The 18-year-old former Kavanagh College pupil will turn out in the country’s third division football league this season.
Former Southern United captain Victor da Costa, who now plays in Iceland, was able to get the youngster a trial in the country.
After originally trying out for a top division under-19 team, he got an offer to trial for northern club KF Fjallabyggd.
That trial went well and he has signed through until September.
The move could be a stepping stone for the former Roslyn-Wakari midfielder who is now living in the town of Ólafsfjorour.
"I think Ben has got that X-factor," Roslyn-Wakari coach Colin Thom said.
"He’s a lad that has football for breakfast, dinner and tea. He just lives, breathes and eats it — it’s his passion.
"He’s prepared to listen to other more professional coaches, he’s fit, he’s outstanding as an athlete.
"I think he has got the potential. It’s just a matter of someone harnessing that and pointing him in the right direction."
O’Farrell finished his schooling at Kavanagh College at the end of last year.
One of the South’s most promising young players, O’Farrell had made nine appearances for Southern United over the past two seasons. He had also been key in the club’s national futsal league side, which finished top of the table last season.
Thom said while O’Farrell was a big loss to the club, he normally expected to lose a handful of players each season and that provided opportunities for new players.
He praised O’Farrell’s development and said he had progressed quickly since arriving at the club.
O’Farrell came to Roslyn as a 15-year-old, and "I think he had the skill set ... [but mentally] he was a 15-year-old boy playing in a men’s competition.
"I think he was a bit over-awed. Some games he didn’t want to go on because there were big lads and he was a wee bit shy of that.
"But over the couple of years that we had him, he grew into a guy that you’d pick him on the team sheet every week and he’s matured rather quickly as a young player."
It was uncertain whether O’Farrell would return to Dunedin.
However, Thom supported his move overseas and said it was every player’s dream to play in a professional, or semi-professional, environment.He said said it showed a lot of courage moving to the other side of the world, where he did not know anyone.
"If you’ve got a young kid like that who’s prepared to take that risk and that gamble, he’s going to get a lot more exposure where he is.
"It could lead on to brighter and better things. It’s great for him and it’s great for our club."
