Cooke has no regrets as year in States helps to mature him

The last year or so has been surreal, to say the least. For Moycullen and Galway footballer Peter Cooke, even more so.

Working in the United States throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, Cooke bore witness to an incredible period in American history. In addition to the massive impact Covid-19 had in the USA, and particularly New York where he resided, there was also Donald Trump, the late George Floyd, allegations of police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement.

“It was a historic time, for sure,” agrees Cooke. “I matured a lot when I was away and I definitely needed that, on and off the pitch, and that was part of the maturity side of things.

“Just seeing all that in front of you was a great lesson, I suppose; (life lessons) that no one could probably teach you.”

In many respects, the United States is a socio-political cauldron. The diversity of communities and races was no more evident than in the aftermath of the tragic death of black man George Floyd at the hands of an over-zealous police officer, an event that sparked the Black Lives Matter movement.

Cooke says that he got a real sense of just how divisive the issue was in the United States. “Yeah, but I think it was so topical around the world. I even saw the impact it had back here in Galway (on social media), so it carried that far. It was great to see everyone come together for a common cause.”

Despite all of this, Cooke, who works with Salthill-based cyber security company TitanHQ, still enjoyed his time in New York and California, having also spent time on the beaches of San Diego.

“I thoroughly enjoyed it,” he says. “It was a really good time and, although you had the pandemic and other things like that, I still had my fun and met a lot of people, made a lot of friends.”

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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