Kavanagh still yearns for more success

CORK’S wait for All-Ireland football glory was becoming exhausting before last month’s success and the Kavanagh family served as a perfect microcosm of that.

Joe suffered losses in 1993 and 1999 and, after winding up beaten in 2007 and 2009, Derek finally got his hands on a medal at the fifth attempt for the family.

“Surreal is the perfect word to describe after the game. It was just a massive relief to finally win it, both for the county and for my family, after all the losses. You’d appreciate it more now a few weeks later. I had the cup the other day, taking it around to local schools, and we might get it for a night in the club before Christmas. It’s starting to sink in.”

He may have satisfied a national craving, but Kavanagh still yearns for more success.

“It would mean everything really to win it and it would be an absolute downer to lose. I’ve lost just the one county final, that was in 1999, and I always associated that year with disappointment. 2010 will be the same if we lose next weekend.”

Last year’s county decider was a novel experience as Nemo Rangers were marked absent for the first time in five years when they exited in the quarter-final against Carbery.

“It was a nice novelty at the start last year as you could plan a weekend away or a holiday. But, the novelty soon wore off when you’re watching the Munster club championship on TV. You’d give anything to be travelling around the country, playing with your club. It sank in at that time.

“I was down at last year’s county final just watching it. You see the buzz of being involved in one and you just want to get back to that. County final day still excites me, it’s special and each one takes on a new dimension.”

He has the height of respect for opponents St Finbarr’s, as the memories they used to hand out to his underage Nemo Rangers team have yet to dissipate.

“They were always much better than us underage and used to hammer us at every level. Cathal McCarthy would have been in my class at school and would have been on those teams. I’d have the height of respect for them. They haven’t looked back since they were relegated from senior.

“It probably made them cop on, take things seriously and they’ve been hugely consistent since then.”