Pardon us if we have a difficult time gauging the mood up North. One had you have your Rory McIlroys, Catholics proud to fly the Northern Ireland flag and slag off Darron Gibson while subtly representing a broader, more inclusive Irishness. On the other hand, you have the strangely divisive issue of Northern-born players defecting to the Republic amid the backdrop of one of the more divisive Old Firm seasons in recent memory. Adding to our confusion is 17-year-old Catholic Aaron McGregor, senior player with Limavady Wolfhounds and recent signee with Glasgow Rangers. He told the Belfast Telegraph why he wanted to wear Blue:
“I was delighted when Rangers made an approach, it’s an opportunity to make a career as a full-time professional footballer,” he said.
“When you see Rangers’ facilities and their coaches, it’s a fantastic set-up. I’d been on trial with a few other teams — Bradford, Burnley and Aberdeen — but the Rangers set-up was the best."
Interestingly, McGregor isn't the only Rangers player with GAA roots. “Rangers is full of lads who have played Gaelic: there are five in the squad that Aaron’s joining, three Dublin fellas and one from Omagh, and three or four of the Rangers scouts had Celtic tattoos on them,” said his father Michael.
Ultimately McGregor was driven to Rangers because of 'professionalism'. McGregor simply wanted to making a living as a professional athlete, even if that meant taking on the strange stigma of playing for Rangers. The GAA's loss is Rangers gain.
