A young Irish American, who is on the verge of signing an American Football deal, learned his skills on the gaelic football field.

Patrick Murray - a nephew of former Monaghan All Star Ciaran - is the most successful kicker in the history of his New York-based Fordham College football team and is set to put pen to paper on a professional contract next month.

"Some big teams have already indicated some real interest," he told The Irish Independent. "The base salary for most rookie players coming out of university is $413,000.

"But the highest-paid NFL player in my position on the field is currently earning around $2m a year.

"I went to an open day recently and all 32 NFL teams had a representative there to watch me kick. I put on an absolute show for them - it was unbelievable.

"Afterwards I spoke with nearly every team and I've a workout organised with the New York Giants. When I sign papers at the end of April there's a signing-on bonus and that ranges from $5,000 to $40,000."

Patrick's father Aidan emigrated from Clones 20 years ago.

"I got my leg strength from scoring points for my team and that made the transition to American football so much easier.

"I'm the kicker and punter on the team, which means I punt the football like you would in Gaelic - I learnt all I know from playing GAA." Tweet

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