On Sunday morning, GAA fans around the country woke up to the news that New York had won their first ever Connacht Championship game after beating Leitrim on penalties in Gaelic Park.
The Bronx outfit now find themselves just one win away from a Connacht final and a place in this summer's All-Ireland series.
One man who has been vital in the rise of quality in the New York ranks is manager Johnny McGeeney.
McGeeney has been lauded by pundits and fans since the win over Leitrim and rightly so, but after spotting a tweet from former Armagh and New York footballer Aaron Cunningham that questioned the quality of Leitrim, he quickly defended Andy Moran's men .
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New York GAA manager jumps to Leitrim's defence
Johnny McGeeney clearly wasn't in the mood for anyone trying to take away from his team's magical victory or slander the efforts of Leitrim.
AC: That Leitrim performance is probably the worst performance in GAA history.
JMcG: Good man Aaron
AC: Congrats Johnny! You didnt see my previous tweet fair play to all involved
JMcG: I did lad but on paper New York had more championship appearances & medals than Leitrim. I don’t see how it’s an embarrassment when the team have to play 3000 miles away at 11pm there time in our back yard.
AC: Credit where credit is due 100%, but a team who is full-time prepared for County Championship football with provincial cup and national league games lose, and in addition, their standard of penalty kicks is pretty embarrassing. Takes nothing away from you boys.
Cunningham's initial tweet possibly could have been worded differently, especially since his point seemed to be more derogatory towards Andy Moran's Leitrim rather than McGeeney's New York.
Johnny McGeeney on New York's clash against Sligo
The Armagh native has spoken about the immigration concerns surrounding his side ahead of their trip to Sligo.
Speaking to RTÉ's Sunday Sport, McGeeney said that last year's game against Offaly in the Tailteann Cup has helped them find a way to travel back and forth to Ireland.
Johnny McGeaney said:
No, my only concern is injuries
Out of the 43 lads that we kept on, 40 of them were able to go home (for the Offaly game) so we have no problem that way.
It's certainly going to be another mammoth task for New York GAA, up against a Sligo team who are in fine form after winning Division 4, but with a number of talented individuals within the New York ranks, anything is possible for McGeeney's men.
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