Vincent’s young guns ready to complete final task

BOSS Mickey Whelan may be within touching distance of his 70th birthday but it is an investment in youth that has brought St Vincent’s the unforeseen payout of a trip to Croke Park for the All-Ireland Club final next Monday.

Four years ago, the Marino side gave notice of their potential by claiming the Dublin U21 title and 14 of that squad will be lacing up their boots underneath the Hogan Stand come St Patrick’s Day.

Nowhere is their youth more obvious than closest to their own goal, where 21-year-old keeper Michael Savage mans the rigging with the aid of a full-back line whose oldest member is just three years older.

Savage takes up the tale. “Hugh Gill is only 19 or 20, Eoin Brady is 23 or 24 and Paul Conlon is the same age. That is very young but we have played with each other a while now and you have to credit the management who have brought us up together.

“The half-back line is a bit more experienced. Ger Brennan is only 22 but we have two older lads on the wings — Pat Kelly, who I couldn’t talk highly enough about, and Timmy Doyle who has been knocking around a while.”

Alan Hansen was once famously disabused of the notion “you win nothing with kids” and Savage’s situation is proof of the old maxim that, if they are good enough, they are old enough.

When Vincent’s won that U21 title four years back, Savage was their goalkeeper despite being four years underage for the grade and has demonstrated his maturity with the county too.

Number one for the U21s for the last three years, he claimed a Leinster title at the first attempt in 2005 and, though early exits followed the next two seasons, Savage did enough to confirm a reputation as a future senior contender.

Like a lot of shot-stoppers, his career in the nets started by accident. Though he donned the gloves for many a street match in Marino, on a whim he volunteered for the role for a game while a first-year student at Ard Scoil Ris.

Tony Diamond, a member of the current senior management, happened to be at the game and Savage played well. So well, that he was playing there for the club within days.

He is used to being the baby on the team ever since joining up with the U21s as a callow 17-year old but the tight-knit nature of the parish and club allowed for a smooth integration into the adult world.

That brotherhood has stood to the collective as well as individuals.

“It hasn’t been easy,” Savage concedes. “The first year I played senior we got beaten in the county semi-final. The year after we lost to UCD in the final. That was very disappointing but we could always see the gradual improvement. Even this year we have been improving game by game. That keeps you going.”

That track record suggested they would have to take a hit in Leinster this time before returning to conquer yet another peak but they have bucked their own trend by brushing aside every obstacle since the county final at the first attempt. The impressive manner in which they disposed of Crossmaglen in the last four spoke volumes of how far this team has come.

“When we first realised we were playing Cross it was a bit daunting because we played a friendly against them some time in the last 18 months, I can’t remember exactly when, and they absolutely hockeyed us.

“But, the more we looked at them and got used to the fact that it was an All-Ireland semi-final, it turned from being daunting to exciting.”

Vincent’s will look to approach the final in much the same vein.