David O’Sullivan was the talk of Irish cricket circles at the weekend when his power hitting helped Donemana knock six-time winners Waringstown out of the Irish Cup in a record chase.

The Irish passport-holding Australian cleared the ropes five times in the 48th over to change the course of the match with his belligerent strokeplay.

But those huge hits came as no surprise to the muscular 27-year-old.

“Growing up in Australia, it was mandatory to do at least two different sports,” said O’Sullivan.

“I did cricket in the summer before switching to soccer or rugby in the winter. There was an eight-week gap in between them, so I began doing the shot put and discus.

“When I moved to England as a teenager, I continued the discus and worked with Garry Power, who had represented Ireland at the Olympics and was a senior coach with UK Athletics.

“I really worked hard and, by the age of 17, I was ranked third in the UK at Under-20 level. Unfortunately, I had to give it up as the financials associated with discus didn’t compare to those of cricket.”

Based in London with his father, O’Sullivan played for a plethora of English county second XI sides looking for his big break, but sadly for him, frustrating injuries blighted his chances.

“I played at Surrey, Essex, Derby and Glamorgan, but I just kept getting injured with my back and ankle,” he reflected.

“I learned a lot about my body at that time, the biomechanics of bowling, and it turned out to be a blessing in disguise in terms of my education but did mean my cricketing career went backwards.”

O’Sullivan completed a Sports Science degree at Cardiff University and has just finished his Master’s in Musculoskeletal Health at Loughborough, specialising in lower back injuries with cricketers, working closely with the ECB.

How, then, did he end up at Donemana?

“I was playing a three-day game against an Ireland Under-23 Academy side and got talking with Pete Johnston and Albert van der Merwe, making them aware of my strong Irish family connections,” he said.

“They gave me contact details of clubs in Ireland. I couldn’t play in Dublin and the NCU wouldn’t accept my registration, so the only one that worked was the North West. I messaged all the clubs and Donemana were the first to reply.

“I was to come in 2023, but that was delayed to last year, and even then, I wasn’t anywhere near full fitness but helped them win the Premiership.

“Now, in my second season, I’m close to where I want to be and feeling good. I’ve settled in well in the village, sharing lodgings with Anuj Jotin, and I get on with all the team and the locals – no enemies yet!”

Donemana are unbeaten in the 2025 season but face a tough challenge away to Tyrone rivals Bready on Saturday.

“They’re a good side, but we are playing a positive brand of cricket that’s working for us and, hopefully, that will continue on Saturday,” said O’Sullivan.