Party time in Kilkenny as All-Ireland winners return

LAST night it was payback. On Sunday in Croke Park, a pair of foot-perfect Kilkenny teams — don’t forget the minors — thrilled their thousands of supporters by completing the precious All-Ireland hurling double.

In the gathering gloom of Kilkenny last night, the fans had a chance to show that when it comes to honouring their own, they too are up with the best. And yes, they succeeded.

Not long before 7pm, the All-Ireland hurling champions alighted from their luxury coaches on the Iarnrod Éireann special from Dublin, to be met by an early indication this could be a record-breaking evening in the Marble City.

First senior players on the upper deck of the waiting open-topped, were two of the young guns on this Kilkenny team, corner-forward Eddie Brennan and discovery-of-the-year, full-forward Martin Comerford.

“Deja vu,” whispered Eddie, looking around at the black-and-amber-bedecked throngs, “deja vu”. Brennan was here two years ago after the Cats ended a seven year famine (an eternity in this county), when a team that threatened to earn a record no Kilkenny team would ever want, that of losing three All-Ireland finals in a row, broke their duck. The celebrations then were good, these looked likely to be better.

“This is your first time Martin,” Eddie continued, turning to his forward partner. “Enjoy every moment of it. Don’t go to bed, because sleep is cheating, you never know when you’ll do this again, so enjoy it for all it’s worth”.

It would have to be said that, as the bus proceeded, Martin looked like he was taking that advice very much to heart.

It was the younger Comerford’s first trip but selector Noel Skehan was heading down that road for the 10th time. Nine as a player, now as a member of Brian Cody’s management team.

St John’s, to The Parade, right, up to the Market, where they waited, the multitudes. Taking a guess at numbers is just that, a guess, but it was big.

“Maybe 20,000,” the former star keeper reckoned, though there were estimates as high as 30,000. “In a small city like Kilkenny, that’s some turn-out.”

There’s a bit more noise nowadays with the air-horns, a bit more flag flying, but according to Skehan, little has changed.

“We travelled down by train also, though without the luxury, more like the old Ford. But the crowd is the same, the atmosphere the same, the same celebration among the lads. We’re a funny breed in Kilkenny, think we have a divine right to winning All-Irelands and I suppose that’s a positive. It doesn’t always happen, but when it does, we know how to enjoy it, players and supporters.”

No doubt about that. One new development however is live television on the buses on the move, and of course, local radio. Up front, Barry Henriques, one of the most well-known voices in the county, broadcasting live, seemed to know everyone of those 20,000 faces and was attempting to name them on radio.

One of Henriques’ interviewees was Peter Barry, and for this outstanding centre-back this journey was what it was all about. “We’ve proven we can win,” he said. “After losing two finals, which we did in 98 and 99, you never know which way you’re going to go. I remember Brian up on the stage after losing to Cork in 99, saying that by hell or high water we were going to come back next year. I was on the other side of the stage shaking my head. We did it once, and now we’ve proved we could do it again. This is giving me the chills now, but it’s the best part, coming home, the crowds.”

“You can’t get tired of this, this is victory, this is success, the fulfilment of everything you did all year,” said coach Cody. “This is all about the people of Kilkenny getting the opportunity to savour the whole thing as well. There are people all over these streets now who invested a lot of their time in the development of the lads on these buses now.

“This is payback time for them, and for the players. There’s a feeling of ecstasy around the whole county, the whole city this is our chance to sit back and enjoy.”