Eddie Barry (leading) and Paidi O’Brien look set to move teams for 2013, but their destination is unknown
By Brian Canty
Former An Post-Sean Kelly rider Paidí O’Brien has announced that he will be leaving the Dan Morrissey-Speedy Spokes team but it is yet to be confirmed where he will ride next season.
Speculation had been rife that he would join a high-profile racing team in Limerick in the colours of the 'Cycle4Sick Children' club but that move is now in doubt.
O’Brien, who claimed a string of wins throughout last season, was set to link up with departing Blarney CC riders Eddie Barry, Aidan Gallery and Alan Loftus at the Limerick-based team but following a meeting last night, such a move looks increasingly unlikely.
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Stickybottle had published a story yesterday before the meeting, suggesting the move was going ahead. However, this now appears not to be the case.
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Barry was a member of the Blarney club for years, while Gallery and Loftus both rode with Limerick CC before moving to the Cork-based club and both are set to now leave the Cork club, with their next move now very much unknown.
But what is clear is that the quartet are keen on a move away from their current clubs and will no doubt result in many teams scrambling for their respective signatures.
O’Brien’s wins for the Tim Barry-led Dan Morrissey/Speedy spokes outfit in 2012 included the opening stage of Rás Mumhan, the second stage of the Suir Valley Three-Day, the Dan O’Donovan Memorial in Fermoy, Rás Luimni, the Youghal Criterium and the Osborne Butchers Blarney Criterium, while also placing seventh in the National Road Race Championships.
O’Brien is still perhaps the fastest finisher in the domestic bunch, having returned home to Ireland to live and go to college after his final season in Belgium with An Post-Sean Kelly in 2010.
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