Brick is right up there with all our greats and he could even go again, claims McGrath
IN THE 55th minute, Semple Stadium rose to acclaim Michael ‘Brick’ Walsh as he left the fray for perhaps the last time as a Waterford player. Fittingly, his final act was to play a critical part in a brilliant team move, setting Tommy Ryan up for the goal. Derek McGrath wanted Brick to take centrestage earlier in the week. It was a special day for the modest Stradbally man, who was making his 74th championship appearance, breaking Brendan Cummins’ record. And even though he’s 35 years of age, McGrath wouldn’t be surprised if he went again. The funny thing was, the Waterford management were thinking of calling Brick ashore moments earlier, just so he would be guaranteed an ovation. Good thing he was kept on. ‘I remember seeing Brian Cody running on to leave Eoin Larkin on the field a few years ago in the All-Ireland final, remember watching it from the top of the Hogan Stand,’ said McGrath. ‘When you think about great Waterford sportspeople, you think of John Treacy, Sean Kelly and John O’Shea. ‘And in hurling, you think of Ken McGrath, Tony Browne and Philly Grimes. But for me, Brick stands up there with all of them, just for his pure humility and warriorlike qualities but also for his guile and his cunning as well. ‘He doesn’t get enough credit for that. He’s just a fantastic person to share a dressing-room with, and he deserves all the respect he gets. ‘And you know what? He could go again.’.
The question is, if Brick goes for a 16th season, will he have the same manager in the dressing-room? McGrath said that he is going to reflect on his future in the coming weeks. Earlier this year, it was suggested this was likely to be his final year at the helm but after their Championship campaign being blighted by such misfortune in terms of injuries, he might have a rethink. ‘I have and I haven’t [thought about it],’ McGrath said. ‘Everything I have done this year was pointed towards what’s happening at the end of the year. ‘It was complete immersion on everyone’s behalf, team and management. The last few weeks… I am not going to say they changed my mind but was just conscious of giving Brick centrestage today. ‘We geared everything towards the Munster Championship and it went horribly wrong in a number of ways,’ admitted McGrath.