SEÁN Powter is falling back in love with football all over again.

When he stepped away from Cork football last October and moved to Perth in January – initially for a year – the goal was simple: enjoy the game once more.

Injuries, persistent hamstring issues and painful osteitis pubis, derailed his inter-county career, stalling the Douglas speedster. After ten years in the Cork set-up, the fan favourite needed a change of scenery, swapping Douglas for Western Australia.

‘I knew myself if I’d stayed at home playing Cork football, I’d probably be on a treatment table at the moment with the same groin injury, or something very similar. So for my head and my body, I just knew it was time for a break,’ he tells The Southern Star.

‘For the best part of ten years, Cork football was the main focus. But with the injuries and maybe losing a bit of that love for it, I just felt this was the year to take the jump.’

On the day we chat, Powter jokes that it’s ‘a bit colder’ in Perth. Just 20 degrees.

‘To be fair, we’re having a ball out here,’ he adds, having made the move with his girlfriend Shannon in mid-January.

‘We were in Bali recently for a week, which was class, and we’re hoping to get to Thailand around October as well.

‘It was always something I wanted to do. Just to see a bit of the world.’

A youthful Seán Powter, in his second season with Cork, celebrates a superb goal against Mayo in the 2017 All-Ireland series, highlighting his longevity for the Rebels.

He is loving life in Australia. A qualified doctor, Powter is working in a hospital in Mandurah, about half an hour from Perth.

‘It’s more of a rural hospital, which has been brilliant. You get exposure to Aboriginal culture and things like that, so it’s a big learning curve, but really enjoyable,’ he says.

Strengthening his connection with Australia was another strong pull. His dad, David, is from Parkes in New South Wales, a five-hour drive from Sydney. It’s a place famous for one of the world’s largest radio telescopes, but for Powter it’s home to family.

‘It was always in the back of my mind that I’d love to go over and spend a year or two there,’ he says.

‘This year just felt like the right time. It was about scratching that itch that had been there for a while and finally going for it.

‘I’m heading to Parkes in early June to see my grandfather, aunt and cousins. I haven’t seen them since the International Rules in 2017, so it’s been a while.’

If Australia can lay claim to Powter, so too can Skibbereen. His mum, Marita, is from the West Cork town.

‘I’m half West Cork, half Australian, and a bit of Douglas as well!’ he laughs.

While his speed can be traced to his father’s side – his great-grandfather was a sprinter – Powter’s football roots run deep in West Cork. His granduncle Dermot was known as the footballer of the family and lined out for Cork minors in the 1950s, while his grandfather Liam played with O’Donovan Rossa.

‘We’d go down to Skibbereen most Christmases for a week or two, and again at Easter. We had great times down there.

‘There’s definitely a bit of West Cork in me.’

His dad travelled when he was younger and encouraged his son to see the world. That’s exactly what Powter is doing now, and it’s a decision he doesn’t regret, even if there is a twinge of envy this week as Cork build towards a Munster final in Killarney.

‘Of course there are parts of home you miss, like your family, the craic with the lads in training, the sessions, and then the big days in Killarney and Croke Park. That’s when it really hits you that you’re not involved,’ he says.

‘I remember my own first Munster final there. It’s a brilliant occasion. That’s what you grow up dreaming about. Playing in Killarney, packed stadium, Cork jersey on.

‘No one really misses the pre-season or the McGrath Cup, but it’s always the big days you feel.

‘I’m happy with my decision, and who knows what the future holds.’

Powter is still only 28, yet his body has already taken a heavy toll. He has been in the consciousness of Cork football fans for over a decade, making his senior debut in 2016 and earning a Young Footballer of the Year nomination the following season.

But in early 2018 his injury problems began, including an eye-watering 14 hamstring tears. In recent years he has had to play through the pain caused by osteitis pubis. In the middle of it all, the dynamic Powter was still shortlisted for an All-Star in 2022. Class is permanent.

He knew, though, that he needed a break this year, an opportunity to reset that might yet leave the door open for an 11th season in a Cork jersey.

‘The main thing is getting the body right and getting the head right as well, just back to enjoying football,’ he explains.

‘The last couple of years with the groin, I probably didn’t enjoy it as much as I did for the eight years before that. And inter-county football now is nearly a full-time job, so if you’re not enjoying it, there’s no real point in being there.

‘Thankfully, I’m back enjoying playing again now, and that’s the main thing.’

Powter is lining out for Greenwood in Perth, and it’s exactly what he needed.

‘Even from the start, I did two weeks’ training and then went straight into a sevens tournament, which you wouldn’t really have at home. It just brought back that love of playing football again, like when you’re a young fella when you just go out and play.

‘There’s no pressure at all. It’s just go out and enjoy it, and I’ve definitely fallen back in love with it over the last few weeks.’

It has also allowed him to manage his body in a way that wasn’t possible at home.

‘It’s been a gradual build-up. I eased myself back into training and the manager here, Michael McBride, has been very good with me. I said I’ll take it easy, that if my body is any bit tight or sore I’ll have to pull out.

‘That was one of the main reasons I decided to come over. If I was at home, I wouldn’t have that luxury, especially with inter-county where it’s 100 percent or nothing, you can’t be dipping in and out.

‘Over here, you’re playing for the enjoyment of it as much as anything else, not just results.

‘We’re trying a lot of different things here too – yoga, Pilates, breathwork – just to get the body in the best shape possible. Thankfully, it’s on the mend at the moment, and hopefully it keeps going that way.’

When Powter left Cork, there was a sense of unfinished business, depending on how his body responds to this change of pace. He hasn’t retired or said goodbye. This is more see-you-later territory.

‘Yeah, that was kind of the plan from the start: give it a year and then take stock of everything.

‘It’s really about seeing where the body is at the end of it. I want to be able to say I’ve put everything into getting it right, and then you’ll know yourself if it’s in a good place or if it’s not.

‘Touch wood, things are going well at the moment, but you’ll have a better idea in five or six months’ time. I know my own body well enough at this stage to judge where it’s at.’

As for the immediate future, Powter’s plans are more concrete: he will watch Sunday’s Munster football final from Perth.

‘I wouldn’t miss it,’ he says, proud of this Cork team for the strides they have made this season. Promotion to Division 1, after a decade outside the top flight, is a big box ticked. Winning a first Munster senior football title since 2012 would be another significant milestone for John Cleary’s men.

‘For the last ten years I was involved, the first goal every year was getting out of Division 2. We never quite managed it when I was there, but thankfully they’ve done it this year, and they’ve done it well,’ Powter says.

‘They seem to have found a bit of consistency that maybe we didn’t have in previous years, and there’s a real buzz around Cork football now.

‘They won’t be going down to Killarney with any fear or nervousness. It feels like a team that’s moving in the right direction.’

He will be a supporter on Sunday, but one who knows exactly what days like this demand, and what they give. The build-up, the journey to Killarney, the roar inside Fitzgerald Stadium, the sight of green and gold.

He may yet return to that stage. For now, though, Seán Powter is exactly where he needs to be.