A unique view on the Atlanta Braves from Ireland

The Atlanta Hawks are about to be on their way to London, England for a match-up with the Brooklyn Nets. The game will be played on Thursday at 2:30 pm ET. This marks the second time that a professional sports team based out of Atlanta has made their way to another country for a regular season game, with the first time being the Atlanta Falcons playing in Canada against the Buffalo Bills.

With professional sports teams beginning to play a handful of regular season games in countries other than the US, I took to twitter to find an Atlanta sports fan that resides in another country other than the US, and I found Declan Clear. Declan was born and raised in Dublan, Ireland, and he is a huge fan of the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Falcons. I had the chance to ask him a few questions.
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Dalton: Are you originally from Ireland? If not, where were you born?

Declan: I was born and raised in Ireland.

Dalton: How long have you lived in Ireland?

Declan: I have lived here most of my life. Other than spending a few summers in the USA on work Visas and visiting family.
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I’m sure as you were reading this, most of you were wondering if Declan had ever been to the US and the answer above says that he has spent a lot of summers here. Translation? Spending a lot of summers in the US should most definitely get you hooked on baseball.
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Dalton: How did you become a fan of the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Falcons?

Declan: The main reason for me becoming a fan of the Braves and of Atlanta sports in general began long before I was born.. (cont.)
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Declan had a very detailed answer of how he became a fan of Atlanta sports. It was so detailed that he probably couldn’t fit on this page. Declan mostly says that his family living in Atlanta and his family living in the US lead to him being a fan of Atlanta sports all the way from Dublin, Ireland. Declan also talked about enrolling in University College Dublin, where he joined the softball team and the sport of softball once again brought back his love for the Braves and baseball in the states.
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Dalton: What is your most memorable moment of being a Braves fan?

Declan: The moment as a Braves fan I remember the most was Chipper Jones hitting a 3-run, walk-off homer against the division rival Phillies in his last season.
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Every Braves fan must have a favorite moment. It’s just the rule. Declan’s most memorable moment as being a fan was the same as a bunch of modern-day fans. Chipper Jones hitting the huge 3 run homer off of Jonathan Papelbon, in what was a back and forth game in his last season, was a memory that will last and carry along with every fan that witnessed it live or on their couch.
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Dalton: Have you ever attended a sporting event in America? If so, what sport and who won?

Declan: My first Braves game that I attended was one I’ll never forget and it was back in 2005, even though the Braves lost.

Fans of a team should definitely go and see their team play live. Every team has their own atmosphere that can just be special to a person. I asked Declan if he had ever been to a game in the states. The answer above was just part of what he said in the interview. He says he also remembers seeing a Braves-Mets game at the Ted where Chipper hit a monster, or “mammo” like Chipper likes to say, a mammo shot that Declan thought was really cool since he was a huge Chipper fan.
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Dalton: What sports are most popular in Ireland?

Declan: The most popular sport in Ireland is Gaelic Football which is an Irish sport. Hurling would be the 2nd most popular which is another Irish sport.
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Major League Baseball will be opening up their season in just a few short months in the country of Australia. So with that being said, maybe some of the Irish sports that Declan mentioned will be played in America. If you would like to follow Declan on Twitter, you can do so using his twitter username at @DeclanClear89.

Here is a tweet from Declan giving congratulations to Tom Glavine on his induction into Cooperstown:

Stay tuned.