Niall Wheeler - One of Antrim's finest hurlers Growing up as he did in the traditional hurling stronghold of Glenariffe in north county Antrim during the 1940's, it was only natural that the young Niall Wheeler should find an immediate affinity for the hurl and sliothar, Glenariff is one of the famous nine Glens of Antrim and it remains to this day very much a rural environment. Away from the hustle and bustle of Big Town life hurling stands out as the main sporting pastime. Most young fellows during Niall's childhood could be seen in the evenings making their way toward the local G.A.A. fields armed with the auld chunk of ash. In that respect very little has changed. Glenariff was, is and probably always will be a bubbling hurling hotbed. And Niall Wheeler, who was permanent fixture on the Antrim intercounty team for a dozen years from 1963 to '75, is without doubt one of their most famous hurling sons. Niall Wheeler is as much a Glenariffe man as you could hope to get. Born and bred in the beautiful glen, he has spent all his life there apart from a short spell in Australia between '58 and '63. During his five years Down Under he kept at his hurling and competed for the Young Irelands club in Melbourne. Before leaving for Australia he played at Minor level for his native county and on returning he immediately forced his way into the Senior county team . and stayed there for twelve years! It was really no surprise to see the Glenariffe half back claim a regular place in the Antrim team. His deep passion for the game dates back to the first time he lifted a hurl as an enthusiastic eight year old. Back in those days the underage scene wasn't quite as efficiently organised as it is at present and Niall spent much of his hurling apprenticeship simply "knocking about" under his own steam. He played his first competitive hurling for the club at Under 16 level. He also hurled around that time for the local St. Macnissis College Under 16 team. The small ball code was a real big thing in the Grammer School at the time and it required genuine interest and commitment. "Today hurling at school is part of the Physical Education course but when I was there it was a case of having to stay on after school if you wanted to play", he explains. It was as a fresh faced fifteen year old back in 1955 that Wheeler first already played Under 16 but at the time there was no Minor set up in existence in Glenariffe. Not to be outdone Niall lined out at Minor level for the nearby St. Joseph's, Glenarm. Although Glenariffe had some very good teams over the years which Niall spent in their ranks, he never really won any major honours there. Honours were in fact restricted to a modest Antrim Intermediate Championship medal and a couple of north county Championships. The closest he came to getting the illusive Senior Championship medal was in 1966. That year they came up against a Loughgiel side in the final which the Glenariffe centre half still rates as one of the best club forces he ever saw in Antrim hurling even to this day. Loughgiel won the decider after a replay and shattered Wheeler's hopes of winning a Senior county Championship medal. But he was no glory hunter, it didn't bother him in the least to hurl with a small club for little reward. His principal motive for lining out was always for the enjoyment of the game. His loyalty to the club was total, and his commitment was such that he turned down various opportunities to play with bigger clubs. Simultaneous with Niall's intercounty career, he was also a regular choice on Ulster's Railway Cup team. In those days the Ulster team consisted predominantly of Antrim players (with maybe 2 or 3 Down hurlers and on a rare occasion somebody from Armagh or Donegal) and as one of the Saffron's finest Wheeler was always an automatic choice to appear at right half back for his province. There is a lot of talk in the media these days about hurling taking off in Antrim over recent years, but the simple fact is that hurling within the county parameters has always been strong and Niall Wheeler will testify to the fact that it was as popular some twenty or thirty odd years ago as it is now. "From a spectator's point of view there might be larger crowds at the major matches here, but at club level it's on a par with years ago. The average club games would be attracting much the same crowds as they always were. It has basically always been the same here, it's just that people are starting to notice. Hurling certainly isn't being played at a higher level in Antrim now than it was in my days. I'd put it down more to a general levelling out of standards. Equally content playing for club or county, at centre half or wing back, the best Antrim team Niall ever played on was that of the 1970/'71 season. Although they were at Intermediate level at the time so too were the likes of Galway and Dublin. Antrim struck gold that year with League and Championship successes. "That was a very good Antrim team", reflects Wheeler. "I don't like to dwell on the past but I feel that the '70 / '71 team was at least equal to the best Antrim teams of modern times". The face of the game has, he feels, changed drastically in the intervening twenty years or so. "It's obvious that there's a far greater emphasis on fitness these days - to the detriment of the skill factor", he observes. "A lot of skills have disappeared from the modern game. The skill factor is no longer as evident. Although there will obviously be exceptions the overall game doesn't seem to flow as much - it's more hurried and rushed. I'm not condemning the modern game because things change and nothing ever stays the same and the style of the game changes from one era to the next, but I miss some of the old skills such as first time clean overhead pulling. It seems to be more a game of catching and solo running now". Wheeler's Senior intercounty debut was a real baptism of fire. It was an exhibition match played against Tipperary in Fermanagh in 1963 and Niall was assigned the unenviable task of marking Tipp great Jimmy Doyle, who he rates as 'the best player I ever played on'. It was in 1975 at Croke Park against Kerry when he donned the Saffron jersey for the last time. "I was always very fortunate to steer clear of injuries during my career but I picked up a bad injury in 1974 and I was never the same again. At 34 when you get hurt it's very hard to ever perform the same again", he explains. In 1971 Niall was named as Antrim's first ever replacement All-Star in place of Tipperary's Tadhg O'Connor. The Glenariffe man travelling to America with the All-Stars was seen as a major breakthrough for Antrim hurling. Prior to that it was unheard of for an Antrim man to presented with an All-Star selection. It was a great accolade and it opened the gates for other northern players in showing them that they were capable of competing with those from further south. However, playing for the great Antrim team of 1970 / '71 meant a lot more to Niall than the All-Star honour. "They were a great bunch of players and we had a great manager in the late Neil Patterson who was a very respected man. There was a wonderful atmosphere and comradeship amongst the players. Of all the teams I played for, those two years were the best". Alongside the Glenariffe wing back in that team was midfielder Sean Burns from the St. Johns club in Belfast who he describes as 'one of the most skilful players I ever played alongside', and half forward Eddie Donnelly who was a few years younger then Niall but broke into the Senior intercounty team at the same time - Eddie and Niall were great friends throughout their playing careers. One of the pioneers in the art of effectively attacking from the half back line, Wheeler was one of the more adventurous defenders of his era. He always loved to move forward at every available opportunity and was a master of the skill of turning defence into attack at a time when the half back's role was looked upon as generally an out and out defensive one. His greatest asset was undoubtedly his sheer consistency. He was always a sound defender who was very rarely out of any game. Niall was an all round sportsman who participated in various sports but he was always totally dedicated to hurling. and hurling only! His two brothers Fergus and George also hurled for Glenariffe. But the Wheelers didn't come from a hurling background -they were actually the first generation of the family to compete. Married to Kathryn, Niall is father to a young family of four - Clare, Niall Jnr., Katy and Jane. He works for "Murray & Partners" and "M & D Supplies" building contractors and merchants. He is, in fact, one of the aforementioned partners. Niall is currently team trainer of the Glenariffe hurling team which lost out by four points in last Sunday week's Intermediate Championship final. "It was a disappointment but we have a promising young team. We could've won the game but I'm hopeful that we'll be back next year", he says. If Ulster Hurling ever does make the much anticipated break-through few will underestimate the part played by one of their greatest stalwarts, Niall Wheeler. Written by the Hogan Stand Magazine 15th Oct. 1993 Tweet

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