & District Underage League at the Kennedy Cup before moving onto play with St. Patrick’s Athletic.
A younger brother of former Bohemians defender Kevin, he also starred for Kildare at Gaelic Football before going on to impress with the Richmond Park club at U19 level. He won an SSE Airtricity League medal for Pats in 2015, scoring in the final against Derry City.
Whilst playing the bulk of last season in defence, he can also play in midfield or attack He made his first appearance for Liam Buckley’s First Team in 2014 before having his best year in a Saints’ shirt in 2016 when he made 13 league appearances.
Speaking on joining the Blues, Rory said:
“I am very happy to link up with Waterford FC ahead of the new season. I’m originally from Tramore so I have grown up with the Blues as my local League of Ireland club. I kept a keen eye last season during the promotion push and I now hope to be a part of something big for the club going forward.
“I worked with Alan (Reynolds) at St. Pat’s and enjoyed the way he works so when there was interest shown I was very happy to join. I am looking forward to competing for a starting place and being part of a competitive team at the top end of the table.”
With a strong squad being assembled by the Blues ahead of the new season, Rory is looking forward to the fresh challenge and getting back to a more familiar role positionally. He concluded:
“As a player, I’ve been tried in a few positions over the last couple of seasons, primarily due to my aerial ability but hopefully Blues’ fans will see me deployed in a more attacking role where I feel most comfortable. Ultimately, I just want to work hard and break into the team early on.”
Speaking on the signing of Rory Feely, Waterford FC’s Alan Reynolds added: “We’re delighted to have Rory on board. He is another young player with plenty of scope for development and one that I worked with when coaching at St. Pat’s Athletic. He has an excellent attitude and hopefully as a club we can push him on to achieve his full potential.”
Rory Feely becomes the sixteenth member of the Waterford FC first team squad confirmed ahead of the new season and will link up with his new teammates this week as the Blues commence their pre-season training programme.