Interview #24 - Niall Macdermott

Hey Niall, first off, congrats on making the squad! You're the only player from NUI Galway on the team, does this add pressure to fly the flag for the lads from the West?
I haven't felt any added pressure by being the only player from the west on the team but representing Ireland is a big deal and I hope to do well and show what this squad is capable of.

As I mentioned, you're a NUIG lad. Is this where you started playing Ultimate? Or did you get into it elsewhere before college?

The first I ever heard of ultimate was at the clubs day in NUIG. I basically signed up to every sport in the college and gave everything a try. Ultimate is quite a unique sport and I once I started it I never planned on stopping.

Who do you play your club Ultimate with?
My main club team is called Snatch they we are a bunch of lads from the west of Ireland mostly NUIG and UL players and graduates. For some tournaments overseas such as Tour and Windmill Windup I have picked up with Rebel Ultimate.

Throughout this mixed season, you've been instrumental to the success of the D line, getting Ds all over the pitch and getting a bunch of goals to go with them. How have you found playing on the D line yourself?
It's been great playing on the Irish team really enjoying the whole experience. I really enjoy the atmosphere and the intensity and passion that people bring like Brian will always get me fired up and mad to make the extra effort the keep chasing any disk with what seems like no chance of being caught or throw your body into the ground to make an interception.

Yeah, he's alright in the air

In the last two warm up tournaments, what have been the highlights for you personally?

My personal highlight was a grab I make in Tour. I went up for a disc against a big group of people and came down with it. The reaction from the squad was amazing and it really got me pumped for the rest of the tournament.

And for the team? What were the biggest performances in your opinion?

I think our best performance was in the quarter final of windmill windup against Stockholm Syndromes. We were throwing difficult throws into a strong wind unphased and making big grabs and skys against a strong opposition. It was amazing to watch and hopefully we recreate that performance in Toronto.

You were a basketball player before playing Ultimate, right? Do you still play a bit? Or has Ultimate taken over completely?
I haven't played basketball since I went to college. I've basically dropped it in favor of Ultimate. Ultimate is my main sport at the moment I will sometimes play some Gaelic football for club back home.

Getting horizontal for Snatch

How did the skills you had from playing basketball translate to the Ultimate pitch?
The main transferable skills from basketball to ultimate are pivoting and jumping. I  lot of people find it hard to do a three step running jump effectively and I've been practicing that since I was 8, I've found that to be very useful on the ultimate field

Looking ahead to Worlds, what are you looking forward to most?
This is my first time representing Ireland and I look forward to seeing some of the best ultimate players in the world up close and personal. 

Is there one team you want to play more than others?
I don't have any team that I want to play more than others. I want to play any game that is competitive spirited and fun preferable with us winning. We recently got a message from the Aussie team and they seem up for a good game of ultimate so I look forward to seeing them on the field and maybe the bar after.

Lastly make a funny.
A dyslexic man walks into a bra
If you like funny videos this is pretty great http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBftA7V4xak
And this is the best story I've ever heard, it's worth a watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHfroJBMlVM 

Cheers bud, best of luck in Toronto