By Martin Crummy: Written exclusively for Gaelic Star Magazine.

 COLM Cooper, Brian McGuigan and Paddy Bradley have all had them.And all have returned to the playing pitch renewed and re-invigorated. A closed-season sabbatical to some sun, sea and no mention of a football has helped reinstate some of Ireland’s best GAA talents – back to the top. Season 2009 has added Karl Lacey to that mixture.

25 July 2009;Michael Meehan, Galway, in action against Karl Lacey, Donegal.

The Donegal defensive maestro has been in sterling form since returning from Australia/New Zealand. He is in the running for an All-Star after curbing the influence of Ireland’s two most enterprising forwards – the aforementioned Bradley and Galway’s Michael Meehan.

But is there a link between a break from the dredge of O’Byrne Cups and National League games and an improved Championship performance?

“The boys were laughing at me after a few games – saying they all should have headed to New Zealand for six months,” laughs the affable Lacey, after his side stormed through the All-Ireland qualifiers, to book a quarter-final place.

“It was playing straight football there for five years. Playing National League, Railway Cup and Sigerson – and I was tired.

“I did a wee bit (of fitness work) but not too much – you do keep it up.

“I needed the six months away.” Other footballers have shown a rise in form from their overseas travels. Kerry star – ‘the Gooch’ Cooper – had a tough time after his father pasted away in 2006, in January 2008 he took the decision to jet off Stateside. He spent four months in America and absorbed everything on offer.

On particular weekend in Arizona in February will live long in his memory. It started with Mickelson and Singh at the Phoenix Open on Friday, Suns v Bobcats in the NBA on Monday and, in between, a Giants and Patriots Superbowl epic.

It led to the Dr Crokes forward peaking that summer with 1-08 against Cork and just failing to land back-to-back Sam Maguire’s.

Another prime example is Brian McGuigan’s influence on Tyrone’s winning dash to the 2005 All-Ireland title. McGuigan wasn’t even in the country when they started that run and the Red Hands were missing their chief playmaker.

A few phone calls and McGuigan cut his plans short and was back in time for an Ulster semi-final against Cavan. The rest is history.

This season’s highest profile traveler was Derry’s Paddy Bradley. He had a ‘refreshing’ 15 week break in Australia. He travelled Down Under with his Derry and Glenullin team-mate Gerard O’Kane.

Bradley stayed on after the International Rules series, missed most of the National League, but was back in form for Derry’s run to an Ulster semi-final. It was the change of pace he needed – Christmas dinner was fish and chips at Bondi Beach.

His personal tally of 3-14 for the season is testament to a prolific forward back in the groove.

It’s ironic though that it was another sun-seeker that was to put an end to his and Derry’s season, as Lacey held Bradley to just two points in Donegal’s All-Ireland qualifier win.

Lacey’s return from holiday brought the Four Masters clubman the whole way to Croke Park and a date with Cork last month.

He said, “It was disappointing the way it ended. There was a great buzz after the wins in the qualifiers but the way we lost the quarter-final wasn’t nice.

“I think tactically we could have been better as we didn’t stop Cork’s runners from half-back.

“They are serious All-Ireland contenders.

“After the Cork game we looked at it and that is the stage we want to be at year in-year out. That has to be our aim from now on.”

This summer Lacey had other worries, though, as the recession meant he found employment hard to come-by.  He left a job in Coca-Cola to travel, but never imagined the state of the country on his return.

“I couldn’t believe it – I was out in Australia just two weeks and then suddenly there was all this talk about recession – we didn’t know what to expect,” he added.

“And then you came home and all your mates were out of work – just all they were thinking was what the hell will we do now.

“That’s the thing about football it keeps you going in a way.

“I just started work there at the start of August through the GPA’s board job scheme – it is business development with Walkers Crisps.

“It is great to get something – especially after coming back from being away.

“There is still a few of them (Donegal football squad) looking working, there are a few them looking at going back to college and I suppose a few will have to go away to find some work. At one stage there was 10 of us without jobs.

It was a rollercoaster season for the defender, but now his thoughts have turned to work for the winter and the long hard slog which begins on January 1^st.

This time he’ll miss nothing.