Tribe’s emotional triumph struck a chord with me on a personal level
AT THE final whistle on the RTÉ television commentary last Sunday, the first person that came into my mind was Tony Keady. I was emotional, in tears, the scenes at the end of the All-Ireland final just caught me on so many levels.
Whether it’s a live match on radio or television, I don’t come armed with notes. I come with an open mind and approach it completely spontaneously. In that moment, I found the passing of a true Galway great had resonated in that moment. It really hit me.
It was All-Ireland final day in 2009 when my wife Edel went into hospital at St James’s and never came out. She died 10 days later. Hurling is what kept us going as a family with the lads. It means the world to us. It’s our life. To see Tony’s family then, daughter Shannon standing beside Joe Canning, the other links to the doublewinning team of 1987-88 in Gearóid McInerney and Joseph Cooney, struck a chord I’m sure for a lot of people watching.
We all saw later in the Galway homecoming that same sense of family with the emotional photograph of manager Micheál Donoghue greeting his father with the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
If Waterford had won, while there wouldn’t have been a Tony Keady moment, it would have been emotional, too. There are so many personal and family stories bound up in the county’s wait since 1959.
This unique final was always going to be completely different, it was always going to be incredibly emotional, given the gaps to be bridged on both sides.
I played in four finals, losing two. The defeat to Clare in 1995 was very disappointing. I felt a huge sense of loss after that and it took a long time to get over. 2000 was different. That night in Jurys, all our parents, wives, family, friends were all there and it turned into a celebration of our time in the jersey rather than a wake. A bunch of us knew without saying it that the time for that team was up.
It was a different type of emotion with Tony Keady not there to witness his county’s triumph. For such a player, such a character and someone seemingly in the full of his health to pass away suddenly at 53, the sense of shock is still real.
I read where daughter Shannon said that her dad brought the family everywhere and there was always a row to see who would sit beside him in the car because he was such a character.
Croke Park deserve huge credit for how they accommodated the family on the day, allowing them access to the field for such a moment. It was a joy to witness.
After their appearance on RTÉ’s Up For The Match as well, they brought the Keady family to the game as their guest. The half-time tribute to Tony was special. It was done very well, without taking away from the final or from Waterford’s participation.
As for the match itself, the contribution of Galway captain David Burke was so crucial to victory. He was colossal. Semifinal apart, my recollection of Burke over the course of his career is of delivering consistently high levels of performance – a brilliant linkman, a scorer, someone who flows over the ground, a nine out of 10 most days.
He put in one of the great AllIreland final displays.
The All-Ireland was built around the spine of the team: Daithí Burke at number three, Gearóid McInerney at six, Burke and Johnny Coen midfield, and Joe Canning and Conor Cooney in lead attacking roles.
Jamie Barron played superbly as well on the Waterford side, particularly given he was unwell in the build-up and is up there for Player of the Year. With Kevin Moran, the Waterford midfield contributed 1-3, a point more than Burke and Coen. It was some contribution all round.
Then there’s Canning getting the medal his talent deserved. While he didn’t have the swashbuckling games of the past, he delivered incredible moments. The sideline ball was just one of them along with his frees. .
How would I rate him? The best way to put his talent in context is this: he’d be on any team of the last 20 years. That includes the great Kilkenny team at their peak. One of the great players.
So, where now for Waterford? Derek McGrath is certainly the right man for the job. I hope Brick Walsh stays on, too. Seventy consecutive Championship games is remarkable. He won some great ball again in the final but had no support at times while the game passed Austin Gleeson by.
Galway managed to put 26 points up on a team with seven backs – if Waterford went six on six, would they have scored that? One option is to put Tadhg de Búrca at full-back, Gleeson at six, and build from there.
Because they have the talent to come back again.
The summer produced some marvellous occasions –Waterford beating Kilkenny for first time since 1959, Wexford winning promotion while beating Kilkenny was massive in their development. Clare shot themselves in the foot with puckouts and easy points conceded in the Cork and Tipp games and know there is more in them. Kilkenny drew with Waterford in normal time without being anything like they could be.
The team that must really be kicking themselves is Tipperary, left to wonder where did it all go wrong.
Even after Cathal Barrett’s disciplinary issue, they still only lost to a wonder point from Joe Canning.
Galway know how hard it’s going to be in 2018.