HOME AND AWAY/SHEAMUS O'SHAUNESSY:He's a broth of a boy with a talent for fighting, but he's keen to discourage Oirish stereotyping. He's even changed his name - to O'Shaunessy

THIS WOULD be easy to make fun of. Then you start researching the career path of Sheamus O'Shaunessy, his aspirations to become a regular performer on Smackdown, and a gradual feeling of admiration becomes unavoidable.

"The Irish Curse" is making moves through the lower levels of professional wrestling. Again, wisecracks spring to mind (not that you'd dare utter them to his face), but the unique dream of this young man from Cabra appeared to have been shattered before it even got off the ground.

"I suffered the neck injury back in 2002 while training in Larry Sharpe's famous 'monster factory' in New Jersey. I was supposed to take a standard hip toss during a training drill when my opponent decided to pull me down in mid-flight and dump me on my neck. It almost crippled me.

"I lost all feeling in my arms and legs for almost a minute. It felt like an eternity. That pretty much did it for me for almost two years until the Irish Whip Wrestling (IWW) opened up. It reminded me how serious and hard this business is."

Life as Stephen Farrelly the IT technician seemed destined to become his reality. But after months of rehabilitation another opportunity arose. IWW is based in Baldoyle, Co Dublin. O'Shaunessy quickly became the main event.

Wrestling, as he readily concedes, is not sport in its purest form. It's even in the name: World Wrestling Entertainment Inc, still under the stewardship of Vince McMahon, has coined the phrase "sporting entertainment". It's as much about the invented personae that fill arenas around the globe as about ability. Create a fan base and a career is sure to follow.

"Character development is very important and it's something I put almost as much work into behind the scenes as physical training."

And yet, the crossover from other sports is constant. Floyd "Money" Mayweather jr, considered pound-for-pound the best boxer on the planet, recently went toe to toe with The Big Show - all in the cause of self-marketing no doubt.

"I wanted to move away from the stereotypical character Americans associated with the Irish so none of that leprechauns or thatch-roof stuff. I've based the character around Irish mythology. My background suits - I was educated at an Irish-speaking school called Scoil Caoimhín."

A boisterous, instantly likeable "fella" (the Dublin catchphrases are evident yet not exaggerated), Sheamus is based in Tampa Bay, Florida, six months into a three-year development contract with the WWE. There have been brief appearances on the main stage too.

He slips into character to explain: "My first WWE Match was against Jimmy Wang Yang at the Datch Forum in Milan last April. It was just before Smackdown in front of over 20,000. I bate the fella black and blue all over the ring but the jammy lad snuck a quick pin on The Irish Curse. I'm just waiting to get my revenge . . ."

Mainly he hones his craft in local haunts like the Bourbon Street nightclub or New Port Richey Flea Market on the Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) circuit. A place where dinosaurs come to die and wannabes can make a name for themselves.

The wrestling industry has long carried the spectre of drug, mainly steroid, abuse. Recent premature deaths include those of Eddie Guerrero (heart failure, aged 38), Curt Hennig (aka Mr Perfect, cocaine overdose), Davy Boy Smith (AKA British Bulldog, heart attack, 39) and 'Ravishing' Rick Rude (heart attack, 40) but these were all overshadowed by the Chris Benoit tragedy last year. The former world champion killed his wife and seven-year-old son before killing himself.

The WWE drug sanctions are extraordinarily lenient. A first offence incurs suspension for 30 days, a second for 60 days. The wrestler's contract is ripped up on strike three. Jeff Hardy, one of the biggest names in the WWE, is serving a second suspension.

O'Shaunessy addresses the issue before it is even raised.

"I've been tested three times these past six months. It is great that such a process is in place as it levels the playing field. I'm working my ass off here so I want to know that I'm not up against any unfair disadvantages."

Many of the wrestlers' names O'Shaunessy mentions go over this interviewer's head - until, that is, the road agent Ricky Steamboat is introduced to the conversation. Surely that's not Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat?

Doesn't every young man in his late 20s, early 30s remember exactly where he was when Ricky somehow overcame "Macho Man" Randy Savage to capture the WWF Intercontinental title at Wrestle Mania III, March 29th, 1987?

"My first exposure to pro-wrestling was a meeting with Brett 'The Hitman' Hart," says O'Shaunessy. It was Brett who told me about the 'monster factory'."

Some may have caught O'Shaunessy on Podge and Rodgelately, but his ability to craft a show-business persona is evident in a burgeoning acting career. He's been in three films to date, the most recent being The Escapist, which closed this year's Sundance Film festival.

"Sundance? Yeah, up in Park City, Utah. It's some town. The Escapistis coming out later this year. It stars Brian Cox, the Irish actor Liam Cunningham and Joseph Fiennes. I was also in Bog Bodiesand 3Crossesis another, starring Caprice and Gail Porter. That's still in pre-production."

Future aspirations? The highest summit of course.

"I'm on a three-year development contract but I've been working my ass off to get here and don't intend on waiting around for my opportunity to come. I hope to be a permanent fixture of the WWE by next September. That's where I want to be, fighting Randy Orton for the world championship belt."

A Dublin fella slipping Triple H the Irish Curse (a low blow) when the referee's back is turned? Or maybe headlining Wrestle Mania 2010? It's no longer outside the realms of possibility.

Worth staying tuned, surely.

SHEAMUS O'SHAUNESSY

Born:Cabra, Dublin.

Height:6ft 6ins

Weight:20st/280lbs

Signature moves:The War Sword, The Frenzy and The Irish Curse.

Most likely to say:"I've always been, I'll always be. Come with me!"

Other sports:Played rugby for NUI and Old Belvedere and Gaelic football for Erin's Isle.

Least likely to say:"I sang in the Palestrina Choir until the age of 13, appearing on the Late, Late toy show."

The career path of Sheamus O'Shaunessy can be tracked on his highly informative website: www.sosofficial.com.