AIDAN FORKER was chasing the dream with Liverpool long before Armagh were on his radar.
The Maghery man is in his 13th season with the Orchard County as they chase a first Ulster title since 2008.
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But he grew up with different ambitions — with Premier League trophies, FA Cups and European Cups to the forefront of his young mind.
Soccer was his first love growing up as he went on trial with the Anfield giants at 14.
The Reds were champions of Europe at the time and he dared to dream as he watched the likes of Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher and Sami Hyypia train at Melwood.
His older brother Paul was already on the books at Deepdale but the younger Forker made his way back across the Irish Sea.
He said: “I had a couple of trials and I was actually over at Liverpool and got picked to go over from a week-long trial.
“It was daunting. I found it hard because I was only 14, a bit of a homebird. I was probably a little bit overawed and it felt like maybe boys were a wee bit ahead of me I suppose.
“It was a good experience, I got to go over and meet all the first team.
“We were able to watch from the balcony, them training, getting ready for a Champions League game or something. It was Melwood at that point.
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“My brother was in England at the time. He played for Preston North End so he signed when he was 16, spent a few years over there and ended up coming home again.
“I was able to sort of bounce off him when I felt a wee bit weird. I was on my own, but you wouldn’t change it.
“It was a great experience, I got to meet all the players at that time, the Gerrards and Carraghers, Sami Hyypia was playing and Djibril Cisse was there. All good experiences and good exposure to high-performance set-ups and it would have whetted my appetite a wee bit.
“Obviously it didn’t come off. I’m lucky that I’ve played at an elite level for most of my life.”
Forker returned to Dungannon Swifts and broke into their first team in 2010. But Armagh’s minor All-Ireland title in 2009 had already turned his head.
He joined that squad in the summer before senior boss Paddy O’Rourke came calling.
STAKING A CLAIM
By 2012, he had made his SFC debut for the Orchard against Tyrone. He hit the net in a 0-19 to 1-13 loss and has been a mainstay since.
He said: “There probably was a road-to-Damascus moment, a conversion moment I suppose, when Armagh won the minor All-Ireland in ’09.
“I had been asked into that team but said no. I was focused on soccer and was in the first team for Dungannon.
“I still had aspirations of doing something in that regard at 16 or 17 and said no to Armagh, and they went on to do their thing.
“It was tough to watch because it would have been nice to be a part of it. They had a top, top team there so I always said if Armagh came knocking again I wouldn’t say no.
“My brother Stefan was involved in the senior team. Paddy O’Rourke was the manager, it was my first year in St Mary’s College and I got a call from a strange number.
“It was Paddy, and he asked me if I would be interested in coming in and trialling, and the rest is history.”
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
Forker, 32, often wonders what life would be like had he made it in pro soccer. Conor Bradley has made that progression from Dungannon to Liverpool, starring for Jurgen Klopp this season.
But Forker played Gaelic football with a freedom he never had on the soccer pitch. And he puts his lengthy inter-county career down to that.
He was captain last year and was All-Star-nominated after their All-Ireland quarter-final loss to Monaghan on penalties.
And he has no plans to stop ahead of today’s Ulster semi-final against Down in Clones.
He said: “It’s funny, I am a completely different person now than what I would have been. It probably just meant so much to me, it weighed on me a wee bit that I wanted it so much.
“And the Gaelic was a wee bit more freedom, and it’s ironic that the game came a wee bit easier, that it meant a wee bit less to me at that time.
“I performed better when that was the case and I wasn’t putting pressure on myself to be what I wanted to be in soccer and probably held myself back.
“That’s a personal thing that I am grappling with in my own head, but it’s interesting. Look at Conor Bradley. He was a Dungannon player and look where he is at now.
“It was brilliant to be exposed to it. It’s not unattainable for anyone who wants to just go every day and be focused and go after what they want and get the skills and practice in.
“Listen, I have no regrets. I’ve had an enjoyable career, especially winning things with my club and stuff. Who knows? That mightn’t have happened if I had gone a different direction.
“I have enjoyed the journey and it would just be nice to bring some silverware back for the county, you would say.”
l AIDAN FORKER was speaking at the launch of the 2024 AIB GAA All-Ireland Senior Football Championships at the D-Light Studios in Dublin.
