When the League of Ireland First Division schedule gets underway this weekend, there will be plenty Clare interest as the newly formed Treaty United make their debut bow.
The club, which was formed this year from the embers of Limerick FC, features five Clare men in the squad with Newmarket Celtic trio Shane Cusack, Callum McNamara and Kieran Mahony joining Joe Collins and Jack Lynch in the set up. Manager Tommy Barrett also claims Banner links, having being resident in Sixmilebridge for the past number of years.
Preperations for this week’s opener away to Bray United got a timely boost last weekend, as the club picked up its first win in a 2-1 friendly victory over Athlone Town. Their previous two games had ended in draws, including against Premier Division outfit Waterford United in what was Treaty’s first ever game.
It will be a familiar setting for Shane Cusack, who is vying for a starting spot between the posts for the season. A near five year stint with Limerick FC which began in 2010 saw him make his League of Ireland debut, and he was part of the Limerick side who won promotion to the Premier Division for the 2013 season. During that campaign, he played on six occasions, with a further seven league appearances in 2014 as Limerick maintained their spot in the top tier. A move to Athlone Town materialised in 2015 where he made 11 appearances before returning to Newmarket Celtic to help the club in copper fastening their place as the dominant force in Clare junior soccer. During his three season spell back at McDonough Park, Cusack helped Newmarket to three league and cup doubles along with contributing to an unbeaten domestic run in that period.
With a new adventure awaiting this weekend, he outlined that everyone is looking forward to what lies ahead.
“It is an exciting time for everyone at the club and there is that sense of the new beginnings. There are still a few familiar faces around from my time with Limerick FC, but everyone is just excited now to get going. The majority of lads both in terms of players and management already have good experience at this level, so there will be no excuses or feeling out of our depth” he noted.
With the confirmation of Treaty’s acceptance into the league coming at short notice, it meant that manager Tommy Barrett did not have much time to build his squad for the season. When the call came to Cusack, he admits he had no hesitation in making the switch.
“It was really a unique situation to be honest. The fact that all the junior games were suspended because of Covid-19, and the uncertainty around when they will come back and in what format, it really made it a no brainer of a decision to make. The opportunity was there to go and play at a higher standard so that along with the fact that the junior games were on pause meant the decision was made for you really. W” he outlined.
Cusack has had plenty experience at the top level of the game, having spent some time with Colchester United during his teenage years. A two year spell from 2008 to 2010 is something he looks back on fondly and credits it with helping him to build toward the future. The English journey is one that his former Newmarket Celtic clubmate Harvey Cullinan is living at the moment, with the youngster signing a professional contract with Premier League outfit Sheffield United last week.
“Going to Colchester really was a massive step up for me at 16 years old. I was going from Clare underage squads to a fully professional set up. Having full time training is something of a shock to the system but you improve massively. It is amazing to see the standards off the pitch as much as on it, and it really helps you to grow as a person and a player. It is great to see the likes of Harvey coming through and I was delighted to hear about his news last week” he said.
With a strong Clare contingent, Cusack is ready and willing to be on hand for any advice that might be needed, with his two former team mates at Newmarket experiencing the game at this level for the first time.
“It is good to be able to offer to help them find their feet, but they are two great lads and they will be well able to look after themselves too. There is a real sense of goodwill behind the whole Treaty United project and it is a great pathway for Clare lads at underage level to build toward playing at League of Ireland U-19 level and then on to the senior squads. Tommy (Barrett) is the type of manager who will give young lads their shot so for Clare youths to have that opportunity is massive. It is all positive at the moment and hopefully when the crowds are allowed back into games, we will see plenty Clare faces at the Markets Field in the coming months” he concluded.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.