Red Devils import Brian Shelley here to stay

BY GAVIN MCGRATH
03 Feb, 2011 12:21 AM

RED DEVILS import Brian Shelley is here for the long run.


The former Irish premier league soccer player yesterday said his move to Ballarat was a lifestyle decision, not a financial one, and that he had knocked back lucrative offers elsewhere to join the Haymes Red Devils.



Shelley arrived in Australia this week after finally reaching a settlement with embattled former club Bohemians FC.



He has taken up a promotions and development role at the Ballarat club but said his main motivation is still to "play football".



"I don't plan to disappear in 12 months. I want to be here for the long haul," the former Irish international said.



"I've come here to play and to win things. I want to bring success to this team. I haven't come here to do other things with football being second. That's simply not the case.



"Another factor is to start looking at being a coach. I started looking at it a couple of years ago and I got my UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) B-coach licence. It (coaching) is something I want to do, maybe with one of the Ballarat Academy of Soccer sides."



Shelley said he had considered a move to Australia before the financial crisis that led to his falling out with Bohemians.



"I started thinking about it two years ago. Two of my friends have done it (moved to Australia)," the defender said.



"One who I speak with regularly is Jason Gavin, who is playing in Perth (with Stirling Lions in the Football West State League), and he told me it is a nice place and the football is decent."



The process accelerated after the Irish club failed to pay him for eight weeks at the end of last season which led to a petition by Shelley and other players to wind up the club. The players withdrew the court action after settling with the Dublin club last week.



"Bohemians is a massive club that has won a lot of things," the 29-year-old said.



"The situation in Ireland is a shame but a lot of Irish football boards have been making bad decisions. They have been gambling on winning European trophies and promising things they can't deliver. There was sadness (about leaving Bohemians) but no sadness towards the people running the club because of the way they treat the players."



Shelley said he had not committed to the Red Devils until after he had resolved his dispute with "the Bohs" and admitted Ballarat was not the only club he had spoken with.



Now that he has joined the Victorian state league two club, he said he intends to settle here, with wife Lisa and eight-year-old daughter Emma due to emigrate from Ireland mid-year.



"At one point Adelaide showed some interest but, with the A-league clubs limited to four visa players, it is very hard," he said.



"I made a DVD and sent it to Australia, and that was a big help. I turned down offers from good clubs in Ireland to come here. There were better offers in terms of money but I have never really been motivated by money and, at my age, that sort of thing doesn't interest me. I just want to come to a club and play football.



"(Red Devils football manager) Duncan Smith got a copy of the DVD and thankfully liked what he saw. He really sold me on Ballarat the city, and the club."



In terms of his football promotions role, Shelley said he would discuss the detail of the position over coming weeks but his focus would be to promote the club, encourage young players in Ballarat to take up the sport and to help with their development.



"All I've done since the age of 17 is to play professional football. This is really stepping out of my comfort zone," he said.

http://www.thecourier.com.au/news/local/sport/waterskiing/red-devils-import-brian-shelley-here-to-stay/2065340.aspx?storypage=0