Paul Fennessy

GALWAY UNITED and Patrick Hickey are flying at the moment.

For John Caulfield’s men, at this stage of the season, to be one point off reigning champions Shamrock Rovers with a game in hand is a genuine underdog story.

Newly promoted sides don’t often find themselves in this position and Hickey, too, has had an unlikely route to the top level of Irish football.

As recently as 2020, the Chicago-born footballer worked full-time in an “eight to five job commuting an hour both ways”.

It was a difficult period, especially for someone who had just graduated college, with the Covid-19 pandemic in its early stages.

Hickey worked in inside sales defined as “the practice of selling remotely from within an office-based environment, rather than relying on in-person sales”. He sold medical-grade dietary supplements. 

“We would only sell to registered nurse practitioners, registered chiropractors, naturopath doctors, it was like a holistic medicine type of trying to encourage people to stay away from prescriptions and go the more natural route,” he tells The 42.

“You’re 22 fresh out of college and trying to tell a seasoned doctor what he needs. So that was not the not the easiest job I’ve ever had in my life.”

The general monotony of the work, in addition to getting up every day at 6.15am and arriving home around 6.30pm, took its toll.

Moreover, Hickey rarely had time for his true passion — playing sports.

As a kid in Des Plaines, Illinois, the sporting schedule was usually divided into three different seasons — he would play soccer in autumn, basketball in winter and baseball in spring.

Around 16, he decided to focus primarily on football, which he was “clearly the best at,” although he still loves playing five-on-five basketball with “random people” during sporadic visits back home.

Hickey believes playing a variety of sports has also had some long-term benefits.

“Having to use different muscles, play different sports that require different abilities, it’s helped my body adapt if that makes sense,” he says. “I think I’m let down in some technical aspects of soccer that I probably would have been fine-tuned a bit more if I played it year-round from the time I was five or six, but on the other side of things, I think the athleticism side of things helped.”

Hickey is far from the only talented athlete in his family. His brother Owen played Division One American football at the University of Illinois, though a series of injuries cut short his career. His sister Catherine played volleyball at Limestone College in South Carolina. And his mother Jeanne played Division One volleyball at Kent State University in Ohio.

His father (also Patrick) did not quite reach the same levels but passed his passion for sport down a generation.

“He spent most of his time working [as a builder] with his father,” says Hickey. “So he didn’t get much chance to play any sports because the thought process was: ‘Well how can you be making money playing sports, you gotta be making money.’ So he loves to tell the story of how he was meant to go out to San Francisco for some Gaelic football final. And my grandfather wouldn’t let him go. So he blames Grandpa for his athletic shortcomings.”

Galway’s Patrick Hickey pictured playing against St Patrick's Athletic earlier this season. Bryan Keane / INPHO Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO

Hickey’s grandparents are Irish. His father’s side of the family originally came from Castleisland, Kerry, while his mother’s side are from Lahardane, Mayo.

There would be occasional trips to Ireland as a child while Irish-based relatives will often come to his matches these days.

And his Irish connections are a big reason why Hickey finds himself playing Premier Division football this season, though there were inevitably long delays applying for a passport during Covid.

So after reflecting on how playing sports had been such a “crucial part of my happiness” growing up, Hickey decided to take a major gamble. He left the 8-5 job to pursue a career as a professional footballer.

Like his father’s father before him, Hickey’s parents were sceptical of pursuing this ambition and its chances of success.

“I wanted someone else to tell me I wasn’t good enough. And I didn’t want it to be myself,” he explains.

“I had the support of my parents after a few tough conversations where they’re like: ‘Alright, yeah, you can give this a go.’

“‘You know, you’re quitting a good job during a global pandemic. I want to make sure we’re hearing that right.’

“I didn’t necessarily have to convince them. But finally, they saw my side.”

Having started college with a pre-med major, Hickey switched to international business with a minor in Spanish and biology. He simultaneously registered 34 goal contributions in 68 games with Illinois Wesleyan. 

After leaving the US, Hickey had a successful trial in Spain, lining out initially for CD Herbania and then FC Villanueva in the country’s fifth tier over about a year.

Hickey then had 18 months with Athlone Town,  recently graduating with a Business Studies master’s degree at TUS (Technological University of the Shannon).

As a kid, he had played up front though a late growth spurt meant he went from five foot eight at 16-17 to six, six by his college stint.

So in Spain, he was a ball-playing centre-back but that changed once he re-located.

“I came over here intending to play centre back and I don’t even think I spent a single session playing centre back, I was immediately thrust into midfield,” he recalls. “It wasn’t necessarily unnatural… I knew right away that the style of play was different. In Spain, everything was tactics-based — moving players on the pitch and moving the ball a certain way.

“There’d be games you’d never even break a sweat because you just let the ball do the work.

“And Athlone that first season, I think they only had five points in 21 matches when I signed. So things weren’t going great. They were looking for a spark and a few of us came in, it was just about energy and effort for the first few games and that ended up getting us some results.

“And I quickly realised that it goes a long way here in Ireland, just effort, energy intensity, not only with the ball but without the ball is crucial to success.”

Hickey's performances in the First Division caught the eye of Galway manager John Caulfield. Bryan Keane / INPHO Bryan Keane / INPHO / INPHO

And what was the inspiration behind moving Hickey to midfield?

“To be honest, I’m not sure. I’d say centre-back wasn’t necessarily an issue at the time. Noah van Geenen was there, he was my roommate last year and German Fuentes, he’s an El Salvador International.

“Maybe they just thought that I had the technical ability to do it because of what I’d learned in Spain, as well as the ability to get around the pitch, but it seems to suit me and suited the team very well.”

Hickey impressed in this new role. He recorded the second-most assists in the league last season with seven. He also had the highest recoveries per 90 minutes and won the most aerial duels out of every player in the division.

He has continued to mainly play midfield, though occasionally finds himself in a more attacking position behind the striker owing to his aerial prowess in an area of the pitch often occupied by the player he grew up idolising and initially modelled his game on — former Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey.

Galway boss Caulfield tried to sign him both at the beginning and midpoint of last season before Hickey eventually agreed to join ahead of the 2024 campaign with the prospect of Premier Division football impossible to turn down.

“[When I was first approached] I had only played 12 games for Athlone and felt like we were just starting something. So I didn’t think it was the right time to make the jump.”

On Caulfield, he continues: “I think that I was a pain in his side there for a little while with Athlone. And if you watch Galway, he likes a certain type of player, he likes a physical player, he likes an athletic player that can work hard and play the way he wants to play.

“And I think he saw a lot of that in me. But I think he saw someone who can help him in multiple positions — centre-back or midfield. I can fill in some gaps for him and bring [extra] stuff to this already unbelievable side.”

Hickey’s next ambition is to play in Europe with Galway and the way the team have started, the scenario is not inconceivable.

The 25-year-old has come a long way in a relatively short time and the journey has certainly been worth it.

“They say most of your development happens when you’re young,” he says. “And I’m sure that’s true. But I’ve seen so much growth in myself over the last three, or four years that I’ve been doing this that it excites me to keep going.

“As a kid who played Division Three soccer, I would never have believed if you told me that I could play in Kazakhstan, Budapest or some random country in a European qualifier.

“I’d say if the traditional route is there, then brilliant, you’ve done your job and made it possible for yourself. But that’s not always the case [for footballers]. 

“I spent many Christmases alone, by myself in random parts of the country, in the Canary Islands, all by myself for birthdays, holidays, and all without knowing if this would ever happen. You have to be able to roll with the punches, get back up every time and keep going if it’s something you’re serious about doing.”