Glen Rovers’ success bridges nations and generations

A couple of weeks ago I spoke to Fr Pat Barry ahead of the Cork senior hurling final. He wasn’t ecumenical about the game and he didn’t try to be, as befitted a former Glen Rovers county-winning captain, but the conversation roved away from sport when he leaned on a career largely spent in Africa.

He pointed out, for instance, that refugees tend to be on the move in the first place searching for a better life - why else, he pointed out, would they leave the places where they were born and raised?

The chat soon rolled back then to the game, and the length of time since the Glen had lost won, 26 years, and how special a victory would be.